Necessary Lies: A Novel

It's been a long time since I read a book where I was as connected to the characters as I was to those in this book. Jane is a young wife settling down in North Carolina with her doctor husband Robert. Robert makes more than enough money to support the couple, however Jane wants to work before settling down to have children. She becomes a caseworker in a rural impoverished area and quickly gets thrust into the world of trying to help the poorest people in the area. Ivy Hart is 15 years old and is often the caretaker of her home; she lives with her older sister, Mary Ella, who is deemed feebleminded, her aging grandmother, and her two year old nephew. Her father has passed away and her mother has been put into a mental institution. The family lives in a tiny house on a tobacco plantation where they work for the Gardiner family who allow them to stay in exchange for working on the plantation. Ivy has a deep bond with her family and also has dreams to better her future. When Jane and Ivy meet, they become friends. Ivy has been determined to be unintelligent and untrustworthy, but Jane can see through that and realizes that Ivy is a determined and hardworking young woman who has been born into an unfortunate situation. Jane works hard to advocate for Ivy and her family and to keep them together. But when multiple tragedies strike, Jane must take actions that she never would have thought of in order to protect Ivy. The two learn that they are more alike than different and have many things in common, despite their extreme differences in lifestyle and upbringing. I loved all of the characters and could picture them so clearly. They all were so dynamic and relatable, despite the fact that I have never been in a situation like them and wasn't yet born when this story took place. The writing was incredibly well done and I felt as if I were there for so much of the story. This was a read for a book club and I suspect it will lead to a great discussion. There are so many dynamics involved that prove that life is never simply black and white. I will admit that I had no idea that forced sterilization went on in the way that it did for so long in order to prevent poor people from having children. That devastated me and I truly learned something from this book. I felt for all of the characters involved in this difficult situation and I could even see how the other social workers involved truly believed they were helping these women. This story taught me something new and also captivated my interest. I was truly sad to see it end. I would highly recommend this book to anyone and I think it is an important read.

This book was interesting from both a factual perspective and as a story. I enjoyed how it wove historical society's beliefs and practices with a character study of a fictional family's experience with the main character, Jane. It seems that a " perfect" system of the Grace County Social Welfare department is balanced and unruffled until Jane gets her new job as a case worker. Jane is the " loose cannon" that triggers a series of events that unleash all the pent up problems within the system and magnify themselves on the Hart family. The book itself is written in an easy to read manner. Not especially intellectually challenging. However, in terms of the actual story.... You will likely get caught up in how Jane's emotions rock the way the sterilization program in North Carolina system works: sterilize individuals with less desirable financial and intellectual conditions with the guise to help those people. Ultimately , it helps the upper crust society because they don't have to deal with socio economic problems that go along with poor people having more children. Jane believes that this is wrong, especially when she gets to know some of her new cases on her job. She creates a series of events that destroy her marriage, rip a struggling family apart, and lead others to a brighter future. I found it to be an interesting book because I saw the wrestling match Jane had with society's constraints and how she was overwhelmed with the huge impact her actions had on a family. I did not feel especially connected with Jane, just that she served as a character built with the innocence to believe she could change the system. I enjoyed the way the author described the conditions rural families lived under. That seemed pretty accurate. Overall, nicely tied up story. I enjoyed it and it taught me a bit about our country's history and shocked me that certain programs were practiced so recently. Side note: I am certainly glad that women do not have to get our husband's signed permission to get birth control these days!

