THREADS: A Depression Era Tale

by Charlotte Whitney

It's a boring, hardscrabble life for three sisters growing up on a Michigan farm in the throes of the Great Depression. But, when young Nellie, digging for pirate treasure, discovers the tiny blue-black 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 take it upon themselves to solve the mystery.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Fiction, Historical

325 pages, Paperback

First published November 19, 2019

About the author

Charlotte Whitney grew up on a Michigan farm and heard her aunts and grandmother tell stories of "hard times," and was surprised to hear that even farmers went to bed hungry.

That served as the impetus for the settings for her award-winning novels, A TINY PIECE OF BLUE, (winner of American Fiction Awards - Historical Fiction; IIPPY Gold Medal for Historical Fiction; Finalist in Hawthorne Prize for Historical Fiction}; THE UNVEILING OF POLLY FORREST, and THREADS A DEPRESSION ERA TALE.
She worked at the University of MIchigan at the Lloyd Scholars for Writing and the Arts Program before leaving to write full-time. Currently she lives in Arizona with her husband and dogs Lucy, a Golden Doodle, and Amanda, a Golden -Labrador mix. She loves hiking, bicycling, yoga. and of course, reading..

Reviews

[PamG · Rating 4 out of 5]

THREADS: A DEPRESSION ERA TALE by Charlotte Whitney is an engaging historical fiction novel set in 1934 with an epilogue set in 1974. This story is told from the perspectives of three sisters living on a farm in Michigan. Nellie is seven years old and has a fantastic imagination. Irene is eleven, overconfident, believes she is the smartest student at her school, and frequently finds faults in others. Seventeen-year-old Flora wants to get married. Short chapters alternate between the three sisters’ perspectives and reflections on the days.

The Great Depression was a tough time economically for most. In addition to the stock market crash and bank failures, farmers faced draught and over-production which led to reduced prices. The sisters’ family faced true hardship from working hard on the family farm to having very little to eat to peddling eggs and garden vegetables in town. However, there were other dangers including a variety of crimes and rumors.

The author used local dialect throughout the novel and included a note at the front of the book about her reasons for doing so. Once I got into the flow of the novel, it did not detract from my reading enjoyment. Ms. Whitney did a great job of painting the picture of the lives of the sisters, their family, and the surrounding community. Her characterization of the three sisters was consistent and provided a lot of depth. She obviously did a lot of research to ensure historical accuracy. Themes include family, school, pleasure from the small jobs of life, hardships, murder, love, survival, sexual assault, work ethics and much more.

Overall, the story is moving, fascinating and skillfully done. I hope that Ms. Whitney decides to write more historical fiction novels.

Thanks to Charlotte Whitney for a complimentary copy of this novel and the opportunity to provide an honest review. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way.

[Taury · Rating 3 out of 5]

Threads: A Depression Era Tale by Charlotte Whitney tells of a family struggling to survive. The dangers in the community such as drunk men, Gypsies , desperate men to find food for their families, the stray preacher tryin to rape little girls to a dead baby. The book is divided up between the 3 girls and their perspective to the current events. It centers around a dead baby found and the mystery to who it belonged to. The book kept my attention. It lacked depth. It didn’t have a lead character. Nor a strong character. The story is set in 1934 Michigan. I imagine this family is similar to every family during this time.

[Terry Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book via an ARC from the author, for Rosie Amber's Book Review Team. The fact that it was free has not affected this honest review.

Threads is a set on a farm in Michigan during the Depression, about a family struggling to survive. The novel is told in alternating first person points of view of the three daughters: Flora, who is seventeen, Nellie, the youngest, who is seven, and Irene, somewhere in the middle. Nellie is a tad wild, with a vivid imagination; Irene is a rather smug goody-goody on the surface, but is clearly suffering from 'middle-child syndrome', while Flora is very much the 'big sister', nearly an adult, who sees how the world works outside the concerns of the other two. Each sister's character is clearly defined, with her own distinctive voice.

The novel is primarily concerned simply with the way of life of that place and time; it is character rather than plot-driven, an illustration of the family's world and their fears, joys and struggles. These people were POOR. If you've never dined on potatoes every night, or looked on a bean sandwich as a treat, you should never think of yourself as hard-up again! Within the girls' narratives, Ms Whitney has shown us a larger picture of the country in the 1930s; they tell of the 'train riders'; unemployed, itinerant young men who travelled the country by stowing away on trains, begging for food wherever they stopped. The way the community pitched in to help each other. The fears that consumed them all; if they couldn't sell enough produce, they would lose their homes.

