The Giver of Stars Jojo Moyes

Thanks to my fantastic DJKKS book club, I recently read Jojo Moyes’s historical novel The Giver of Stars.  This uplifting story is about the power of books to change lives. Set in Baileyville, a small Kentucky mining town, the story celebrates five women who stand up to patriarchy. Moyes has developed wonderful characters that uniquely and collectively fight against the sexism, racism and hypocrisy of their time. Despite their struggles or maybe because of their efforts, I found the novel gratifying and inspiring.

During the Depression, President Franklin Roosevelt created the Works Progress Administration to improve the lives of suffering Americans. The WPA provided jobs and income to the unemployed. (Something to consider during this time of COVID-19). Under the auspices of the WPA, Eleanor Roosevelt led the effort to create the Pack Horse Library Project.  From 1935-1943, the government paid women to deliver books to families in rural communities.

Into this history, Jojo Moyes begins her story. The year is 1937, and the five women librarians in Baileyville are grateful to have jobs that bring knowledge and joy to impoverished families. On horseback, they traverse beautiful landscapes, but the lives they witness are bleak. They learn that poor folks don’t want charity, but they do want books. The leader of the library ladies is Margery O’Hare, a feisty and determined woman who doesn’t pay attention to social conventions or listen to men. Her lover, Sven Gustavsson, wants to marry her, but as much as she loves him, she “won’t be owned by nobody. “ Margery’s father was an alcoholic who beat her. After Margery’s father dies, the town exhales with relief. Yet, soon their small-town hypocrisy is revealed. Few folks attend his funeral. But Margery is mocked as the girl who did not cry at her father’s service.

Another wonderful character is Alice Van Cleave, an English woman who marries a local man, Bennett Van Cleve. Alice thought leaving London would give her more freedom, but Eastern Kentucky proves just as provincial. Her unctuous father-in-law, with whom they live, manages the Hoffman Mining Company, the largest employer in town. Obsessed with his reputation and indifferent to injustice, he is a loathsome person. Aligned with one of the pastors in town, the senior Van Cleve attempts to shut down the library, arguing that domestic life is where women should find contentment. But Van Cleve’s opposition also derives from his greed  An educated workforce might unionize. An educated populace might resist the paltry amounts offered for their valuable land. Alice and her fellow librarians know what is at stake and courageously resist attempts to stop their work.

The book is layered with themes and sub-plots. There is a love story, a trial, friendships, betrayals, an environmental catastrophe, redemption, reconciliation and enriching references to specific books and poems. Moyes has captured the way books can change how people feel and think. The Giver of Stars is also a testament to the power of women to make lasting change.