The Horseback Librarians
by Jane Yolen (Author) Alexandra Badiu (Illustrator)
Anna Mary brings books to children and adults in Appalachia during the Great Depression.
There were no libraries in the backwoods of Kentucky in the 1930s. Librarians there and throughout the South delivered books to families by horseback and mule, sleeping outdoors or sheltering in barns when they could, going from farm to farm in remote areas. In this story, a woman named Anna Mary stands in for all the real-life horseback librarians who helped keep the love of books alive in Appalachia during the Great Depression.
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Publishers Weekly
Yolen presents a slice of American library history with this day-in-the-life tale of an Appalachian horseback librarian. Traveling with her book-carting steed, pale-skinned Anna Mary--"rhymes with library"--crisscrosses "the backwoods of Kentucky" delivering volumes including Alice in Wonderland and Millions of Cats. While making the rounds, she chats with adults, reads to children shown with varied skin tones, and accepts hospitality from all--receiving hard-boiled eggs from one family and spending the night in another's barn. Yolen's detailed narration paints a picture of Anna Mary's travels: one morning, she "eats a quick meal of cornbread and has a cup of tea she has heated on a small fire." Badiu's static renderings mix depictions of paper-doll-like figures going about their days and relishing reading. An author's note discusses the WPA's Pack Horse Library Project. Ages 4-8. (June)
Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.Review quotes
JUV016150 - Juvenile Fiction | Historical | United States - 20th Century
JUV014000 - Juvenile Fiction | Girls & Women
Books and reading
Kentucky
Packhorse librarians