I found Flora's chapters the most interesting as she was concerned not only her own insular world (what happened at school, etc) but talked about the way of life as a whole. On occasion, though, Irene and Nellie would reveal much within their own childlike eye-view; this was done most skillfully.

If I have any criticisms, it's just that I would have liked a bit more actual plot; events coming to a climax and then being resolved, at some point. There is a little mystery concerning an event from the first chapter about which we don't get the answer until the end, but I felt there were missed opportunities to make the story more of a page-turner. However, I did enjoy it, throughout, and would most certainly recommend it as an insightful and highly readable look at this recent and still relevant time in America's history.

[Shirley McAllister · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wealthy days of poverty

Threads is the story of three girls living through the depression on a small farm in Michigan. It is a story of how life was, the making do, sometimes going hungry, hard work, holding on to their home by a thread and a family filled with love and happiness amid hard times. It follows three girls, Flora , Irene and Nellie.

One day Nellie, (7 years old, the youngest) while going to play in the creek found a mound on the side of the road. Thinking of treasure she got a stick and poked the mound. What she found was a tiny had of a baby which had been buried in the mound. This caused quite the commotion at home when she told her parents. They told the girls not of speak of it and called the Sheriff. The girls formed a "Sisters Club" they got together and talked about who they though had buried it there and why. The tried to solve the mystery and got into some pretty bad circumstances while doing so.

It is a story of the girls coming to terms with life and growing up. Tragedy and happier times both have to be done through by all. The book was a delight to read, and very informative as to how they lived in this historical era. The description of their life day to day and how they lived was very well done even the flowers and the vegetable garden.

I loved the way that at the end of the book the author wrote pages in to explain what happened with each girl in the future and how each on followed her own path. It really was a great way to end the book.

I definitely would recommend this book. You will not be disappointed.

Thanks to Charlotte Whitney, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book for an honest review.

[Pam Carmichael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow I really enjoyed this one! Set during the depression area and how this family made it through it, wow and we think we have it hard. Mom and Dad and three different daughters and what a hell of a ride, they all worked their farm so very had and thank God could have a huge veggie garden and Ma would can it all. Very hard living but a wonderful story of this family and many others around them. There is danger and a rape so beware of the trigger. All in all I would recommend this book for anyone who thinks life is so tough now. Happy Reading All!!

[Cathy Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Great Depression began after the market crashed in late 1929 and drastically affected the world’s economy. Threads tells the story of a farming family in Michigan and is narrated by the three daughters. Flora, the eldest at seventeen. Irene, the middle sister is eleven and Nellie, the youngest, just seven.

Narrated in alternating short chapters, the story is told from the perspective of each sister, giving individual views on their lives and the people around them. In this way the characters and their very different personalities are developed extremely well as they navigate their way through daily life on the farm, at school and with their friends and neighbours.

Nellie loves making up stories and talks to imaginary friends, which include the animals. Irene can be opinionated and thinks she’s the smartest. Flora wants to get married and be a farmer’s wife. Neither of the younger girls understand quite what’s going on and complain about the changes and things they can’t have.

Nellie loves to play down by the creek and escapes there as often as she can. On her way through the woods one day, she notices a mound of disturbed earth. Thinking it might be pirates’ treasure she begins to root around. What she unearths sends her running back home as fast as she can.

The descriptive and realistic prose, showing how a farming family coped during the depression through the eyes of the sisters, paints such a vivid picture of the hardships of the time. Working from dawn to dusk, the girls doing their part with chores before and after school, working most of the day during the summer holiday, and still not having enough to eat. But what really shines out of the story is the endurance and kindness, even through the deprivation the farmers face. Neighbours look out for each other, people passing through are given whatever food can be spared, even if it’s just a slice of bread. Amid all this, there is mystery, rumour mongering and danger.

I enjoyed the fact Charlotte Whitney used the mid western dialect, lending an authenticity to the narrative, along with her personal knowledge of growing up on a farm. I had no idea what to expect when I began reading, but soon became immersed in the lives of the family and was pleased the author included an epilogue so we learn if Nellie’s, Irene’s and Flora’s hopes and dreams for the future materialised.

I chose to read and review Threads for Rosie Amber’s book review team, based on a digital kindly supplied by the author.

