Threads by Charlotte Whitney
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GENRE: Historical Fiction, Women's Lit, Book Club Lit
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BLURB: It's a boring, hardscrabble life for three sisters growing up on a Michigan farm during the throes of the Great Depression. But when young Nellie, digging for pirate treasure, discovers the tiny hand of a dead baby, rumors begin to fly. Narrated by Nellie and her two older sisters, the story follows the girls as they encounter a patchwork of threatening circumstances and decide to solve the mystery. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT: When I woke up this morning the first thing I thought of was that baby. What a dark, scary place for a baby to be buried. So alone, away from everyone. Where were its parents? Babies need to be held and cuddled and kept warm. Even dead babies need to be buried in the churchyard with purty flowers, not off in the cold, dark backwoods. I keep thinking ’bout the Preston’s baby girl, such a sweet baby. I held her once when Mrs. Preston was sitting beside me on the davenport. The baby kept sleeping, then blew a little bubble and later I could feel her little fart that warn’t stinky at all. All the time she jist kept sleeping. When she finally woke up and fussed, Mrs. Preston picked her up and jiggled her and talked baby talk to her so she quit fussing. That’s how babies are posta be treated. But thinking ’bout the Prestons made me sad, too. They lost their farm and had to move away to Mrs. Preston’s parents’ place in Indiana. Ma said we might never see them again. Ma and Mrs. Preston both cried when we said goodbye. Pa and Mr. Preston shook hands and Pa bit his lip. I’d only seen him do that once before, at my grandpa’s funeral.
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From The Author:
Writing historical fiction is a magical process. So much heavy-duty research into the time and place is required up front, but once you start writing, you remove yourself from the present and create a new setting, and, while fictitious, it’s real to you. It’s all about striving for authenticity, creating an interesting story, fascinating characters, and pacing that’s just right.
Setting my story on a rural Michigan farm in 1934 was an easy start for me. I’d grown up on a family farm in southern Michigan and was familiar with the kind of farmhouses, barns and outbuildings, fields, woods, and animals that were so much a part of THREADS. But I had to go back to a time without electricity, indoor plumbing, washing machines and refrigerators to create this world of our grandparents and great-grandparents. I talked to a number of older relatives who lived through the Depression, and spent countless hours online reading accounts of the “Hard Times.” Once I had the setting firmly fixed in my mind, I could begin to plot out the story.
Until I started writing, however, I didn’t realize the prevalence of different languages in everyday life. Many characters were immigrants or first generation Americans, often brought up with the native tongue. German, French, and Ukrainian were used by neighbors. Mr. Goldberg, a favored peddler, showed up with his horse and cart with a thick Yiddish accent. A group of Gypsies camped near town spoke their Roman tongue. Then of course, little Nellie gets all confused about some religious zealots at a nearby camp meeting “speak in tongues.” It’s not surprising that she ends up conversing with the five dairy cows, as well as numerous animals including a pair of bears that have migrated from the northern part of the state.
Many people think is that rural Midwest was terribly isolated at that time. Not so. The country school, the town hall, and the church were all centers of social activity, from potlucks, to card parties, to penny suppers. Neighbors helped each other. In THREADS, Mr. Lutz, the farmer across the road who uses salty language directed at his cows, comes to the rescue during a horrible fire in the barn. So do Unc Elmer and Aunt Hazel. During the hard times social support was found in the neighbors, creating a kind of community that is sometimes difficult to find in the twenty-first century.
Now that I’m working on another book, I’m sad to leave this wonderful neighborhood. I hope you enjoy the book.
AUTHOR Bio and Links: Charlotte Whitney grew up in Michigan and spent much of her career at the University of Michigan directing internship and living-learning programs. She started out writing non-fiction while at the University and switched to romance with I DREAM IN WHITE. A passion for history inspired her to write THREADS A Depression Era Tale chronicling the stories of three sisters on a farm during the throes of the Great Depression. She lives in Arizona, where she loves hiking, bicycling, swimming, and practicing yoga.
