As a longtime maternity nurse at a Northern Ontario hospital, Bets has experienced the daily creation of new families. Yet this sixty-something “matriarch” of the hospital has only experienced personal loss; most recently, her husband Raz. When she meets Hannah, a high-school student who wants to learn about nursing, Bets enjoys sharing stories of her work, never suspecting the new direction their lives will take. As Drownproofing unfolds from present to past and back again, the complexity of Bets’ own family story is slowly revealed. She’s confronted with tough choices that challenge her outlook on life and her definition of family. A compelling and emotional read, author Karen Lea Armstrong drew from her career as a family physician to tell this story with striking depth and drama.