[Bonnye Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free ARC of this novel from Netgalley and Charlotte Whitney in April 2020 and purchased the final edition from Amazon in early August. This is a book I will treasure, and want to share. I have read this historical novel of my own volition and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. I am happy to recommend Charlotte Whitney to friends and family. She puts you there in mid-Michigan farm country from April through December of 1934.

We see the American Depression through the first-person eyes and voice of the three daughters of a Michigan farming family, and each life hack they encounter is told by the girls to the reader, each from their personal viewpoint and understanding.

Nellie is 7, a youngster with a vivid imagination, and a natural storyteller. Nellie has many imaginary friends and long conversations with their five cows and the odd raccoon. She is in second grade and walks to school with her sister Irene.

Irene is the smartest girl in sixth grade in their one-room country school, where all the elementary school kids are taught together by one teacher.

Irene is the sister who always tries to be good, and tells the truth. Nellie calls her the tattletale. Irene dreams of being a nurse and helping people.

Flora is 17 and in high school, which she attends with a couple of her cousins who farm down the road. Flora is smart, and if she doesn't marry a farmer she might be able to attend teacher training classes. That is the only higher education available in their neighborhood.

Through the eyes of these sisters, we see a varied crosssection of lives in the neighborhood. We have Mr. Goldberg, the peddler of miscellany who travels through every few months with his cartload of goodies. Teachers Miss Flatshaw and Miss Swanson, who have vastly different outlooks on life and education. They have to call out Sheriff Devlon several times that summer and fall.

This story, this voice, is very special. It is a book I will savor, and share.

Reviewed on August 24, 2020, on Goodreads, Netgalley, AmazonSmile, Barnes&Noble, and BookBub. Not available on Kobo, or GooglePlay.

pub date Nov 23, 2019
IBPA

[N.A. Granger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Threads is my introduction to Charlotte Whitney and I have discovered a talented writer. Threads follows the lives of three sisters growing up on a hardscrabble farm during the depression, and the story alternates among their points of view. Nellie is the youngest and in second grade, and she has the most pronounced mid-Michigan farm dialect. Irene is in sixth grade and a definite middle child. She and Nellie attend a one room school. The oldest sister, Flora, is in high school.
Nellie is a real tomboy with a vivid imagination. One afternoon, while she explores the meadows and woods surrounding the farm, she spots a tiny black hand poking out of a mound. Nellie is terrified and listening to her parents talking that night – she can hear them if she puts her ear to the heat register in the floor of her bedroom – she learns it was a baby boy. The sheriff had been called but no one had any idea about whose baby it was. Her parents worry they will be blamed.
Irene is sassy, intelligent, and has become the pet of the school’s teacher Miss Flatshaw. She thinks Nellie is stupid. Flora is on the cusp of adulthood. She is a caring and perceptive young woman who has considerable responsibility in the work of the farm and realizes that her life will be one of a farmer’s wife, despite her desire for a career.
The three girls’ personalities are wonderfully wrought – you can hear their voices in your head. You live with them over the next years, through all the details of running a farm, struggling to put enough food on the table to feed everyone, the penny-pinching and making-do, the sharing of whatever they have with those more in need, and the whims of the weather on which their livelihood depends. The descriptions take the reader into life on a farm, into a loving but stressed family, and through all of life’s transitions: from one grade to another, graduation, first love, surprising traumas. Woven in is the continuing mystery of the dead baby’s origins. I particularly liked the last chapter, which presents us with the girls as adults with lives of their own.
I highly recommend this book. It was a joy to read. The author’s knowledge of, and passion for, this era shines through.

[Lou · Rating 5 out of 5]

Books time frame takes place during the depression era on a farm in Michigan. Written in the three different perspectives of sisters as they grow up during this trying time. To me it shows how you don't have to have money to have a strong family and show love. I loved following along with these sisters as they went to school, played, worked and lived life on their farm.
Wonderfully written, great characters and a killer plot makes this a 5 star book in my opinion!

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book about farm life in the depression era. I enjoyed the 3 sisters and their different personalities. The one thing I didn’t like was a Ma and Pa Bear - living in bear country it’s pure fantasy to think a pair of bears would bond and live together, bears are solitary animals only coming together during mating season. I know this is a work of fiction but sometimes reality needs to be used. Overall I enjoyed the book.

