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A review by myjourneywithbooks
The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
4.0
When Alice Wright marries the handsome Bennett van Cleve, she hopes that the move from England to America will help her escape her stifling life. But small town Kentucky doesn't turn out to provide the freedom Alice imagined. And to make matters worse, married life feels like a disappointment too, with Bennett growing strange and distant, and the overbearing presence of her father-in-law never far away. So when the call goes out for volunteers for a new travelling library initiative, Alice jumps on the chance, little knowing that she will end up making the best friends she will ever have.
Set during the American Depression and based on the true story of the Packhorse Librarians of Kentucky, this story, sometimes funny and cheerful, sometimes sad and heartbreaking, but always beautifully written, certainly packs a lot. At the forefront of the story are Alice and Margery O'Hare, a tough independent local woman who ends up becoming Alice's strongest ally. Each of them faces their own personal trials and woven throughout the storyline is the women's fight to challenge both the societal norms and the men who think they can tell them how to live their lives. Each librarian adds something to the story and Mrs Brady was my favourite of the minor characters!
Through the lives of the women librarians and the people they love, we witness an unfolding drama filled with courage, loyalty, passion and a sense of camaraderie that will have you wishing for friends like these. Though my interest dipped a little somewhere along the way, it rose again towards the end and the book ended up being a thoroughly enjoyable one overall, making me shed a few tears and providing plenty of laughs.
Set during the American Depression and based on the true story of the Packhorse Librarians of Kentucky, this story, sometimes funny and cheerful, sometimes sad and heartbreaking, but always beautifully written, certainly packs a lot. At the forefront of the story are Alice and Margery O'Hare, a tough independent local woman who ends up becoming Alice's strongest ally. Each of them faces their own personal trials and woven throughout the storyline is the women's fight to challenge both the societal norms and the men who think they can tell them how to live their lives. Each librarian adds something to the story and Mrs Brady was my favourite of the minor characters!
Through the lives of the women librarians and the people they love, we witness an unfolding drama filled with courage, loyalty, passion and a sense of camaraderie that will have you wishing for friends like these. Though my interest dipped a little somewhere along the way, it rose again towards the end and the book ended up being a thoroughly enjoyable one overall, making me shed a few tears and providing plenty of laughs.