Recently, I read a book and its sequel that I enjoyed, so I thought I would share them with you.
The story takes place in 1936 in the mountains of eastern Kentucky and revolves around Cussie Mary, a Blue packhorse librarian. A Blue is a person with a rare genetic disorder that makes their skin appear blue. There was an isolated group of Blues in eastern Kentucky, and they were severely mistreated by many as they were considered "colored" or a work of the Devil. The Packhorse Librarians was a project of the WPA (Works Progress Administration), and the purpose was to get books into the hands of people living in remote areas. Many places were only accessible by horse (or mule, as in Cussie's case); thus, the packhorse librarian name.
The narrative of the Book Woman of Troublesome Creek is a blend of hardship and beauty. It alternates between scenes of mistreatment and poverty, and vivid descriptions of the mountains and the resilient people who call them home. The emotional journey of Cussie Mary is intertwined with secondary plots of people on her route and her father's difficult time in the coal mines.
I loved this book. The story was compelling, and the writing was rich, with each word seeming to have been carefully chosen. Also, I enjoyed learning about a part of the history of the Blues and the packhorse librarians that I knew little about.
Last fall, the sequel, The Book Woman's Daughter, came out, and I listened to it after finishing the first one It picks up about 16 years later but goes back and fills in some of the stories of what took place during that time. As with most sequels, The Book Women's Daughter could be read independently, but will be a much richer experience if you read the first book first. This book shows the same warmth in some characters and horrible behavior from others. In both books, the mountains are one of the characters, and Richardson continues with the same beautiful language to describe them.
I recommend both books.
Note: Here is an important part of my positive experience of the books. I listened to them. I do not usually listen to books, but I was looking for something to listen to when I stumbled on The Packhorse Librarian. The narrator, Katie Schorr, is excellent. After I was into the story, I considered getting the book to read because it would progress faster. But the characters became real with Shorr's voice, and I looked forward to visiting with them through her. These books would be compelling reads, but I highly recommend the audio version of them.
Until next time...
Sounds like two books I'd like to read. Thank you for the recommendation. I shall see if our library has copies.
ReplyDeleteI hope you like them. It was difficult for me at times reading some of the bad things that happened, but unfortunately, the book was based on what was happening at that time.
DeletePart of our traveling ritual includes reading. I will pass this one on to Barb.
ReplyDeleteWe don't take long trips like you do, but we do load up on books before we travel anywhere. I don't know if this Barb's style of books, but they were good.
DeleteI didn't about there being blues. I've only heard of blue people who turned blue because they got pulled into the taking colloidal silver for everything and overdid it.
ReplyDeleteIt's very rare. It's carried on a recessive gene and it takes both parents to carry it for it to show up. It was established in this part of rural Kentucky where travel was difficult and the gene pool was limited. Supposedly, it can be traced to a French immigrant. I don't know if there are any more people around with the condition today.
DeleteThank you for this suggestion. I had read articles about the blue skinned folks not too long ago. I think this book will be very interesting.
ReplyDeleteIn general, I like historical fiction, and this one was very good.
DeleteI read the first book a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it. There's another book about pack horse librarians, The Giver of Stars, by Jojo Moyes--I heard rave reviews on that one, but I thought that The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek was better written and much more compelling. At the time I read it, I went on a deep dive to learn more about the blues, because it was new information to me. After life settles down for me, I'll have to check out the sequel.
ReplyDeleteI'm very late to the party, but I just finished Educated by Tara Westover, and enjoyed it, although much of it was disturbing to me. I'm not usually interested in memoirs, but that one read like a novel.
While Richardson was writing the Book Woman, she stopped for a while to make sure there weren't plagiarism issues with the Moyes book.
Delete"Educated" is indeed a disturbing book. After it came out, I watched Tara be interviewed several places and was convinced that the book was all true. The family was so outlandish and her break from them was so miraculous, many said she was making it all up.