[BookTrib.com]

Poverty, hunger, tragedy and war could have made this story ugly and sad, but Whitney presents it as one family’s triumph — and an irresistible read.

Read our full review here:
https://booktrib.com/2020/11/03/charl...

[Julie Failla Earhart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was excited when I won this book in the giveaway section of the Shelf Awareness newsletter. I was dismayed when the book opened with “A Note on Mid-Michigan Farm Dialect.” Ninety-five percent of the books I read with dialogue aren’t very good—the dialect gets in the way. Not so with this intriguing tale of three sisters over the course of 1934. It sort of got in my way in the beginning, but it soon evened out.

To tell a story with three different narrators is challenging, even for a seasoned writer, which Whitney is not. But she does it superbly! And to keep the voices clear and recognizable to each sister is quite the feat! I never had a problem knowing which sister was talking at any given time.

This is the story of three sisters: Nellie, seven; Irene, eleven, and Flora, 17. Remember the old adage that there are three sides to every story? Two who tell the story and the truth. Here we get three sides of each story, as each sister gives her account of what is happening.

And there is a lot happening. The girls live on a farm in mid-Michigan, and reads are treated to what life is like in this hardscrabble time.

Nellie is still too young to really know how the Depression is affecting the family. She visits the farm animals every day, especially the cows that stand under the cherry blossom trees. She even has an imaginary friend, ZeeZee, who is an alien. But one day, Nellie finds a shallow grave of a dead baby. Whose it is and how the discovery affects the little girl runs through the entire novel.

The middle sister, Irene, seems to have more faults than good qualities. She finds faults with the world in general and especially with her sisters.

The oldest sister, Flora, wants to get go on dates and get married. She eyes a schoolmate and fellow church member, Henry, as her savior from spinsterhood. But when rumors start to fly that the dead baby Nellie found is Flora’s, well her chances to wed seem to disappear.

There are a lot of other interesting characters that the readers meet in the small farming community. By the end I felt as if I had been part of the lives of these people. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, always looking forward to my reading time every evening.

As I read, wondered how on earth could Whitney without leaving the readers hanging. Easy-peasy---an epilogue that thakes place forty years later.

“Threads: A Depression Era Tale” receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

[Richard Kussman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a city dweller, I did not know what to expect from a novel about life on a farm during the Great Depression. Would it hold my interest? Well, it certainly did! I could hardly put in down.

The tale is told entirely in the first person, but it isn’t always the same first person. Each of the one hundred short chapters is told from the from the perspective of one of three sisters growing up on a farm in Michigan. In this way, the author is able to present the same event through different eyes. She is not the first writer to do this - think Rashomon - but she handles this in such a way that she succeeds in developing her three main characters in detail. You really get to know them. You see them as three different people with distinct personalities and distinct goals. They seem real to you. At the same time, the author develops the plots and subplots of the story as they affect each sister. Of course, the sisters have different interests, so not all the events intersect. One sister may be interested in some event that the others may not have any interest in, so only one of them will mention it. Other events intersect the lives of all three main characters in a major way, so they will narrate the same event, but from their own perspectives.

There is a daily routine to farm life, with which the author, herself a farm girl, is obviously familiar. Yet the tale does not get boring because, as in real life, there are unexpected twists and turns in the lives of the sisters. They don’t just work on the farm. They go to school. They interact with other people, The sisters may or may not assess the same people in the same way. There are also dangers to overcome. Some are persistent: would the family be able to hold on to the farm? Would they have enough to eat? Other dangers are immediate and require fast action.

The story is extremely realistic. Not all life is drudgery, but neither is it all rosy. This story reflects this truth very well.

I highly recommend THREADS. Kudos to the author.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Threads takes place at a small farm in Michigan during the Great Depression. Times are tough for everyone but especially for small farm owners. They are all only one step away from losing their farms - a year of bad weather can make the difference between success and failure. One families struggle is told in this story by the three daughters. Nellie is 7 years old. She attends school but loves to spend her time at the creek and roaming though the fields - she has a vivid imagination and spends her time talking to the cows and dreaming about a friend who lives in space. Irene is 11 and can't wait to get away from farm life. She's a great student and hopes that being so smart can help her find a new life when she gets older. She treats Nellie like a baby and she is as practical about life as Nellie is imaginative. Flora is 16 and her goal is to get married and be a farm wife. She is responsible and helpful to her mother with chores. Sometimes she wishes that she had a new dress but totally understands how much her parents are struggling. Even though during many of the chapters, we get the sister's reports of their daily lives there is a lot going on - Nellie finds a baby buried in the woods and the sisters work together to solve the mystery, was it the gypsies or a vagrant? Girls have disappeared from the area and there are bad people trying to kidnap children either to put to work or, more likely, to use to become part of their prostitution rings.

