Once again Moyes has knocked it out of the park! I've yet to be disappointed by anything she's written. In this well researched historical fiction novel, we learn about the WPA Packhorse Librarians and what conditions might have been like for them, which I feel must be very close to accurate considering the clarity in which they are described throughout the novel. As with other novels by Moyes, I felt every feel there is to feel while reading this book. The characters are well developed and endearing, and her descriptions of Eastern Kentucky are beautiful and accurate. Moyes has a true talent for pulling the reader into the story and making you care about the characters. As someone from Appalachia (West Virginia) and as a librarian, this book resonated with me and was a beautiful reminder of why we librarians do what we do.

The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes did not disappoint! The plot, characters, and history were all on-point. I had only recently heard of the Horseback Librarians of Kentucky, so when I saw that Moyes was writing a novel about them, I had to read it. Historical fiction (and Moyes) is incredibly popular at my library, so we have ordered several copies and already have a waitlist started for it. Thank you so much for the opportunity to read it before it comes out.

This book was just phenomenal. I cannot overstate the absolute love I have for it. Jojo Moyes makes it seem effortless, although of course I know it's not. Her writing, the character development, the story, just all flow so perfectly, so seamlessly, I am in awe that actual work went into this. Brilliant.

This is a fictionalized account of the packhorse librarians of Eastern Kentucky in the late 1930s. It follows two main characters: Alice Van Cleve, newly arrived English bride who married into the Van Cleve family who are very wealthy from owning the large mining operation in town; and Marge O'Hare, a fiercely independent, strong, whip smart woman who comes from the worst family in town and has a good heart and who answers to no one. There is a wonderful supporting cast whose stories are explored and each character felt so fully realized.

The women ride out over rough terrain in all weather to provide books and more to the families of this area, most of who are extremely poor, some sick, some illiterate. Their stories are told and very effectively so that I felt the emotion, the little successes of a child loving a book, the pain of losing a family member.

The scene with the flood was so gripping and compelling, I was completely riveted, barely breathing, until I noticed I was crying, which happened more than once. I also laughed out loud and cheered at some scenes.

Only two minor notes: one is that it wrapped up slightly too happy, given the era, and the second is that, at least in the ARC, there were no historical notes included. I was sort of hoping for some context, maybe some information about her research or if any characters were based on real people. Oh well. However, throughout the book there are quotes from newspapers and other sources that introduce each chapter and do provide some of that real world context.

In any case, this was all the stars. Recommended for everyone.

Reading this book we gain awareness of how mobile libraries were established. It brings to life the people of Baiville, Kentucky. A small town inhabited by rich and poor, immigrants and people of color, each segregated by their social standing. We are introduced to an unlikely paired group of determined women that come together and undertake a mission for literacy and education by bringing books to less fortunate, often illiterate families in the hill country. Each woman has endured hardship and loss, yet they have the courage to proceed facing ridicule, prejudice, danger while traveling in all types of weather on arduous landscapes, false accusations and unfortunately even personal harm. They support each other and gain support from unexpected sources. This book makes you a part of the lives of these women and educates you along the way.

I tried savoring this book, but that just wasn't an option. I couldn't put it down! Inhaling this novel mostly in one day, I was completely captivated by this story inspired by the real-life pack libraries that existed as a WPA program during the 1930s and early 40s. These library ladies on horseback were completely identifiable to me, and not just because of our shared profession. They think outside the box. They stick to their beliefs. They want to do right by people. They care deeply for their patrons, and for each other. I want to say more, but at the same time don't want to give too much away, so I'll just say if you like historical fiction, you have to pick this one up!

Jojo Moyes has done it again. I loved this book. The characters are so well developed and the story flows effortlessly. Her writing style, as always, is beautifully written and this story will sucks you right in. Definitely recommend.

Thank you to net galley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Being a librarian, I was excited to read this story based on the Women of the Packhorse Librarians of Kentucky, which was a project to bring books to people in rural areas of the Appalachian Mountains in the late 1930's to 40's.
I think any book lover will laugh, cry and cheer for Alice, Margery, Izzy, Beth and Sophia. You will want to be their friend and deliver library books on an old mule in the hot sun, or the freezing cold, or the dead of night. You will want to see the beauty of the Kentucky mountains as the sun is rising. And most of all, you will want to bring the love of reading and learning to people who have never before had the opportunity to escape their hard-scrabble lives and get lost in a good book.
Jojo Moyes does a wonderful job with this story, she has such a way with words & has beautiful storytelling. I will be recommending this to all my librarian friends and every one else too!