Der Roman spielt in den USA (genauer im ländlichen North Carolina) in den 1960er Jahren. Zu dieser Zeit waren in diesem Teil der USA behördlich angeordnete Zwangssterilisierungen an der Tagesordnung. Diese verfolgten das Ziel, dass sich Mitglieder der Gesellschaft, bei denen man dies für nicht erstrebenswert hielt, auch nicht fortpflanzten. Necessary Lies erzählt die Geschichte zweier Schwestern, Mary Ella und Ivy, die mit ihrer kranken Großmutter auf einem Hof leben und ins Visier der Behörden geraten sind. Der Roman begleitet den tragischen Leidensweg von Mary Ella, die nach der Geburt ihres ersten Kindes bereits sterilisiert wurde, sowie die Versuche von Ivy, der Zwangssterilisierung zu entkommen. Dabei nimmt die seit kurzem für sie zuständige Sozialarbeiterin Jane eine immer wichtigere Rolle ein, da diese sich zunehmend von der für sie unmenschlichen Praxis distanziert. Die Handlung selbst ist erfunden, aber sie könnte sich so ähnlich, oder noch viel extremer zugetragen haben, wie die Autorin auch im Nachwort anführt. Obwohl, oder gerade weil, das Thema so unglaublich erschreckend und erdrückend ist, hat mich der Roman von Beginn an gefesselt. Ich wollte und konnte ihn gar nicht mehr weglegen und habe ihn in Rekordzeit verschlungen. Ich kann ihn nur allen empfehlen, die eine außergewöhnliche, zur Herzen gehende Geschichte lesen möchten, die bei aller Tragik doch positiv bleibt, und sich damit auseinandersetzen wollen, welche unglaublichen Dinge unsere westliche Gesellschaft noch vor 50 Jahren toleriert und forciert hat. Der Autorin gelingt es nicht nur eine packende Handlung zu entwickeln, sondern diese auch so zu beschreiben, dass man direkt in die Geschichte gezogen wird und mit dem Schicksal der Figuren mitfiebert. Besonders gelungen fand ich, dass die Geschichte abwechselnd aus der Perspektive Ivys und Janes beschreiben wird, so dass man die Sichtweise beider Hauptpersonen versteht. Das Buch ist ein seltener Glücksfall und absolut lesenswert.

Un bel page turner, l'autrice ha steso una buona trama e creato personaggi credibili e accattivanti. Si è calata in un contesto difficile e delicato costruendo una storia coinvolgente. Chamberlain gestisce a meraviglia la tensione. Non è Tolstoj, ma nel suo genere questo titolo per me vale 5 stelle.

I was unsure whether I would take to this book, especially since the setting is in rural North Carolina in the 1960's. This was a time when race was divided and although we are now in the 20th century, racism is sadly still an issue for some in that part of the world. For that reason, I was undecided as to whether I really wanted to read this, but having read other DC books and loved them I started. I was pleased I made that choice as Diane Chamberlain has created a book that tells a story, and just that. She doesn't sensationalise anything about it, but creates a story that will maybe make readers aware of the struggles that went on at that time. Jane Forrester is far from the norm' in the sixties as she is determined that although she is newly married, she still wants to have a career. I liked Jane and DC did an amazing job of recreating the unease that people felt in the sixties when women working was out of the ordinary. Very quickly we see Jane start her job as a social worker and are instantly taken into the world of the poorest people that are working in the tobacco fields. Ivy Hart is a young girl and lives with her Grandmother and sister. It took me not time to be transported to the conditions and type of life they had to lead. As the story unfolds and we meet more workers and we begin to see the effects of the Eugenics Programme which was widely used in the sixties, and something I had never heard of until reading this book. As the book progresses you begin to see that there is a lot more to it that at first glance. The story peels back layers and weaves an absolutely gripping storyline making it impossible to stop reading. It's a pretty sad story in one respect but one which had an absolutely amazing ending and a story that I loved from start to finish. Diane Chamberlain has singled herself out as an outstanding author by touching the reader emotionally, but at the same time still producing an amazing story which highlights historical events that some people may know nothing about. This may not be for everybody as the subject matter may be too sensitive for some, but I found it absolutely gripping and would highly recommend it. It's a book that will have remain in my memory banks for some time and I think if you haven't read it you should certainly give it a try.

I read Diane Chamberlain's short story "The First Lie" and was compelled to read more. It was a hart-breaking book in many ways but up lifting too. One of the things I particularly was the way the dialogue was written and the differences between the characters, eg Ivy and Jane. I could hear them speaking. I now want to know more about the Eugenics Programme as the book was based on facts. I will read many more of Diane Chamberlain's books.

the book was great ! I could not put it down and I could not read another book for few days after, it was very touching.