This is a character driven novel so there isn't a lot of action. Instead it's a look at what life was like for three young girls growing up during the hard times of the Great Depression. I enjoyed the Epilogue set in 1974 to learn about the sisters as adults and their memories of growing up.

[Ethel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Depression age novel is set on a farm in Michigan in 1934 Threes sisters, Nellie age 7, Irene age 11 and Flora age 17 are the protagonists of this novel. The story is told from the perspective of each girl through short and alternating chapters. Each girl has quite a distinctive personality, all three are simply loveable...Nellie at 7 has a great imagination that sometimes gets in her way, Irene at 11 really has no patience for her little sister, but loves school and is quite bright, while Flora is of the age where dating is beginning to take hold of her thoughts. Yet it is Nellie who sets the stage for this story when with her curious personality she finds a mound of dirt and is eager to see if there is buried treasure. What she finds is no treasure, but a blue black hand of a baby that was buried there. There is a mystery to solve here and the sisters throw themselves into the task of solving that mystery.

The realism of those times was right on point. The Depression and how families, particularly those on small farms, lived through these difficult times was poignant. Living from hand-to-mouth, worrying about paying both taxes and mortgage and not knowing if there would be food the next day or if you would lose the farm was more than a struggle at best. Yet this family held it together with strong bonds of love, hard work and integrity. This book was written with heartfelt emotions, yet this was no Pollyanna story, in that there were several struggles to contend with from outside factors.

Well written and enjoyable this book is highly recommended. I look forward to reading more of Ms. Whitney's novels.

https://bookworms43.blogspot.com

[Susan Lampe · Rating 5 out of 5]

The writer's use of craft makes this book special. First, the author diligently worked to recreate the authentic dialect of three girls who grew up on a Michigan farm during the Depression Era of the 1930s. She uses their young voices to tell a family story she learned from grandparents. As a result, these three girls become separate people who each open a personal window onto their young lives. Flora, the eldest, is given great responsibility and at one point sent away for a year to help an aunt who has been injured in a buggy wreck. Flora is also mesmerized by romance--who will she marry? She has a few choices. Irene, the middle child, is petulant. She rebels against the hard work of farm life and dreams of a different way of living. In the Epilogue, she informs the reader that she became a nurse and went to serve in World War I on a ship. She remains a nurse throughout her life and does not marry. Nellie, the youngest child, is filled with dreams of real and imaginary creatures she meets on the farm. She adores school and learning, later marries a professor and crafts some of her childhood stories into books. I found this a charming read, a respite in a time of great cultural and political upheaval. Kudos to the author for presenting this book in such a unique way!

[Pat Spencer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Threads: A Depression Era Tale
Charlotte Whitney has given us an interesting look back at how a struggling farm family survives the Great Depression. What makes this historical novel so relatable is that it is told from the perspective of three lively and charming sisters. And what makes this tale fun to read is that in the spirit of Nancy Drew, these three sisters set out to solve a mystery. The girls encounter a few prickly situations and a good amount of real danger, yet they turn themselves into first-class sleuths.

I enjoyed the excellent descriptions Ms. Whittney used to build the world the girls live in. And each girl’s personality, quirks, and traits are so well developed that they come off the page as their own person without sacrificing their strong family bonds. The dialect is realistic and appropriate to bring me into the era and convey the family’s socioeconomic status during the Great Depression. The issues surrounding their food, clothing, work ethic, and moments of recreation add depth to the plot.

My favorite part of this historical novel is the epilogue section. We hear from each sister, in their own words, why she chose the life she did. This brings an interesting dimension and satisfying closure to the sister’s stories. —Pat Spencer, author of Sticks in a Bundle: The Early Years and Golden Boxty in the Frypan.

[Willow Moon Greymoor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Depression-era realism!


