Welcome back! It’s the 25th week of First Sentence Friday and Free Book Friday! (It’s hard to believe there are only TEN more weeks of First Sentence Fridays/Free Book Friday.)
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About Women of a Promiscuous Nature
“Both a cautionary tale and a deeply compassionate rendering of women wrongly imprisoned in a system designed to break them, Everhart’s propulsive story is filled with injustice, intrigue, and the determination to fight back.” —LISA WINGATE, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Shelterwood
Accused of “promiscuity” in 1940s North Carolina, a young woman unjustly incarcerated and subjected to involuntary medical treatment at The State Industrial Farm Colony for Women decides to fight back in this powerful, shockingly timely novel based on the long-buried history of the American Plan, the government program designed to regulate women’s bodies and sexuality throughout the first half of the 20th century.
The day Ruth Foster’s life changes begins the same way as many others—with a walk through her North Carolina hometown toward the diner where she works. But on this day, Ruth is stopped by the local sheriff, who insists that she accompany him to a health clinic. Women like Ruth—young, unmarried, living alone—must undergo testing in order to preserve decency and prevent the spread of sexual disease.
Though Ruth has never shared more than a chaste kiss with a man, by day’s end she is one of dozens of women held at the State Industrial Farm Colony for Women. Some, like 15-year-old Stella Temple, are brought in at their family’s request. For Stella, even the Colony’s hardships seem like a respite from her nightmarish home life.
Superintendent Dorothy Baker, convinced that she’s transforming degenerate souls into upstanding members of society, oversees the women’s medical treatment and “training” until they’re deemed ready for parole. Sooner or later, everyone at the Colony learns to abide by Mrs. Baker’s rule book or face the consequences—solitary confinement, grueling work assignments, and worse.
But some refuse to be cowed. Against Mrs. Baker’s dogged efforts and the punishing weight of authority, Ruth and other inmates find ways to fight back, resolved to regain their freedom at any cost . . .
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Chapter 25 – First Sentence Friday Thoughts
In previous blog posts I’ve discussed the relationship between Stella Temple and Dorothy Baker. Stella, in her innocence, sees the Colony and Baker in particular, as the good that’s happened in her life. To Baker’s credit, she also views Stella in a positive light and believes in her. Unlike other residents she’s classified as immoral degenerates (one of the nicer categorizations she makes of them), she views Stella as smart and capable of succeeding. She thinks that with the right approach and guidance, Stella might have some sort of successful future.
For Baker, and most anyone else at the Colony, this means absolute conformity to society’s expectations. Even for the prostitute, Lucy Griffin. It means behaving in a manner befitting a young woman of the time. Learning and then doing the things expected of them.
This is interesting because of Baker’s earlier decision regarding Stella, (no spoilers) has altered a typical future most young women would have imagined at this time. Stella, unaware of what Baker has done, has her own hopes and dreams.
What makes Baker tick, what gives her pleasure, is to see her “girls” change, and accept her heavy-handed tactics (abuse). She wants to see them reformed. She’s always on the lookout for the ones who bend. She prefers those who are the willing, who don’t cause her problems. The docile. The ones like Stella.
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Chapter 25
Baker
Disappointed though she may be at the moment, deep down Baker is certain there’s never been a resident quite as promising as Stella Temple, despite her troublesome history.
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Question of the Week
Was there a person who was a big influence in your life? Was it one or both of your parents, a teacher, or someone you admired? Was there anyone you looked up that made you want to change in some particular way? Share about the person or persons who influenced you, whether good or bad, for a chance to win a signed Advance Reader Copy!
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PRE-ORDER Information
Pre-orders gauge the interest and signal to the publisher readers are eager for an author’s next work. If you’re holding out because you might win an ARC or a finished copy from First Sentence Friday, remember you can always give away the extra as a gift to a reader friend. 😉
Pre-order links for your convenience:
- Bookshop.org
- Kensington Publishing Corporation
- Barnes & Noble
- Books-A-Million
- Amazon
- Hudson Booksellers
- Target
- Walmart
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Social Media
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When I was a young girl, my aunt (my dad’s sister) was a real eye-opener…in a good way. My mother was a traditional woman of her time. She was a homemaker, mother and supporter of my dad. He ruled the roost. But I watched my aunt run her own business, raise her children and operate a farm alone while her husband worked construction overseas in places like Thailand. And if a project needed to be tackled, she didn’t wait for her husband to return. I was amazed when she remodeled their only bathroom from top to bottom. This was in the 1960s when such things weren’t done. She showed me that unconventional was a thing to embrace.
Your aunt reminds me of my mother, and it’s true, back then, that independence was very uncommon. Most women would never have dreamed of doing what she did.
I can definitely say that my Mom had a huge impact in my life. The youngest of 7 children, she was raised poor and knew hard work was her only choice. She and Dad worked to build a home that may not have been the fanciest but it was full of love. She worked in a male dominated business and refused to be pushed around, talked down to, or outworked. She was never paid as much as the men in similar jobs and her value to the company was far more than her salary. Mom died almost 18 years ago and I hope I will always have her tenacity, love for her family, and zeal for life in my blood.
So many of these comments out here make me think of my own mother, who also was raised poor, and was one of seven children – and the youngest. She was born during the Depression. Your mom is to be admired for so much, not only filling your home with love, but for being strong-willed, despite the odds against her – simply because of how it was then.
Happy Friday Donna!
