monagustafsonaffinito   CONVERSATIONS

Recently I posted the following review on Goodreads and Amazon

I’m glad I read the first book with my book group, but one needn’t have read it to enjoy Book 2. (To tell the truth, I wouldn’t be surprised if there would be a Book 3). As a previous viewer has pointed out, there is so much to learn. I’m sorry it’s no longer a shock to me to learn of human cruelty, but it did horrify me to learn that – at the time I was busy getting educated and married (1950s) – there were children imprisoned for being orphans or the wrong color. I haven’t done the research thing to validate the story, but I’ve decided to accept it as true.

This wasn’t a can’t-put-it-down-in-time -to-go-to-bed novel, but it was gripping when I did spend time with it. Listening to Katie Schorr read it on the audible book enhanced the effect of being there in the Kentucky hills. I do have friends, however, who tend to skip past descriptions to get to the action who might, therefore, find it a slow go. I, on the contrary, enjoyed being immersed in the sights and smells of an area otherwise unfamiliar to me.

I have to admit I would have liked more detail/understanding of how the story ended for the original Packhorse Librarian and her husband. It seems to me some potential richness was overlooked there. Maybe we’ll get more in the next (?) book?

But these comments, rather than reflecting disappointment, reflect the extent to which I was gripped by the characters. I have a warm feeling even as I remember the book woman’s daughter.