Why do I feel like everyone else knows about this book already?

by Kachina Domenick Johnson

When I checked this book out from the library, everyone I walked by somehow knew about this book! “Isn’t that a great story?”, “Have you been to Arrowmont?”, “Have you read Wilder?” (one of her other books). The answer to every question was “I don’t know” or “No.” I had never even heard of this book—and learning that it was a story based on real experiences about teaching at a settlement school (what even is a settlement school?) in Gatlinburg, honestly, meant that it ended up on the bottom of my to read pile. I’m just not into local history books.

But a couple days later I picked it up. Everyone sounded really excited about it; even if I don’t know anything about the history, maybe it’s well written. Then I read the first few pages about Claire and I was laughing. Really. The first chapter starts with her described as “the most unlikely person to be relieving herself in a field of ragweed on the side of a dusty mountain road”—this is not going to be a dull, humorless read!  And Claire, along with the other characters so far, are growing on me. So I’m sticking with it—and, hopefully, you will too!

Comments

[Mary Pom Claiborne]

I've just started the book too. I had the same reaction -- a little afraid of another soft peddled, schmarmy-sweet look at an idyllic life in the mountains. City girl gets a backwoods education. It may be that, but so far, it's a well written, comfortable story. I have a feeling that the grit of an early 20th century woman far out endures the toughest of her 21st century sister. After all, our most rugged trucks come with impressive shock absorbers, and I can't imagine an impassable road in these parts. We complain about the trials of air travel. We hardly embody the grit of the folks in our remote mountains. I'm interested to see how our privileged city girl fares.