The Last Carolina Girl is a heart-wrenching look at the history of eugenics and how it applied to young woman deemed "less than". The lead character has experienced great loss (the death of her mother and then her father) despite being only 14 years old. She is forced to leave the only home and friend she's ever known to live with another family far away. Mrs Griffin treats her as a "helpmate", having her live in a poorly constructed shed on the back porch, and help with all house chores. Mr. Griffin remains on the sidelines, unwilling to anger his wife by questioning her actions. Despite becoming close to the other children in the family, her hopes of being treated as a member of the family are continually dashed. The mother is harsh, resentful of her presence, and only concerned with what society thinks of her and her family. She keeps letters from Jesse (best friend), denies Leah the chance to go to school, and is convinced that Leah is promiscuous and simple minded. Unbeknownst to Leah, Mrs. Griffin is actually her Aunt (her Father's sister) and has fought her whole adult life to hide her poor upbringing. Mrs. Griffin gets caught up in the beginning of the eugenics movement by an acquaintance with a Dr. Foster. He is promoting sterilization of young women branded simpleminded. She takes Leah to be sterilized against her will and forever changes her life. Even though Leah eventually is able to return to her "home" with the Barnas family and marries Jesse, she is never able to have children. This book made me sad, angry, and incredulous at the way Leah was treated, but even more so at the truth of sterilizations during that time period.

3 Stars.
This a beautifully tragic story that deals with the concept of home and what family really is. It also deals with Eugenics and the scars that never heal. What Leah goes through breaks my heart. No 14-year-old should have to through what she goes through. Leah goes through using her mother during childbirth and losing her father at age 14. It leads to staying with a family that does not accept her for who she is and ends with dealing with the consequences of sterilization. Throughout it all, Leah shows such incredible strength. Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC. I look forward to reading more from this author.

The Last Carolina Girl is the story of fourteen-year-old Leah Payne. For Leah, life in her beloved coastal Carolina town is as simple as it is free. Devoted to her lumberjack father and running through the wilds where the forest meets the shore, Leah's country life is as natural as the Loblolly pines that rise to greet the Southern sky.

When an accident takes her father's life, Leah is wrenched from her small community and cast into a family of strangers with a terrible secret. Separated from her only home, Leah is kept apart from the family and forced to act as a helpmate for the well-to-do household. When a moment of violence and prejudice thrusts Leah into the center of the state's shameful darkness, she must fight for her own future against a world that doesn't always value the wild spirit of a Carolina girl.

After the accident, Leah is sent to live with a Foster Family several hours away from the only home she's ever known. Her life takes a drastic turn soon after arriving in the home of Mr. and Mrs. Griffin, who have three children of their own. Instead of being taken in by a kind family, Leah is being placed in a home that expects her to work as an unpaid servant. The family's children take to Leah quickly, but Mrs. Griffin seems to harbor a grudge against young Leah, which she doesn't understand. Secrets and betrayals abound as Leah navigates a life very different from the one she came from.

This book is sad and complex, but it's missing something, and I'm not sure what that is. The characters are well-written, with characters that are realistic. The setting is well-done; the Carolinas are my favorite place on earth and Meagan Church was able to take me back to the Atlantic shore, smelling the sea breezes and seeing in my mind's eye the blowing sea oats on the beach. However, I really feel like the pacing was off. The book focused for quite a while on Leah's childhood, then quickly moved to her position in the Griffin's home, and then the epilogue told of her life in the future. It was just very choppy. However, I still feel that it's a great book and I highly recommend it to those who enjoy historical fiction and learning more about the forced sterilizations that occurred across the United States in the years prior to and post-depression. Net Galley has provided me with an ARC in exchange for a fair review of this book.

I know people will want to compare "The Last Carolina Girl" by Meagan Church to "Where the Crawdads Sing," but while the overall "vibe" may feel like Crawdads (for at least the beginning portion), this book (for me) was much deeper and richer than Crawdads. I don't usually read books in five hours ... this one took a while for me to get into, but once I did, I did. The writing is engaging. The story (do read Ms. Church's interview and Author's Note for more information) is best entered blind. I cannot say that the book is "enjoyable" because the topic (and situation for the main character) was heartbreaking, but I'm glad that in the end the main character found peace, love, and family again. A solid 4.25 stars.

An engaging, at times intense, novel. Meagan Church’s writing is very descriptive with excellent character development and vivid settings. Her location details leverage your senses to place you exactly where she needs you to be to understand the scenarios. The historical elements are also skillfully incorporated to convey a difficult time in our history.

Thanks to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for this ARC.

It has been a very long time since a novel made me cry. I actually had to stop at chapter six to compose myself.
Ms. Church writing style in the very beginning brought me in. I did however found some parts dragging and was wanting to finish, but I was drawn back in again.
This novel touches on the cruelty of state eugenics board and the ignorance of society.

This book gave off some "Where the Crawdads Sing" vibes, but aside from that, it was a good book. I very much enjoyed the characters and their development throughout the book.