Fair and Tender Ladies by Lee Smith

“There was so much life then. Well it is gone now. Like chimney smoke into thin air.”

Ivy Rowe to Danny Ray Rowe

Published in 1988, Fair and Tender Ladies is undoubtably Lee Smith’s most well-known and most beloved novel.  A seasoned Southern storyteller - Lee Smith’s sense of a place and its people are at their finest in this epistolary work which chronicles the life of Virginia Mountain native, Ivy Rowe. 

Lee Smith’s writing is a rich blend of humor and insight into the people and culture of Appalachia.  She has a simple and honest way of exposing the mountain culture hardships and flaws but doing so with a deep affection for the South and its people.

Born in a small, coal-mining town in the Appalachian mountains, Lee Smith’s keen and loving observance of her culture  - and her careful listening to the stories told around her have given birth to 15 novels and 4 collections of short stories, garnering multiple awards and recognition.

But out of all her works - Ms Smith’s most devoted readers seem to all agree that Ivy Row is the best of her many well-crafted characters.

Poor and one of nine children in the family, Ivy was born with a pure and innate love of literature and an undaunted drive to learn.  Her prospects for bettering her life were slim in the sheltered turn of the century mountain area where she began her life but she developed a creative outlet for herself in the lengthy & involved letters written throughout her life to friends and family and these letters give us the storyline to her life.

Ivy often dreams of far-off places that she longs to see but her letters strongly present a moving picture of the community where she lives — the local customs, food and folktales such as Whitebear Whittington, Old Dry Fry or Mutsmag. A fiercely independent person - Ivy doesn’t always conform to common ways of thinking around her - but perseverance becomes one of her strongest tools to survive.

As Ivy progresses through her life, she encounters many of the same obstacles to personal growth as other young women around her, who struggle to keep their children fed and clothed. As Ivy’s time becomes more and more occupied with working, chores and eventually, children her chances to read and learn become more rare.  

Ivy Rowe never had much in the way of possessions and didn’t seem to really want them - but as a young unwed mother, the birth of her first child gave her something rare and unique in her life - 

“Miss Maynard, do not pity me.

Do not even bother to dislike me, nor pity me, nor anything else, because I do not need anything from you, nor want it either.

My little baby Joli Rowe was born September 10, 1918. She is all mine. I have never had a thing of my own before. She is the most beautiful baby in the world.

So, I pity you!”

Ivy Rowe to Miss Mabel Maynard

This book is a Southern Lit classic for a reason.  There is plenty of time – start reading!

The Jane Austen Tea Society has happily returned to a study of a Southern classic - Fair and Tender Ladies by Lee Smith with a Spring Book Breakfast & Discussion to take place on Saturday the 30th of April at 10am.