I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, I really enjoyed Hillbilly Elegy but Hill Women was wonderful in a whole different way! I thought the author did an amazing job showing the positive sides of people living in Appalachia. I really enjoyed her story and getting to know her family, especially the women.

Hill Women // by Cassie Chambers

I was hesitant about how honest, or rather personal, I wanted to get with this review. This book had a big impact on me and while some things can be painful or embarrassing to talk about, I do think it is necessary so I will try my best to convey my thoughts and feelings regarding this read. I love reading memoirs, especially by women that come from a different background than I did, so I was immediately drawn to this book. I have had some trouble focusing on reading in general this past week but this book drew me in right away and it was over sooner than I wanted or expected. 

Chambers has written a very compelling book that has cast this community in a much different light than I am used to hearing about them. While I have tried hard to recognize and eliminate as much racism and prejudices from my thoughts and speech as I can over the past year, I did have to be honest with myself about my preconceived notions about communities such as the one in Owsley County in Kentucky. I hate to admit it but the majority of them were not very positive as I am a big supporter of traveling and education as a form of cultivating acceptance and empathy for the world but while reading this, I realized what I failed to see all along: The strength, resilience, and dedication of mountain people to their families, traditions, and region.

I now see that things are much more complicated than a community that - from the outside - doesn't always seem to value education or equal rights for women or health care or some other progressive things. Understanding everything within the context of poverty, the opioid crisis, lack of access to consistent medical care, domestic violence, and the local economics makes the fear of the unknown and the comfort of the familiar much more understandable. Rather than focusing on what I disagree with though, the author managed to instead draw my attention to the strength these women possess as family and community leaders, doing the best they can with the resources they have to provide a good life for themselves and their families. I love how seeing the dedication of the women in her family is something the author took out into the world with her, using it to pave her own path through life that eventually brought her back to the community again to help rural Kentucky women as a lawyer.

Chambers reminded me why I love learning about the lives of others, especially when they grew up with less privilege and resources than I did. There are incredible lessons to be learned from their experiences and by lifting up those communities and groups, we work towards greater equality for everyone. I never even thought about learning about people from the Appalachian mountains before but am so glad I picked up this book. What strength and resilience these women possess!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I chose this book because I liked "Educated"  and "Hillbilly Elegy" so much and thought it would be similar. It's about generations of women in Cassie Chambers family overcoming obstacles and the odds to be educated and to try to make a better life for their children and Cassie's own experience. Personally I did not find it as intense or disturbing as Educated and I found the description of life in Appalachia fascinating. I am always inspired by people who have overcome many obstacles in order to reach their potential. This book is a tribute to strong women.

Thank you for sharing a review copy with me!

What an amazing story of the women of the Appalachian.  Their strength and dedicating will have you in awe and having deep respect for them.  Yet this book also displays the injustices that affect the people in this area of the country.  You will be heartbroken as you delve into their lives and see how difficult their lives are and all they endure on a daily basis.

This was a well written story that was delivered with passion and skill.  Cassie’s tale is a fitting tribute to the women in her family and the strength they instilled in her.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for my advanced review copy.  All opinions and thoughts are my own.

Basically this book is something that Mrs. Chambers has written for her family's future generations, introducing her grandmother, aunt and other sturdy women, It is limited by its write-up, because the focus is Mrs. Chambers own life and work, with a few nuggets thrown here and there about old, hard-working women from her family and surroundings who lived in the Appalachia mountains. 

Still thanks to the publisher and all the best to the author in future endeavors.

Hill Women is a book written about Cassie Chamers and her life as a young girl in Appalachia and takes you through her life growing up.   It talks about her Mawmaw and her Pawpaw,  and tells the story of her family in her eyes.   She grew up in the poorest area of Appalachia.   She went on to become a successful woman in her own right.   She did a wonderful job of telling her story.   Toward the end of the book she gets pretty political and that did turn me off a bit as I am neither a Democrat nor a Republican.   I think her story would have been better with the politics left out because she really has a beautiful story to tell.   

Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my review.

I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

Cassie Chambers comes from a long line of hill women whose lives have been hard, but they know how to work hard and make do with what they have. Her story is how each generation reaches for a little bit more and how her life is changed by her parents choices which then influences her choices. I recognized these hill women from my own family from the mountains of West Virginia. Good read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for allowing me to read and review this book. Published January 2020. 

This is actually the type of non-fiction book that I don't usually enjoy. There is little to no conversation and everything is written in first person. I usually find that type book very boring and most often do not finish them.

However...

I thoroughly enjoyed this trip with Cassie Chambers. She takes us from her childhood in the 'hollers' of Kentucky, up through her very formal education and life as a lawyer, on to her wedding and finally to her life in politics. Even without much conversation in this book, Cassie presented her life in an easily understood format, detailing her worries, her concerns, and her strengths.

It was easy to see that the women in her family were the depth of her strength. You learn about her Granny, her Aunt Ruth. her mother, Wilma and a few other relatives, like her cousin Melissa. Through each you encounter the similarities and the difference between them and Cassie. As you also begin to understand the differences that Cassie herself is going through. Her uncertainly of whether she still fits in to her 'down home hillbilly' roots, or whether she has progressed to the 'privileged upper class elite' that her education has provided for her.

This book is a window on to the world of one of the poorest counties in the US. It is filled with current events, the opioid crisis, fracking the mountains, domestic violence, and the recent shift in political views. A book well worth the read.

