The Indigo Girl: A Novel

This book is a novel, but most of the characters and events in it are real. Its heroine is Eliza Lucas, who, at age 16, takes over the management of her family’s plantations in South Carolina for several years while her father is away. She finds that a much more congenial task than looking for a suitable husband, as her mother thinks she ought to be doing. Seeking a way to make the barely-solvent plantations more profitable, she remembers indigo, a dark blue dye made from plants, which she saw in the West Indies, where she grew up. Ben, her childhood friend, knew all about the more-art-than-science process of making indigo… but Ben is black, and she has no idea where he is now—or who might own him. Ahead of her time, Eliza strongly dislikes the idea of slavery and sees the plantation slaves she is closest to as friends and coworkers rather than property. The book portrays her struggles, not only to find ways to raise and process indigo, but to work around the prevailing attitudes toward women and blacks that hamper her and endanger her friends. In all this she has one staunch ally: Charles Pinckney, a friend of her parents. Since any lookup of Eliza’s story will reveal that her last name eventually became Pinckney, it’s easy to see where that relationship is headed, but watching it get there is very enjoyable. Boyd’s writing is excellent. She made me really like Eliza and strongly identify with her, and her attempts to launch her indigo crop—which later became vital to her whole colony—were quite suspenseful. This book would work well as a young adult novel, with a main character who is likely to be an inspiration to teenage girls, but I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoys unusual sidelights on history and stories about strong women who overcome obstacles.

Read for a bookclub. At first I thought, oh no, another boring book about a female in the 1700’s who thinks marriage would be awful and it is so unfair that her younger brother is more important to the family and society simply because he is male. I felt like the author was throwing in some flowery prose between the same old, same old tiring thoughts or words of main character, Eliza, bemoaning her station in life. (Do authors repeat the same thing over and over because they think their readers are too stupid to remember they have already read it before, more than once?) But I’m happy that the story picked up and Eliza’s disdain was shown in action as well as her intelligence, her kindness, her industry, etc. The real, historical, Eliza, fortunately left letters and other writings so the author was able to craft her character with some depth. She defied some conventions but it was fun to see that she also enjoyed pretty dresses, fancy balls, letter writing, prayers, and friendships with other women. Natasha Boyd was able to write an interesting tale of history I had never heard of before; and without foul language or sex scenes. (Eliza does have an awakening physical attraction to men and musings about sexual relations.) However, a caution - this takes place in South Carolina in the 1700s and so includes slavery. There is implied violence and rape though not explicit descriptions.

I began this book knowing very little about Eliza Lucas Pinckney and finished it with a new female historical hero. While The Indigo Girl is historical fiction, it is a book that is based on a very real woman who left an indelible legacy in American history. Eliza Lucas took over running her father's plantations, at the age of sixteen and at a time when it was unheard of--in fact "indecent"--for a young woman to even have such aspirations, and realized that it was necessary for her to make a large profit in order to keep her family's business afloat. She decided to take a chance, one that many told her she could not succeed at, and planted indigo. What follows is a story of strength, compassion, and a commitment to bettering the circumstances and living standards of not only Eliza's life, but that of the slaves on her father's plantations, as well. Eliza agreed to teach the slaves and their children to read, in return for their shared knowledge in indigo farming and processing. After some poor outcomes, she eventually became successful in developing indigo as one of the most important cash crops of Colonial South Carolina. The accomplishments of may great women in history often become eclipsed by their male counterparts--as was the case with Eliza Lucas Pinckney. Although it was obviously very well-researched, the addition of fictional characterization, within The Indigo Girl, is necessary and enjoyable. I loved the characters (even the ones I "loved to hate") and the relationships between them and felt that Ms. Boyd's talent for storytelling and creating believable characters and dialogue made Eliza's history come alive. This is an overwhelmingly beautiful story and I was left engulfed in emotions, at the end.

The author's note at the end of this book explains that Natasha Boyd had "caught snippets of a story that would light a fire in me" while attending an indigo exhibition in South Carolina. Natasha took the true story of a remarkable young woman in the 18th century and used that 'fire' to create a work of historical fiction that gripped me from start to finish – even though historical fiction is not my usual choice of reading genre. I was transported to another era and place through Natasha's writing and in awe of heroine Eliza Lucas's strength of character. Recommended read.

I started to read this book after an afternoons conversation in Cape Town South Africa. Miles away from the location of the book. It was unexpectedly good. The characters were well written and the energy of Eliza Lucas jumped out from the pages. This was a fascinating time in history and it is well recreated in this book. I loved it.

After purchasing the Audible version for myself, I gifted the same to my sister and a paperback to my daughter. It’s that good! I will be purchasing more for some other family and friends in future. When there are true (slightly fictionalized) stories available for an author to tell us, and written so thoughtfully, most other historical novels pale in comparison. If there were more writers that would be willing to do the research and mine out real people’s lives, today’s society would be all the better for it. So often, people today generalize about women prior to the 1960’s and the American South, so that heroines like the the Indigo Girl are either romanticized beyond recognition or all but forgotten. As a lifelong bookworm, except for classics, rarely do I read a book more than once. This one will go on my classic bookshelf. PS. Narration could not be better in the Audible version. Excellent!

A book that should have been written long ago, and should be read, especially by young girls from middle school up, now.

I was immediately captivated and immersed in the world of this novel. It is written in a clear authentic manner which pulls you into the drama. Knowing you are reading about a real persons life, you are rooting for her all the way. It’s such a delight to know that in those structured times she had a will that made her take a path not usually followed by the majority of women. Many thanks to the author for following her curiosity and revealing Eliza to the world again.