Lone Women by Victor Lavalle

March 19, 2025

Lone Women by Victor Lavalle

Montana 1915: Adelaide Henry is a "lone woman," a single woman who purchases a plot of land and becomes a homesteader. She leaves everything behind in California, especially her family, her sins, and her past, travelling only with a large heavy steamer trunk. She purchases a desolate plot far away from any neighbors, yet they find her anyway, and Adelaide gradually becomes part of a community. She soon realizes that many people come to Montana to escape the past and start over. Yet Adelaide is hiding something far worse than most of the and when her secret comes out, people start to disappear.

Genre blending fiction, part well-research historical fiction, part horror. Good descriptions of survival on a lonely homestead near a small town. In the early 20th century, Montana was one of the few places where a single woman could own land and homestead without a man to co-sign for them - even Black women like Adelaide could own land. Like others, I kept reading to find out what was in the trunk. A look at the American frontier like you've never seen it before, a suitable if unusual choice for Women's History Month.

Montana homestead, 1915

A Single Thread by Tracy Chevalier

September 8, 2019

A Single Thread by Tracy Chevalier

The British press called them "surplus women" - hundreds of thousands of women unlikely to marry due to the vast number of British men of their generation who were killed in World War I (over 2,000,000).  Violet Speedwell is one of these women, working to support herself as a typist and create a life for herself in the cathedral town of Winchester.  She accidentally comes upon a group of cathedral broderers, women who do needlepoint to cover the kneelers and cushions in Winchester Cathedral and bring comfort to the worshippers.  Violet's decision to join the group brings her friendship and the support of community, while ultimately changing the course of her life.

Historical fiction is like mental sorbet for me:  in between the heavier works of literary fiction and complex thrillers, historical fiction like this is gentle and understated, soothing in the troubled times we live in.  I especially enjoy historical fiction that focuses on largely unknown or hidden facets of history, in this case, the lives of the surplus women and the time between the two world wars.  I loved the cover of this book, with the embroidery border that you don't notice at first.  While I don't think this title is as strong as Girl With a Pearl Earring, it's a great choice for a rainy or snowy afternoon, to enjoy with a cup of tea and a plate of shortbread cookies (NOT the hated Garibaldi biscuits mentioned in the story, sort of a sticky current sandwich cookie, LOL).