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The Giver of Stars
A Heartfelt Journey Through Courage and Friendship
When I read in the book blurb that ‘The Giver of Stars’ from Jojo Moyes is based on the Horseback Librarians, I knew that I had to read it.
A book about books and librarians- what else a booklover needs!
This brilliant epic historical fiction set in the US Depression era in Kentucky draws on actual history.
The book is based on the 1930’s Horseback Librarians program in Kentucky which was started by US President Eleanor Roosevelt. The purpose was to educate and enrich the lives of the people who lived in the hills in the countryside of Kentucky by providing them books. The program was run by women librarians who would ride horses laden with books, often in rough weather, to reach the families living in the mountains.
Baileyville, Kentucky introduces the Horseback Librarians Program which is headed by Margery O’Hare. She is a fiercely independent woman who has lived in these mountains since childhood and is well versed with the routes up the mountains.
Alice is a newly arrived English woman, who has come to Kentucky with her husband Bennett, son of a wealthy, cunning mine owner Van Cleve who is more interested in making money than the safety of the miners.