This is an easy answer: Buddy Frank, Director of Marketing for Fitzgeralds, Inc. in Reno, Nevada back in the early 1990’s. Buddy was my boss. I was a special events supervisor at the time. He was incredible! I would participate in anything he was doing just to be able to watch his charisma. For example, he would do a speech in front of hundreds of people and instead of showing any nerves he would basically lean his arm on the podium and just talk like a normal person. He was the one who got me to go to college. I had tried when I was younger, but could never afford to go. I’ll never forget his words: “as I’m going through resumes, the resumes with college noted goes in one stack, resumes without college go in the round file (trash). From that moment on I made college happen. I began working a second job and went to college at night. Several years later I graduate Cum Laude from the University of Las Vegas (yep, I moved south to complete my degree). This was monumental to me because I didn’t get the chance to graduate. At age seventeen my parents moved away during the summer months to look for work and left me to care for my two younger brothers. By the time school was starting my parents hadn’t returned. Instead I was told, “it’s time to spread your wings and find someone to drive the boys to us’ (300 plus miles away). Anyway, I digress. Buddy Frank not only taught me how to step out of the box, he showed me how to be a positive and successful person.
Not sure why it says “Anonymous”. This is Michele Waite, an avid follower!
Hi Michele – if only we all had a Buddy Frank in our lives! There are a lot of opinions about college/degrees etc. I got mine late in life, but one thing my husband has always said (he doesn’t have one, but has always run a successful business of his own) is, “just because you have a license, doesn’t mean you can drive.” So, there’s that, too. 😉
My brother who was 14 when I was born recently passed away from skin cancer. He battle psoriasis all of his life finally sub coming to it a few months ago. As stories were being told he was a policeman for 29 years and he was calling out in his last hours “where are the children make sure the children have food.” Turns out there was a family he met on his patrol and he would stop by and bring groceries and candy to make sure the children had what they needed. Our family of have has few family members who lied and cheated us out of inheritance but not once did our brother hold a grudge but kept on talking to them and giving them what they needed. Even one family member who cheated out of our family home attended the funeral as we expected she would . But my sisters and I kept saying”what would Kenny do” and we knew he would welcome her just like nothing ever happened. We are striving now to live like my brother holding no grudges and saying ” what would Kenny do” when we get irritated or want to lash out. Becky Foster
Hi Becky – thank you for sharing that story. I’m sorry for your family’s loss. AND, the family stuff can be so hard. I heard on the news not too long ago that some drastic % of families are estranged. It didn’t surprise me. What I also have read/learned over time is it’s not always necessary (or easy) to be around “toxic” situations – family or not. I admire your own family for setting aside those differences all because of your brother, Kenny. That he would worry about that other family as he was passing is remarkable. He certainly sounds like someone I’d want to emulate in thoughts, words and deeds.
I’ve already been a lucky winner of this book (reading it now… SO good!) but did share this link on my Facebook page. My parents, especially my mom, were my biggest influencers. Mom volunteered like it was a high-paying full-time job, always teaching us children to help others.
Thanks for dropping by, Jill! That’s such a wonderful value to teach through what some now call “sweat equity,” i.e. the effort made for volunteer work can never be underestimated!
My grandmother, Jeanette McDonald Schoolcraft, was born in 1891 and graduated from college at a time when many women did not have this opportunity. She had a very strong moral compass and sense of what was right. When I was four or five, she and I argued over a pair of scissors. I cannot remember or even imagine what exactly the issue was, but afterwards, she went home and mailed me a handwritten note of apology for her part of the dispute. She did not concede the argument or absolve me of responsibility for my behavior. What stuck with me was her humility in evaluating her own behavior and acknowledging that she was also in the wrong. I have been trying to live up to her example for decades now.
Oh wow. I love this story, and admire your grandmother as well for how she handled the situation. That’s all it takes sometimes, that one thing that shows us the way.
parents with their hard work
bn100
Mine too!
I have not been answering because have already read and reviewed on net galley.
Just so you know , I do read this each week.
I have read most l of your books.
Robin. Batterson
Flnjgirl@gmail.com
Hi Robin!
Thank you for being a part of FSF, and for reading/reviewing the book. Those reviews are SO important! I appreciate you reading these blog posts, too!
My mom graduated from nursing school in 1944.Her father was not happy about it because women were supposed to get married and have babies. She and my dad got married in 1947 and she had lots of babies — three within 3 years and then 3 more. Despite having a full house, she still worked. She did special duty nursing when we were young and then worked more when we got older. She was the only mom in our very 50s style suburb who worked outside the home but she still did volunteer work – she was a cub scout den mother, a catechism teacher and more. She was always a big influence on my sisters and I and we all went to college and got degrees and good jobs due to her influence. She wasn’t just a nurse by training but but being a nurse was part of who she was.
I have already read and reviewed your fantastic new book but I’d love a copy for my bookcase (that has half a shelf of all of your books) and I still plan to buy a couple of copies to gift to friends.
Wow – your mom definitely gave you a solid foundation for success! She was one of those women ahead of the times. Kudos to her! Thank you for reviewing the book! It’s very much appreciated.
Two women were big influences for me. When we moved to Ankara Türkiye I soon met Sarah who had been a Peace Corps worker and was Director of Courses at Turkish American Association. She was such an inspiration to me-,fluent in 3 languages, mom, married to a Turkish guy and very talented professional- she was aspirational for me. The other person was in fact my mother in law. Despite the fact that she had reservations about my marrying her eldest son, she welcomed me wholeheartedly and was always kind and caring. She never carried grudges and when people were obnoxious to her, she did not retaliate with malice. I learned so much from her.
They both sound wonderful – how lucky you had them!