Charlotte Whitney has presented a beautifully written book about three young sisters. Irene, Flora, and Nellie that survived the Great Depression while they resided with their parents, who tried their best to keep the family and farm afloat during America’s most heinous financial crisis. The family worked from dawn-dusk to maintain a farm and scrapped by having barely enough to eat. Each chapter is portrayed through the unique lens of each sister, and the story is woven together via the three viewpoints accompanied by hints of historical factoids blended into one ineffaceable tale.


Irene, Flora, and Nellie faced the everyday hardships of adolescence coupled with the devastating effects of the depression—laughs, first loves, school days, marriages, hardships, fears, traumas, and the bitter-sweet cycles of life are well-written and relatable via established character voices that each sister has an equal opportunity to express her perception of the story.

Hopefully, Charlotte continues to write books like this one. We need more authors creating books that edify history from a truthful, yet heartfelt stance.

[Jamie Trauth · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was in Highschool, I made a book of the story of my grandmothers life. Settling in on the Depression-era tales, of poverty, and the struggles the women faced. Later on in my life, I fell in love with a book by John Steinbeck - The Grapes of Wrath, a poignant tale of a man who was released from prison to come home to his home, and realize his family had relocated. This book brought me back. His ability to tell the story from multiple POV's, and allowing the reader to get to know the sisters independently, made it so easy to wrap yourself up into the story and fall in love with the characters. The format makes this story exceptional. Nelly, Flora and Irene are easily becoming my favorite sisters in literature. I loved how they were together, like the babysitters club, trying to solve a mystery and growing up together in the struggles of that era.

This exceptional novel is worthy of your time, and I found it an easy and enjoyable read. The plot was engaging, the structure flow was excellent, and the character building superb.

4 stars

* Thank you to Netgalley, The Publisher, and Charlotte Whitney for giving me a free copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Lisa Ard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this tale of a Michigan family of five persevering through the tough years of the Depression. The story is told through the perspectives of three daughters: Flora, Irene and Nellie. The author does a great job distinguishing their voices and personalities. Each contributes to the story, sometimes revisiting an event and providing a different point of view.

The hardships of the Depression are expertly described through the foods (or lack thereof), child labor, and the activities of the family. With each girl, I sympathized with their plight; Flora, who longs to go to the movies, but can't afford to; Irene, who works from dawn to dusk picking strawberries in hopes of helping the family pay their land taxes and save the farm; and Nellie, whose childhood imagination disappears after experiences no child should encounter.

Threading their stories together is the mystery of baby's hand found buried on their land, a revivalist preacher, a no-good drunken neighbor, the stories of the train-jumpers, and many more wonderfully embellished characters. I read this engaging story in two days; it wasn't easy to put down!

[Lucia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nellie, Irene and Flora are three sisters growing up on a Michigan farm during the Depression. They work hard alongside their parents and hold on to their dreams of an easier life when they are grown up. Nellie, the youngest, has a vivid imagination. She spends her free time wandering the farm and nearby woods, having conversations with animals and her favorite alien, ZeeZee. Irene, the middle sister, has a close relationship with her teacher, eating lunch with her everyday and exchanging secrets about classmates. Flora is seventeen and as the oldest, looks out for her sisters, but is already dreaming about boys and marriage. Each of the girls has their own misadventures and close calls with danger. The way the family navigates their dire circumstances and the evil that seems to lurk in their area makes for an absorbing and intriguing read.

This was a well written and engaging book which I truly enjoyed and strongly recommend. Thank you to Netgalley and the author Charlotte Whitney for the free ARC I was given. This is my honest opinion.

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love historical fiction, especially set in a trying time, such as during world wars or the slavery era. Threads, by Charlotte Whitney, takes place during the Great Depression. The story is told from the vantage point of three different sisters, Nellie, Irene, and Flora. Nellie, the youngest, finds a dead baby buried on the path to the creek one day. The repercussions will follow them in ways that they girls never imagined. I love how the story dealt honestly with what life was like then. Things that we take for granted today, like having a loaf of bread in the cabinet, were luxuries for them. The needs that they had were so much different than ours today, and yet, I think, in the end, they may have been more grateful for what they had. If you like historical fiction, you will enjoy this book. I will say that I figured out who the dead baby belonged to before the girls did, but I am not sure that was an accident on the author's part. I freely offer my opinion on this story. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

THREADS is a story set in the Great Depression and follows the lives of three sisters who, after discovering a dead baby, find themselves far out of their depth as they attempt to figure out the truth behind the body.

