The Tobacco Wives by Adele Myers is historical fiction set in North Carolina in the late 1940s. Maddie Sykes, the 16 year old protagonist and budding seamstress, stays with her aunt in Bright Leaf every Summer. It is a town built on the tobacco industry; everyone smokes and celebrates with lavish balls all that tobacco has brought to their town.

A coming of age story set in post WWII America, Myers examines the early days of the women’s movement, and the truth behind the lies Americans were being told about cigarettes. The writing was just ok, and the story fairly predictable, however I found the book quite enjoyable. A good and easy read.