Books You May Have Missed!

Yesterday’s Books and Tomorrow ’s Reading

March is Women’s History Month! Check out these reads by talented, female authors who promise to make their mark on the world of literature for many years to come.

Set during World War I in southwest Virginia, Hiding Ezra is the story of a simple farmer, Ezra Teague, who is forced to choose between fighting for his country and taking care of his family. Hiding Ezra is also a love story, as we see the girl of his dreams, Alma Newton, try to figure out how to extricate Ezra from his predicament. And finally, Hiding Ezra is the story of an adventure, a quest, and a chase, as the authorities — including local boy Lieutenant Andrew Nettles — try to bring Ezra to military justice.

Rita Sims Quillen Kathleen M. Jacobs Maggie MacLean Brenda Crissman Musick

Honeysuckle Holiday centers on the life of twelve-year-old protagonist, Lucy. It takes place in the south, in the late 1960s. Lucy struggles internally to come to terms with her parents’ sudden and mysterious divorce. She finds herself thrust — almost overnight — from a world of comfort and privilege into one of near marginality. Lucy comes to shed her unknowing racism, taking her beyond the ideals of youth — her love of books and the trappings of childhood knit closely to her very fiber. She learns to peel back the layers of human frailty (her own included) painful piece by painful piece, while struggling to hold on to the comforts of innocence.

While women’s place in the nineteenth-century society was strictly defined, some women transcended those boundaries. Amanda Armstrong was one of those women. Out of food and supplies, Amanda traveled to Knoxville, looking for a way to support herself until the war was over. Along the way, she encountered an orphaned black boy who attached himself to her and would not let go. When she returned home a few months later, he followed her. After conquering her own deep-seated fears, Amanda profoundly affected the lives of many people, including the women of her neighborhood who were also struggling to survive the war.

Young girls of the Appalachian Mountains had their dreams just like everyone else...simple dreams of marrying a good man, moving across the hill and raising a family. Carrie Ranes had those dreams, and they included the handsome Tom Swank. Her marriage woes are pushed aside as she battles to save her dying daughter. Will Carrie’s dreams be shattered? Can she save her daughter, her marriage, her family?