The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek

Based on a real person, this book let me see a part of American history that often gets lost: the people who live in hard to reach places and don't want to leave their homes, but hunger for knowledge of the outside world. A "bookwoman" on the back of a mule can be a Godsend.

I sat on my mother’s lap as a child to hear stories of her childhood in Appalachia—no running water or electricity, and the shame brought on by her mother’s escape from that hard life. The setting and the characterizations in Book Woman of Troublesome Creek brought back some of the memories of my mother’s stories.

I came to love the character’s adaptation to the harsh environment, their want for a better life, and the difference one person’s influence can make in a community. The spirit of survival, even with the hardest of circumstances, forced me to cherish this story. It… show more.

Sometimes you pick a book just to be entertained; I did not expect to be educated so much with this book!

I thought the “blue” people were made up for the storyline until I saw their pictures. Then I was hooked and had to do some googling to find out more about these extraordinary people. The book highlights not only the struggles of the blue color of the main character, Cussy Mary Carter, but her tough life as a traveling librarian bringing books to isolated mountain readers.

I admit I am a little biased in reading this because she is… show more.

Set in the Appalachian Mountains in the 1930s, Cussy embodies strength and fearlessness in the face of prejudice and hardship. Her skin is a light shade of blue, and she lives in a community of people who blame a Blue for every misery they encounter. She fights to earn a packhorse librarian’s position and, in snow and rain, travels the dangerous mountain trails to bring books to the hill people who despise her.  The Kentucky Pack Horse Library Project causes dissension on the mountain, and her skin color causes even more, but her indomitable spirit endures, and her belief in the power… show more.

I was inspired by the strong women in this book about Kentucky women who risked their lives to see that everyone had an opportunity to learn to read and have books in their hands. Plus, there is an additional theme which surprised me, and who doesn’t like a surprise. As a writer, avid reader, and retired teacher, I appreciate being able to connect with what I’m reading. This, also, was an eye-opening read into our history. Understanding history, I feel, is an important part of understanding who I am.

If you’re looking for a story rich in a southern setting, you cannot go wrong with this one. Richardson is masterful at dialogue, and her prose is sure to sweep you into a surprising, enchanting world. I love stories like The Book Woman because I learn something new, but I don’t feel like I’m learning. I feel like I’m living in the world of the story.

The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson speaks to intense research and reveals unsung superheroes: librarians who carried enlightenment into dark hollers on a pack mule. Richardson’s rich characters are armed with the plucky determination required of our pioneers, but they reach beyond the necessary to survive and tap into the will to thrive thanks to the power of books.