The Book Woman's Daughter

As the title implies, The Book Woman’s Daughter puts books at the center of the narrative, serving several different functions. Books offer freedom, a source of income, consolation, connection, and education. Honey says books are “[a]n escape, a friend, a lesson, and liberty for us all” (194). The last line of the novel highlights the most important function of books to Honey: “books had not only saved me, her, and others, but had given us something even bigger and more precious: Freedom” (310). In this passage, “her” refers to the “Book Woman,” Honey’s Mama. Both women experience freedom due to their love of books—literally, in Honey’s case, because books play a key role in Honey’s emancipation hearing. The hearing only happens because Honey reads about a famous emancipation case in an old newspaper while at work. Additionally, the judge was a patron of the Book Woman (Honey’s Mama) and believes being a Pack Horse librarian is a respectable profession. In other words, reading saves Honey from the House of Reform. For Honey, books are key to her survival as a free woman. She thinks, “A job and money—and the books—meant I could at least survive” (130).