Publication Date: January 23, 2024
Length: 400 pgs.
Publisher: Kensington
I purchased this book myself.
This is the second book I have finished this year that I immediately wanted to re-read. I first became a Donna Everhart fan strangely. I read a blurb about the book “The Saints of Swallow Hill”. One of the characters is named Rae Lynn. My granddaughter is named Raelynn. So I decided to read the book and found myself a fan of Donna Everhart. Donna Everhart captures and describes her characters’ emotions so accurately that you feel them too. “When The Jessamine Grows” is Southern fiction at its finest.
Joetta McBride lived on her farm in Nash County, North Carolina in 1861. The McBride farm had enough acreage to provide for the family of 5. Although they work hard, the family is happy. Rumors begin about the succession of southern states from the Union. President Abraham Lincoln didn’t understand the plantation owners’ need for slaves to work the crops. The McBride farm is small, without slaves. Joetta and her husband, Ennis, do not want to be involved in the debate over slavery. They want to remain neutral. The McBrides’ neighbors believe that war and succession will be necessary. Joetta’s father-in-law, Mr. McBride, agrees with the neighbors and fills Joetta’s sons’ minds full of the glory of war.
Joetta and Ennis’s oldest son, Henry, decides to join the rebels and fight, despite being too young. They anticipate Henry will return after the army rejects him because of his age. When he hasn’t returned after more than a week, Joetta asks Ennis to go and find Henry to bring him home. Joetta stays at the farm working with her younger son, Robert, to maintain the crops and livestock until Ennis and Henry return. Months pass and neither Ennis nor Henry return to the farm. Joetta must manage the harvest on her own. With the war breaking out, how will she manage? Her neighbors declare loyalty to the succession while Joetta attempts to remain neutral. Can she continue her belief without support from Ennis? Will her neighbors understand?
Joetta’s hands are full. She has to keep the farm functioning. Her son Robert is angry that his brother and father are not home and pulls away from Joetta. Her father-in-law can’t/won’t help at all. On top of all these issues, her desire to remain neutral is unpopular with her neighbors and the local townspeople. How can one female manage alone? What other impact will the war have on their farm?
“When The Jessamine Grows” provides a look inside life during the Civil War, not from a battlefield but from the lives of those left behind to carry on living. As the war rages on, the families of the soldiers wonder when they will see their loved ones again. The Southern army believed the conflict would be over quickly and made no provisions for a long war. On family farms, how would the harvest and spring planting be handled if the men weren’t there? Supplies were in demand and blockades stopped the flow of goods. Joetta must navigate difficult circumstances which are compounded by her neutral status. The longing for her husband, scarcity of supplies, and overwhelming responsibilities are a massive burden that Joetta must carry. Family dynamics have changed with her husband and oldest son away, why has her youngest son pulled away? As a mother, she struggles with the sudden maturity forced upon her sons. Joetta’s strength of character and determination are inspiring.
As I read this book, I appreciated the story because this is the first account I’ve read of how the average person lived through the Civil War. Joetta isn’t a debutante, the daughter of a plantation owner, or the wife of a wealthy man. She is a hardworking wife and mother stepping into managing their farm because she must. She does not have the luxury of analyzing possibilities, she must act. Her actions will cause problems yet Joetta is not foolish either. She is well aware of the danger of being on her farm without the protection of her husband. Even though she will face enormous pressure to change her position on the war, she knows she must remain true to her beliefs. She is such an admirable character!
I would encourage everyone to read this deeply moving book. Experience the Civil War and its impact through the eyes of those keeping the home fires burning. Book clubs would be wise to pick this book, there are so many elements of Joetta’s story and the other characters to discuss.
My Rating: 🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻/5