Engaging story about women's friendship and struggles in rural Kentucky. Provides some interesting insights about the travel library run by the "horseback librarians" during the depression era.

What is not to love about this book? Based on history, it is the story of the Women Packhorse Librarians of rural Kentucky. It is the late 1930s and the depression struck hard in so many places. Eleanor Roosevelt realizes that education is the key to a better future for so many people. The Packhorse Librarians delivered books in rural places from 1936 through 1943, and changed the lives of so many people.

JoJo Moyes does the story justice. Alice is living a mundane life of luxury in Surrey, England. It is by chance that she meets Bennett VanCleve and they fall in love and marry. Bennett brings his bride back to the Kentucky hills, much to Alice's disappointment. The VanCleve's own a local mine and Alice realizes the life she imagined with Bennett is not the one she will live in rural Kentucky. In a brash act, Alice volunteers her services when the Packhorse Librarian program is brought to their town of Baileyville, which creates a rift between she and her husband and her very arrogant, controlling father-in-law.

This is a historical story, but also one of the plight of women - especially those living in rural America during the depression years. At first Alice's differences make her stand out; her posh accent, elegant clothing, her manners and her education. Through the other librarians she discovers her true self, and she discovers that a band of women can do whatever they need to do. It becomes the story of greed, of mistrust, and murder, but it also becomes a story of self-discovery and acceptance in a changing world.

A wonderful look at librarianship and the power of reading/education. Moyes also looks at racism in the South, along with the superstitions of the Deep South. Moyes packs this novel with the issues of the times following WWII and of the isolated hill folks. The history of the pack-horse librarians is great and Moyes has done a wonderful job at giving her readers the feel of chaos and fear. Highly recommend.

What a gem! I loved every minute of this historical fiction departure from Jojo Moyes. I have not read her other titles, but I know she is highly rated, so I was excited to read this story based on the real Packhorse Librarians of Kentucky, which was a Works Progress Administration project to bring books to people in rural areas of the Appalachian Mountains in the late 1930's to 40's.

The book is very well written with a group of strong women characters who overcome many obstacles to stand up for themselves and what they believe in. The characters are very well-developed, as they grow and change in realistic ways. There were so many good quotes, but here is one of my favorites. "And there is the bare truth of it, for her and all the women around here: Doesn't matter how smart you are, how clever, how self-reliant - you can always be bettered by a stupid man with a gun."

I especially loved this one, since I am a librarian. However, I believe any book lover will laugh, cry and cheer for Alice, Margery, Izzy, Beth and Sophia. You will want to be their friend and deliver library books on an old mule in the hot sun, or the freezing cold, or the dead of night. You will want to see the beauty of the Kentucky mountains as the sun is rising. And most of all, you will want to bring the love of reading and learning to people who have never before had the opportunity to escape their hard-scrabble lives and get lost in a good book. A rare 5 star read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Penguin Group Viking, for providing access to the advanced digital copy.

If you are a fan of Jojo Moyes, this book will not disappoint. The Giver of Stars tells a story of a group of ladies who are part a packhorse library. During the Great Depression, the use of packhorse libraries were established to help connect books to those who lived in mountains or hard to reach places. Jojo Moyes integrates this historical fact with a fictional account of a group of women who come together during trying times. Alice, recently newlywed from England, comes to America in hopes of a better life. She struggles in finding a place for herself in a small town with a husband that barely touches her and whose father in law has a say in everything. Marge, a stubborn woman who befriends Alice but has a stigma of who she is or rather who her father was to deal with. Both women are faced with grave decisions...how will they overcome them.

Great characters make this historical fiction novel of the horseback (and mule back to be more accurate) women librarians in Kentucky during the depression a very informative, fun reading experience. Similar to "The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek" only in setting, this also explores life in a coal mining town where women are expected to stay home and care for babies, where the powerful coal mine owners run the town, and where friendships are the only way to survive. Descriptions of the mountains of Kentucky are outstanding as are the descriptions of daily life in a poor area during the depression.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Publishing for the ARC to read and review.