I received an Advanced Reader copy from NetGalley in exchange for a review. This book is about the Hill Women of Kentucky and was very informative and enlightening. The author Cassie Chambers tells of many strong women in her family that survived living in the deeply poor hollars of the Appalachain mountains. She delved into her grandmother's life, her mom's life and then her own and showed how strong family can be no matter the circumstances.

In Hill Women, Cassie Chambers chronicles three generations of her family, born and raised in Owsley County, Kentucky. Her Granny was married young, never finished school, and worked hard all her life. She wanted more for her children, especially Wilma, who would grow up to be Cassie’s mother. Wilma finished high school, a rarity for hill people, and began attending college, where she met Cassie’s father. Marrying at a young age and becoming pregnant with Cassie almost immediately, Wilma was still determined to finish college and ensure a better life for her daughter. Cassie split her time between her grandparents’ house on Cow Creek and the house in Berea, and though Cassie has a deep love for the hills, she was also determined to get an excellent education, and she attended Wellesley, Yale, and Harvard. Cassie eventually went back to Kentucky to help women with their legal issues, like divorces and child custody.

I enjoyed Cassie Chambers’ memoir of her life, and appreciated her strength and courage. I liked that she went back to help women in stressful and difficult situations, and that she wanted to make a difference in a place where there was a definite need. This was an interesting story, well written and engaging, and I liked this glimpse into an area of the country that I knew little about.

Thought provoking and insightful.  I enjoyed the earlier part of the book the most.  Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest revie.

I really liked the beginning. I was all about the Kentucky life. But after I felt like it was more and more about a middle class girl trying to be make it sound like she came from rougher backgrounds than she did. It was kind of like Hillbilly Elegy.. as in it was about a white person who made it out of a very poor county into an ivy league school and then wrote a book about it. Except Hillbilly Elegy did better at explaining what he had to endure to get there. In this one growing up in a poor county was all she had stacked against her. I stopped reading after 30% of the way through. I was expecting more of the background of didn't women's stories or more about "Hill women" in general and not just about Cassie.

Hill women told the story of Casie Chambers and growing up in rural Kentucky. It also tells about the other strong women in her life who inspired her. She uses her education to get out of poverty and attend Harvard Law school to become an attorney. This book could be inspiring. However, I did feel it kind of dragged a bit in the second half of the book. This book overall was okay. 

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

Fans and critics  of J.D. Vance's Hillbilly Elegy will enjoy Cassie Chamber's Hill Women. Although Vance and Chambers ostensibly write about the same group of people, their perspectives differ in many ways. Chambers, like Vance, left the Appalachian Hills to find opportunity and success elsewhere. Unlike, Vance, however, Chambers always nurtures a fondness for the people and the ways of the mountains. Rather than placing blame for the shortcomings and failings of the people of Eastern Kentucky, Chambers shares a picture that is nostalgic while also realistic.

Learning about other cultures is the first step to understanding and this book serves very well in that regard for the Appalachian area of Kentucky. Ms Chambers writes very well with heart and sensitivity about her heritage and culture and helped me feel a part of it from her perspective. It really points out the differences in America and how we should all realize that the East and West coasts are not all America is about. This biography/memoir reads like fiction and I really enjoyed #hillwomen provided by #netgalley for me to review. Thank you!

I received this book as an ARC via NetGalley, but the review is my own.

I highly recommend this book.  The topic is one I don’t have a particularly strong connection to (other than going to school in the hills of another Appalachian state, WV), but it is fascinating to learn about this micro history through the voice of someone who not only has lived this experience, but can translate it to an experience that I’m familiar with.  I enjoyed reading about her (& her family’s) journey.  The story was engaging and really the best of what a memoir should be.

Another look at growing up in a poor, but loving home in coal country of Appalachia.  Reminiscent of HILLBILLY ELEGY

I think it is impossible to read this memoir and not try to compare to Educated. Though they both show the struggles of a woman coming from a background of poverty that ended up thriving and getting elite education, the comparisons might end right there. Cassie talks about the powerful women from the Appalachia - that stay there maybe because they don't even know something else exists outside. And how they survive and raise generation over generation of other men and women, that will also stay there and help get the region growing, or leave to get a better education. Cassie chose an intermediate path - she left to study (and even went to Yale Law School), but chose to come back to give back and help other hill women in their law struggles. Overall, it is a nice read, that is not trying to show the Appalachia is worse or better than anything, but just portray how it actually feels like growing up in those mountains.

This is a personal story of a family filled with strong, hardworking women. Their journey illustrates the history of Appalachia. Reading it reminded me a lot of Hillbilly Elegy from a female's perspective. Great story!

🏞️BOOK REVIEW🏞️

Hill Women by Cassie Chambers
Pub Date: January 7, 2020
304 pages

-DESCRIPTION-
A true story of Cassie Chambers, and the women in her family, growing up and loving in Owlsey County, one of the poorest counties in Kentucky.

-THOUGHTS-
1. I can understand why so many compare this to Hillbilly Elegy, however, this book is about strength and perseverance in spite of extreme poverty.  Where Hillbilly Elegy was like a badly written research paper, this book is about Cassie and the profound sense of pride she has for Hill Women.
2. I really loved that the author showed all the bits and parts of each woman. Nothing was glossed over.  Nobody was perfect, nor did she hide their imperfections.
3. I think it's so easy for so many of us to judge. We do it constantly....and we especially judge those we see as less than.  And let's face it, we use money (or lack thereof) to be a big determiner of who is less than.  Here is another book that we can add to a growing list that has us stopping our judgements and prejudices in their tracks.

-RATING-
⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 stars
I recommend this book.

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Maid
Unfollow
The Sound of Gravel