Kat Bohn

Rosie of Ripshin Mountain by Sheri Bruce Wiggins

1920s Eastern Tennessee, life in the mountains, putting every herb, root and berry to use. In this book, we follow Rosie as a “Granny Woman” or what we might consider a homeopathic doctor, or herbalist. I really enjoy Sheri’s deep research into the realism of what life was like back then, including what feels like a personal guided tour through the mountain’s bounty of offerings, covering where Rosie gathers yarrow, echinacea, and bee balm – and what she uses them for. Of course this is a fictional book, and you should always consult with your doctor etc etc… but I appreciated the “recipes” that were sprinkled throughout, and even recognized some myself!

While Ripshin Mountain lost their town doctor to old age, young and soon-to-graduate Oliver Hughes responds to their newspaper ad for a new doctor to come live and practice in their mountain town. Wanting a change from high society city life, coming from an affluent NYC family, he and Rosie find more than just medical curiosity in each other.

This book was both cozy, yet emotionally heavy – life was not great for all, obviously. Yet it reminds us that with the right kind of mindset and community, we can move forward and keep doing the best we can with what we have. Trigger warnings; child abuse, trafficking, and sexual assault.

We can never explain exactly why bad things happen to good people – but we can decide how we are going to deal with it when it happens. Often we want to justify things, “I must have done wrong,” “It must be Karma,” “I must have sinned,” but that’s the mind’s way of just wanting some kind of answer. It doesn’t make any of these things true. Sometimes it was simply poor timing, someone else’s greed or selfishness, or even something else entirely out of your control.

I admit – this book made me cry many times, and I had to cool down and reset during those takes. However, growth isn’t always comfortable. And this book does go into some deep and dark places, but reminds us we can overcome anything when we have a support system. And rest assured – you do. There is always someone who will care.

I have a few download codes still available at this time – if you would like to walk through 1920s Eastern Tennessee with Rosie, use my contact form – subject line Rosie of Ripshin Mountain – and request a free reviewer’s code (as available).

This is actually the 2nd in her Women of Appalachia series, the first being Maggie’s Mountain Song (I also narrated this, as a 90 year old North Carolina woman recollecting her time in the 1940s during WWII) but each is a standalone historical fiction in the early to mid 1900s. PS: I only have codes available for *Rosie’s* book.