Review: The Book Woman's Daughter

The Book Woman's Daughter by Kim Michele Richardson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the sequel to The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, and if you have the time, I would highly recommend that you read this book first before reading The Book Woman's Daughter. You don't NEED to, but it will help better understand some of what happens during this novel.  Also, if you have a Kindle and Kindle Unlimited, I would like to let you know that The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek is free to borrow. 

Now the reason for my long-winded start, The Book Woman's Daughter was fabulous. Set in Eastern Kentucky during the early 1950's when extreme prejudice was going strong, this book tells the story of one of the last 'Blue' people out there. These people have methemoglobinemia, which literally turned their skin blue. Honey is not totally blue, just her hands and feet, but that is enough to mark her.  In Kentucky, as well as other places, they have laws that forbid people from marrying outside of their color, and this is how the book starts out with Honey's parents being arrested for breaking the miscegenation laws. Honey is hiding, in a way, from Social Services, who threaten to put her in a "working camp" (prison) until she is 21. She is 16 when the book starts.

This story is actually a bit more about how women were treated in this time and place and the continuation of the of the Kentucky Pack  Horse Librarians, which was started in the 1930's as a 

WPA project. This is a story of a young woman seeking emancipation. This is a story of women and girls overcoming antiquated laws, horrid behavior from the government and the locals, men, the Kentucky Coal Miners, and of course, books and the love of reading.

I can't seem to give a better review than this-I am so in awe of this dualogy that all I can do is give it 5 Stars and recommend the heck out of it. And if you do read this, make sure to view the pictures at the end of the book and read Ms. Richardson's reasons for writing this book and all about the author's research!

*ARC was supplied for early review by the publisher SOURCEBOOKS Landmark, The author, and NetGalley. Thank you.

View all my reviews

SYNOPSIS: "Bestselling historical fiction author Kim Michele Richardson is back with the perfect book club read following Honey Mary Angeline Lovett, the daughter of the beloved Troublesome book woman, who must fight for her own independence with the help of the women who guide her and the books that set her free.

In the ruggedness of the beautiful Kentucky mountains, Honey Lovett has always known that the old ways can make a hard life harder. As the daughter of the famed blue-skinned, Troublesome Creek packhorse librarian, Honey and her family have been hiding from the law all her life. But when her mother and father are imprisoned, Honey realizes she must fight to stay free, or risk being sent away for good.

Picking up her mother’s old packhorse library route, Honey begins to deliver books to the remote hollers of Appalachia. Honey is looking to prove that she doesn’t need anyone telling her how to survive, but the route can be treacherous, and some folks aren’t as keen to let a woman pave her own way. If Honey wants to bring the freedom that books provide to the families who need it most, she’s going to have to fight for her place, and along the way, learn that the extraordinary women who run the hills and hollers can make all the difference in the world."