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Chapter 9
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Kind, Kindness, and Discrimination
The Power of Books
Hardship and Humanity
Change and Modernization
Autonomy and Interdependence
Summary
Analysis
Cussy Mary leaves Mr. Prine’s Time magazine, the only loan he’ll accept, on his porch. She must lead Junia by hand through the thorny path of Saw Briar Trace. Hungry, although she’s eaten all her food, she unwraps Henry’s present and discovers that it’s a pineapple Lifesaver candy. She re-wraps it to stash away with her other treasures—her mother’s thimble, some pretty buttons, a Bible, Pa’s old penknife, and a letter written by her great-grandfather.
The mutual dependence between Cussy Mary and Junia is on display when Cussy has to lead the mule by hand through a particularly painful and challenging patch of terrain. Their willingness to do this suggests yet again the importance of their role in carrying books to the far-flung patrons in the mountains.
Themes
At the Smith cabin, Cussy Mary finds Martha Hannah and her brood of children working on dinner chores. She wants a Woman’s Home Companion magazine because her neighbors are learning home remedies from it that are more effective than traditional mountain wisdom. Cussy promises to bring one as soon as she can. As Martha’s moonshiner husband stalks into the yard, Cussy rides off to her last stop.
One of the reasons the Pack Horse Library project is so important (and controversial) is that it’s bringing new and modern ideas to rural Kentucky. Vester Frazier and others (including sometimes Pa) fear the changes that are happening around them. But housewives like Martha Hanna realize that there is value in innovations including the new, less superstitious remedies they’re learning about.
Themes
A few miles past the Smith place, Vester lies in wait for Cussy Mary, but Junia spots him, panics, and leaves him behind as she runs off the path. They run into a woman and her son out picking berries. Cussy starts to tell them about library services, but the boy is terrified to see a “Blue Ghost” in person and his mother hurries him away.
As always, Junia is on the lookout to protect Cussy Mary. It’s a good thing, too, because Cussy can’t depend on other people for help. Her encounter with the woman and boy, both strangers to her, shows that the instinctive reaction to her difference is fear and discrimination. If she didn’t have Junia, it’s hard to know whom she would be able to count on for help, since others don’t seem to see her as fully human.
Themes
Finally, Cussy Mary arrives at her last stop, the home of Miss Loretta Adams. Nearly blind from bad eyes, Loretta can still read a little and sew beautiful quilts and dresses. After pouring tea, Cussy props the wobbling table with a library book, then reads to Loretta from her Bible. It’s the only book Loretta wants and Cussy hasn’t found anything else to interest her. Loretta “borrows” the library book to prop up the table during their visits to keep her conscience clear that she isn’t cheating the government.
In contrast to the fear and abhorrence of the boy and his mother, Miss Loretta Adams treats Cussy with kindness and generosity. Both women are independent characters—Miss Loretta still lives alone although she’s nearly blind—but their relationship shows the interdependence of humanity. Both women need each other for companionship and mutual support. Miss Loretta also shows that it’s possible to be wary of modernization and change without resorting to violence, unlike Vester and others.
Themes
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Before Cussy leaves, she gets a tincture-soaked rag for Loretta’s eyes. Handing it over, their fingers brush and Cussy freezes in horror. Loretta grabs her hand and tells her that she’s a fine mountain woman, no matter what color her skin is. Cussy is overwhelmed with the loneliness and shame most people make her feel. After tucking Loretta into bed, Cussy mounts Junia and heads home in the dark, frightened to know that Vester is hunting her in the woods.
It seems that Cussy Mary has experienced enough discrimination to render her permanently suspicious of others. Despite two other moments where white people (Angeline and Jackson) touched her without fear, her instinctive reaction is that people will find her contaminating, like Harriett does. Miss Loretta argues that it's what inside Cussy—her character—that matters. But while Vester stalks her, Cussy can’t feel safe.
Themes