The characters of this novel are well written and have complex relationships with one another, making them seem believable and their actions unpredictable. I think in terms of cohesiveness and fluency, the transitions between each of their perspectives is handled really well, as well. Likewise, the historical writing of the Depression era, though covered often and extensively in fiction, is clearly a task undertaken here with due consideration here.

The only thing that would stop me from giving this five stars is that the overall structure of the novel occasionally felt like something that's been done before and somewhat predictable - the alternating narrative perspectives, though well executed, is a technique that felt at times cliche here.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Almost like Little Women but in a different time and setting. And…a book for adults and YA, no question. This setting is of a time during the Depression and gives a good picture of the life of farm families working hard and long days with barely a penny. Lots of bread and potatoes eaten in those days.

Each chapter was a POV by a sister and although sometimes the switching back and forth like this can drive me nuts, I loved it here. Each sister had different and interesting personalities as did the rest of the family.

I just couldn’t stop reading this. While it deals with the harshness of the times, it also deals with the warmth of the times, families, and friends, all helping one another to keep their heads above water.

As I said I think this would be interesting to YA and adults. It brings up some hard times and of course some bad people but I think all of this story would be of interest and an easy read to many. It’s as full of lessons as it is fun, laughter, and hard times.

[Genevieve Scholl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three different lives.

This book was like a real movie to me. I felt and lived each girl in their chapters. What sticks out to me is that the author carefully laid out each child differently. So full of life with it's ups and downs. PA and Ma were the best. They understood their rolls in life on a farm in the depression era. My father was born in 1939. He tells me that it was a hard time even during the wars when he was young. He like the girls in this wonderful book, remembers the bad times and the good times growing up on a working farm. I never knew what it was like to be hungry or scared. This author has written some of the best books I have ever read. I encourage readers to think hard as they read her books. They teach us all humility and the wonders of life imagined or real.

[Hannah Barry · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's hard to read a book about The Great Depression and not think of The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. However, Charlotte Whitney (the author) did a fantastic job of setting themself away from the normal depression-era narrative. With a rotating POV storytelling tactic, the plot moved with relative ease and excitement. There were intriguing shades of Stephen King's short story The Body (also the film adaptation Stand By Me).

It was clear to me, as the reader, that the author had an investment in keeping the book historically accurate and within the context of the time. After Reading Whitney's bio, you can plainly see the familial connection and passion that went into this project.

A well-written tale and a very enjoyable read.

[Danielle Urban · Rating 4 out of 5]

Threads: A Depression Era Tale by Charlotte Whitney is a deep and intriguing tale of mystery, hope, and survival. I loved the characters. Nellie and her sisters are a good team. They find something that leads to mystery needing to be solved. Life has brought on some hard times, yet this group of characters makes it a wonderful journey. I was entertained from the beginning to end. The cast of characters are well-crafted. The story's pacing was fast. There was plenty of action-packed scenes that made reading this book easy.

I received this copy from the publisher. This is my voluntary review.

[Rita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlotte is a skilled storyteller to weave three perspectives for the events as the story is told by three sisters: Nellie, Flora and Irene. The tale starts with the youngest, Nellie, finding a baby buried in a shallow grave. Set during the Great Depression, it touches on the social constraints of maintaining a good reputation. Flora’s reputation is nearly destroyed when rumors spread that she may be the mother of the baby.

The story also gives the reader realistic life struggles the family experiences on making ends meet as the family considers methods for earning money to pay the mortgage and property taxes.

I enjoyed this story.

[John Wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! It gives a wonderful look into farm-life during the Great Depression specifically in Michigan. Each chapter gives the events from the POV of each of three sisters so it allows differing perspectives in this historic time that continues to affect not only those who lived then but resonates into future generations. I received personal insights because both my parents grew up in Michigan in those times, my Dad on a farm. And now I know why I pronounce the word creek like the crick in your back not rhyming with Eek I saw a mouse! But don't be deterred non-Michiganders, this book is for you too.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Threads

This is a book about the Yoder family, and their three girls growing up during the depression era. The girls 7,9 and 17 grow up trying to help their mom and dad on the farm working hard with the gardening, the stock, cooking, and cleaning. All the time worrying about the mortgage and losing the farm,due to little money, and leaving them homeless and hungry. Many times they would share food they had with the strangers riding the trains to find jobs, sometimes being hungry themselves. As the girls age they come to realize even though they grew up in the same family their childhoods were different than each others. Leaving each girl with a different memory.