Jojo Moyes novels hit peaks and valleys, with great improvement shown in her plots and writing since her phenom book, "Me Before you". "The Giver of Stars" is a sure winner. This novel focuses on six women in Appalachia Kentucky who come to accept their differences and take their strength and resilience from each other. The story opens with Alice, a young British woman falling in lover with Bennett, the handsome, young Kentucky businessman on a world tour with his coal mine owner father. They wed and she sails off to the US with stars in her eyes, but it's nothing but thunderclouds upon her arrival in the small Kentucky town. Everything about her, from tip to toe is literally and figuratively foreign to the multi-generation residents of this small town. But, it's the 1930s, the depression is in full swing, FDR and Eleanor are leading the country and women are starting to feel their oats. When the federal government sponsors traveling libraries as outreach to the illiterate and impoverished, Alice signs up to be a librarian on horseback. Her decision changes her life as she meets the women that will teach her about really living and change her life. Ms. Moyes paints a beautiful verbal picture of the Kentucky landscape as the backdrop against a hardscrabble life in the brutal coal mines, in poverty, in a judgmental, racist and sexist society still living by "rules" from many years ago. The themes of the book are universal even in today's world and is a story that will resonate with the experiences of everywoman without being relegated to "chic lit" labels. This novel has best seller and book club favorite written all over it. Way to go JoJo!

Historical fiction at its very best!!
Set in Depression-era America, a breathtaking story of five extraordinary women and their remarkable journey through the mountains of Kentucky.

Alice Wright marries handsome American Bennett Van Cleve hoping to escape her stifling life in England. You may think Alice to be a stuffy Englishwoman, but you’d be far from the truth. She is living in rural Kentucky in the 1930’s where life is brutal especially for women who are considered second class. This small-town Kentucky quickly proves to be just as stifling. Alice is living alongside her overbearing and interfering father-in-law.
Life for Alice takes a dramatic turn when a call goes out for a team of women to deliver books as part of Eleanor Roosevelt’s new traveling library, Alice signs on enthusiastically.

The head librarian and soon Alice's greatest ally, is Margery, a smart-talking, self-sufficient woman who's never asked a man's permission for anything. They are soon joined by three other singular feisty women who become known as the Horseback Librarians of Kentucky.

Due to the harsh weather and landscape of the land, the brave women face all kinds of dangers, yet they’re committed to their job of bringing books and reading materials to people who have never had any and sharing the gift of learning that will change their lives.

The novel is based on a true story historically significant to America’s past. Be ready for a bit of humor, heartbreak and the inevitable tug upon your heartstrings. I found this book to be a richly rewarding novel of women’s loyalty, and friendship, of true love, and of what happens when we reach beyond the comfort zone.
As I read the account of the murder trial in the book, I had the same feelings I had when reading Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird.

I really enjoyed this latest from Jojo Moyes.

The fictional book centers on the very real group of women who offered library services on horseback throughout rural communities during the Depression. The story is centered on newlywed and very unhappy Alice, a transplant from England who is struggling to fit into the community and Marge, a longtime resident who is seen as an outsider.

The bond that forms between these women as they work to give the gift of reading to their community is just as real and satisfying as any of the romances in the book.

I found the mix of fiction with this interesting group of real women to be fascinating.

Thanks to the author, publisher and www.NetGalley.com for my ARC.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher, this was a very complete joy to read. I confess to the bias that led me to this book,,,I am a retired librarian who once considered a job driving a bookmobile in remote areas of Wisconsin. Although I never acted on that job posting, it has remained a fantasy of mine. This tale of the packhorse librarians of Kentucky that becomes a story of women’s friendship, repressive social norms, the value of books in people’s lives...this is a story to savor. Hoping the “major motion picture” promise will come true. Highly recommended. (Reviewed on Goodreads)

Well I guess as a librarian I might be a little biased but I loved this. Of course I’m a fan of anything that illustrates all the good that can come from a library, but I loved the characters and their stories as well. Wonderful book!

Wow! I've read several Jojo Moyes books before, but this one really stands out to me for its descriptions of the land and people of rural Kentucky. Any book with strong female protagonists is appealing to me, but I felt especially invested in them emotionally and rooted for them to prevail against the restrictive societal expectations they were facing . I enjoyed watching them grow over the course of the novel. and seeing their sisterhood develop despite all the obstacles they faced. This book made me proud to be a librarian and will stay with me for a long time to come!

I r eally enjoyed. This book is different from Moyes other books.
Nice to learn about this time in history.