The story sparks off with Betsy, the journalist, being flabbergasted by a group of ladies who do not want to hear the truth. She goes back to the news room and commiserates with Vernon, a fellow journalist who loves the truth like she does. He ends up telling Betsy a long story about how he was evicted from his own newpaper in a small town where there is a cotton mill, also with a long story fraught with untruths about mill workers who were marginalized and unfairly treated over their protests about "stretch-out" shifts during the Depression years. The mistreatment had become increasingly worse when Webster's, the mill owner's wife, Amelia died. The mill workers try to become unionized to protect themselves.
The twists and warps of truth, of murder and strikes become fossilized lies as did the beliefs of Southerners about the American Civil War catalyst. The author, Jerry Dean Pate exposes how these "Bad Beliefs" (and others) come to be and people's attitudes towards them; who starts them, who perpetutates them and why.
I can say I'm not very shocked by the answers, but do find it alarming and agitating how those of lower economic income can be, and are, treated. Although this narrative is written in Historical Fiction fashion, it still addresses these ills of 'those days' that still 'plague' today's "little guy" populace in unfortunate 'alive and well' status. I hope we can all become more aware and concerned for such predicaments and not be among the perpetrators' class. Bravo to author Pate for bringing this to pro-active listening-ear readers!
~Eunice C., Reviewer/Blogger~
April 2022
Disclaimer: This is my honest opinion based on the review copy given by NetGalley and the publisher.
Read review in Goodreads.
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