The Giver of Stars
Set in Depression-era America, a breathtaking story of five extraordinary women and their remarkable journey through the mountains of Kentucky and beyond.
Based on a true story rooted in Americaās past,Ā The Giver of StarsĀ is unparalleled in its scope and epic in its storytelling. Funny, heartbreaking, enthralling, it is destined to become a modern classicāa richly rewarding novel of womenās friendship, of true love, and of what happens when we reach beyond our grasp for the great beyond.
Alice Wright marries handsome American Bennett Van Cleve hoping to escape her stifling life in England. But small-town Kentucky quickly proves equally claustrophobic, especially living alongside her overbearing father-in-law. So when a call goes out for a team of women to deliver books as part of Eleanor Rooseveltās new traveling library, Alice signs on enthusiastically.
The leader, and soon Aliceās greatest ally, is Margery, a smart-talking, self-sufficient woman whoās never asked a manās permission for anything. They will be joined by three other singular women who become known as the Packhorse Librarians of Kentucky.
What happens to themāand to the men they loveābecomes an unforgettable drama of loyalty, justice, humanity and passion. These heroic women refuse to be cowed by men or by convention. And though they face all kinds of dangers in a landscape that is at times breathtakingly beautiful, at others brutal, theyāre committed to their job: bringing books to people who have never had any, arming them with facts that will change their lives.