It’s 1896, and Lilly Gray Corbett is growing up near a small town in Kentucky. She is the oldest child of her mother, Copper. Her father died when she was very young, and her mother remarried and has 3 younger children. Lilly’s days are filled with helping her mother around the house and with the children. Copper’s days are also filled acting as the area’s midwife.
Lilly’s life isn’t all work though. She also has time to roam through the woods. She has a special heart for animals and often tries to help them. Copper sees that Lilly is growing up and struggles with how much freedom to give her. She is also jealous when Lilly’s aunt invites her to spend a month with her in the city of Lexington. Copper has nagging fears about letting her go, but wonders if it’s just jealousy or if she has real reasons to be concerned.
I am a great fan of historical fiction. With historical fiction, the setting has a strong influence on how enjoyable the book is. The mountains of Kentucky is a setting that definitely holds my interest because I was raised in the mountains, and my ancestors lived in the mountains as well. (I’m not from Kentucky, but North Carolina and Tennessee. However, the culture is similar.) In addition to this, I found the mid-wife storyline to be of special interest as well, since I am currently pregnant with my fifth child.
However, these two factors alone aren’t enough to make an enjoyable story. Every good novel must have an interesting plot and believable characters. I found both of these in Still House Pond. The book was well-written with an often exciting story filled with unexpected twists. The characters had depth and I was able to identify with them as well. Overall, I think this is an excellent book and I will be looking for more of Jan Watson’s books.
Disclosure: I was provided with a free copy of this book from Tyndale House Publishers in order to write this review. I was not compensated for this review, nor required to write a positive review. This review is my own opinion.
I have completed 30 books for the 52 Books in 52 Weeks Challenge, and I’m 6 books behind schedule.
Was the main character of this story “homeschooled/unschooled” in any sense that we could identify with today? Or did she go to some sort of traditional schoolhouse?