The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek - Kim Michele Richardson

So this one has been on my to-read list for a while, and after a friend posted on Facebook that she really enjoyed it, I suggested it to the book club I organize, and everyone agreed this would be our book for February. I had to constantly remind myself while reading this book that this book was set in the 1930’s. While that is actually almost 100 years ago at this point (which is WILD to think!), it still doesn’t seem like it should feel like it’s so far in the past; I mean, it’s the 1930’s we’re talking about! I do think that is part of the point of the book, though; while it is set in America in the 1900’s, it is set in a very rural, very poor area, and that really comes through in this book. It often made me think back to books I’ve read about colonial times or a little bit after with their herbs and tinctures and so little modern medicine to treat things, along with having to travel by horse or mule with wagons. Pair that with the way people treated one another and the isolation and I was really transported to another world while reading this book.

I’d never heard of the “blue people” from Kentucky, so it was interesting doing some research and learning about methemoglobinemia, a rare recessive blood disorder that the family this story is loosely based on just so happened to have. Being that they lived so remotely, they often married cousins, and the trait lived on through them. It was also super interesting learning about the Pack Horse Librarians, and it was a nice little bonus at the end of the book seeing photos of actual women that were part of the project! It’s just so interesting to me to think that just barely 100 years ago books were so hard to come by for these people; I can order a book and it is here the next day, or take a 10 minute drive to the library or bookstore. I even grew up just across the park from our local library, so it’s just wild to me to think about not being able to have easy access to books. It was also very sad reading about the poverty and how hard these people worked and struggled just to live their lives. There were parts of this book that were so sad, but others that really just filled me with joy and the goodness of people. It wasn’t the type of book I was instantly hooked on, it was easy for me to put down at times, but it was just as easy for me to pick it back up and keep reading it. I really enjoyed this story, and would definitely recommend it to others!