Thanks to Fiona for hosting our Zoom book club on Bill's account - thank you! What a fun meeting, and such an interesting conversation about an interesting story. Many of us where unaware of the small population of people in Appalachian Kentucky with a genetic anomaly resulting in blue skin. It is hard to imagine the shock of an ignorant, isolated people to such a deviation from the norm, and the behavior of some reflected the challenge.
The story of Cussie Mary, the last of the Fugate family that reflected the gene that caused blue skin, was both uplifting and oppressive. She is young, living in abject poverty and hopeful that her job (earned by applying outside of the community) will allow her options in her life. She is a local "book woman", delivering reading material to remote families around the area, over difficult and sometimes dangerous terrain, on a mule with her own agenda.
Perhaps the most important message of this story is the absolute starvation for those reading materials, among literal starvation. This is the depression, with a people living under the control of the local coal mining company and the "company store". These stories were heartbreaking. They were indeed the representations of "abject poverty" endemic in this time, among these very poor, very proud people up against forces they couldn't possibly conquer, even with a union led by the blue father of the book woman. Was he the leader because of his color that made him more expendable than others? Or because he had the initiative to take action because he had less to lose since he was blue? Maybe both.
His daughter, by all accounts a pretty woman, although blue, was devoted to providing for the needs of her "patrons, scattered around the hollow despite their sometimes strong aversion to her because of her skintone. She sacrifices her time, her labor and her own sustenance to help those she can, even those who shun her and refuse to allow her to touch them. Pretty tough stuff.
Overall, this was a lovely book, a lovely story and an interesting time in American history, reflective of its time and human nature. The author herself added to the attraction of the story as she had grown up in Kentucky, in foster care, homeless at age 14. Somehow, she found information about these "blue" people of her area, and her fascination led to this very readable, interesting novel. We liked it!
And so on we go. Our next book was supposed to be The Irish RM but after some discussion, we thought Circe by Madeline Miller would have more fodder for discussion, so that is our pick. I expect to be Zooming again on Feb. 16 at 6:30 pm although I hope for better.
Talk with you all then!