BUY LINK: Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/THREADS-Depression-Tale-Charlotte-Whitney-ebook/dp/B07ZBN35JF/ref
IMPORTANT LINKS:
Author’s Website: http://www.charlottewhitney.com
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=charlotte%20whitney%20author
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/charlottewhitney65/
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlotte-whitney-8235463a/
Twitter https://twitter.com/CWhitneyAuthor
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Charlotte Whitney will be awarding a $50 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
Such a fascinating time period.
ReplyDeleteI truly enjoy Historical Fiction and I love mysteries. This book sounds awesome!
ReplyDeleteHi Lisa, I hope you enjoy it. Let me know on my website: www.charlottewhitney.com
DeleteI like the cover. It has very nice artwork.
ReplyDeleteabfantom at yahoo dot com
Thanks. I worked closely with the artist to create a setting that looked like my grandparents' farm. The dark clouds foreshadow some of the sinister elements in the book.
DeleteSounds like a great read.
ReplyDeleteHi Rita,
DeleteI hope you enjoy it.
Charlotte
I love historical fiction and look forward to reading Melli's story!
ReplyDeleteAmber,
DeleteI hope you enjoy it.
Charlotte
*Nellie's story!! I don't know why that autocorrected!
ReplyDeleteHappens to me all the time.
DeleteCW
Thanks for the opportunity to win!
ReplyDeleteThank you for hosting THREADS today. I love the blog!
ReplyDeleteHi James, I appreciate your support and enthusiasm.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a great book.
ReplyDeleteThank You
ReplyDeleteReally nice cover!
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a great read.
ReplyDeletethis sounds like a really good book
ReplyDeleteGood evening, Charlotte. My question for you today is, have you ever considered co-authoring a book and if so, who would you most like to work with?
ReplyDeleteSounds great.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good read
ReplyDeleteHope you have a wonderful week and good sales!
ReplyDeleteheartbreaking, and love the use of broken english in the excerpt. Sounds good.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a very intriguing story. I'm sure I would enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteThis would be amazing!!Love the cover
ReplyDeleteThis sounds interesting.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like an interesting topic. Looking forward to reading the book.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the chance. I like the blurb
ReplyDeleteHistorical fiction is my favorite genre. Thanks for the good works.
ReplyDeleteI like the subject, title and cover for this read.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing the review.
Sounds like a great read
ReplyDeleteClassic stories are always a great read
ReplyDeleteThe cover is beautiful
ReplyDeleteGreat cover and blurb
ReplyDeleteSound like a good story
ReplyDeleteGreat all around
ReplyDeleteGreat cover and blurb!!!
ReplyDeletelove the blurb and the cover
ReplyDeleteThis looks like one I would really like.
ReplyDeleteGreat cover and blurb
ReplyDeleteGreat all around
ReplyDeleteI love historical fiction.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a wonderful read!
ReplyDeleteThis is def one I like
ReplyDeleteDef one I can dig into
ReplyDeleteI love historical fiction. Especially one for women. Thanks
ReplyDeleteFantastic blurb and cover
ReplyDeleteWould love to read this book! Love historical fiction.
ReplyDeleteI really like to read historical novels and I always learn something.
ReplyDeleteWe so enjoyed watching the Walton's family TV show from the depression era. So, we would probably enjoy this book too.
ReplyDeletegreat blurb
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a great book!
ReplyDeleteI love mysteries so I know I'll enjoy the book. The cover is lovely.
ReplyDeleteLooks like an interesting book.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the contest.
Been looking for something new to read
ReplyDeleteI think the book sounds really good and I would love to read it.
ReplyDeleteSounds great, I like the cover!
ReplyDeleteThe Depression was a rough time for so many people, I imagine your research was pretty emotional as well. The books sounds interesting.
ReplyDeleteI love a good mystery... and historical fiction is a favorite
ReplyDeleteI want to read this book, it sounds really good. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI love reading historical books this one looks very interesting
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