Limb Loss in the Story
Just as regenerative agriculture required some research in this third book, so did having a protagonist with limb loss.
Nora Mahoney was eight when she suffered the loss of her right hand in The Mahoneys of West Seattle. My job then was to learn how to depict her situation realistically. It began with her wrist disarticulation surgery, and extended to the healing process and the prosthetics she would use.
Criterium bike handlebar adapters
In Ipswich, Mon Amour, Nora is 23 and has been living a very active life. She’s a mountain biker, weight lifter, rock climber and competitive snowboarder. My research involved prosthetics related to those and other activities. I also explored the day-to-day life of an adult amputee.
The Black Iron Master and Trainer for weightlifting
The Raptor Sky Hook prosthesis for rock climbing
As when writing the previous book, I found a lot of useful info through the Amputee Coalition. For years now, I’ve been receiving their daily emails with the Community Member Open Forum Discussions. They detail the questions and concerns of people with limb loss, including those who are just entering their new lives as amputees. It’s sometimes heartbreaking to hear their stories. But it’s also touching to see how those who have been living as amputees are willing to reach out and share information, inspiration and encouragement. The discussions have taught me so much and have guided me in building my character’s journey.
Farming With Limb Loss
There are scenes in Ipswich, Mon Amour that describe Nora Mahoney’s life as an amputee outside of farming. Regenerative agriculture is a big part of the book, though, and most of the narrative around her limb loss centers on the challenges she faces as a farmer. That includes planting seedlings and prepping the soil with a BCS tractor, as well as harvesting crops, then washing and packing them.
For many tasks, she uses a body-powered prosthesis with a claw-shaped terminal device. It’s connected to a wire that runs to a simple harness she wears under her shirt. She able to open and close the claw by flexing her shoulders. It allows her to grasp and hold rakes and other tools, as well as carry boxes.
Body-powered prosthesis for upper-limb loss
For some chores, she’ll go without a prosthesis because she’s able to manage the work with just her left hand. That also frees her from the sweat and irritation that come with wearing a socket and liner over her right forearm for hours at a stretch during hot summer months.
Myoelectric Hands
One prosthesis she doesn’t wear in the field is her myoelectric hand, which she calls her robot hand. Inside the unit are tiny electrodes that detect electrical impulses generated by the movement of the muscles in her right forearm. Those signals are converted to commands that cause the fingers to flex in specific ways.
Multi-articulating myoelectric hands by Arm Dynamics
It’s a very useful device for many situations, but it’s also very expensive and not suited to the dirty, grueling work of farming. In Nora’s backstory, the reader hears about the time she broke a myoelectric hand. Her parents paid the high deductible to have the unit replaced. But they warn her that they won’t do so again if she damaged the new one by treating it roughly. It’s another reason never to bring it to the farm.
There are times when Nora has to improvise. For cutting rows of head lettuce, she saves time by duct-taping a knife to one of her passive terminal devices. It gets the job done quickly and safely, as long as she remembers that she has a very sharp tool attached to the end of her arm.
Row covers protect some of the greens growing at Iron Ox Farm
Nora Mahoney’s Prosthetic Wish List
After Nora’s been farming for a while, she develops a wish list for different terminal devices that would be useful in performing her typical tasks in the field. None of them were available on the commercial market, so they’d all have to be custom-made by her prosthetist.
To quote from the book: “Once she got into the rhythm of farm work, Nora began to daydream of new prostheses that could be fabricated. They’d be passive terminal devices that could clip into her socket: a trowel for digging, a narrower version for planting seedlings, a sharp knife for harvesting, and a snipper for pruning. They’d all work simply, with no sensory controls or power source, which could be a problem for the snipper…unless, Nora thought, it could somehow be spring-loaded manually.”
The prostheses she imagines, and maybe others, could become a reality in a sequel to Ipswich, Mon Amour, if there is one. A fourth novel in the series would be set at a point when Nora is no longer a newbie in the world of agriculture. She’d be a seasoned pro dealing with the more complex issues involved in running an established farming business.
If you’d like to read more about the research and writing of Ipswich, Mon Amour, check out these other posts:
Death and Mythology in the Novel