Necessary Lies

This book was my first Diane Chamberlain book but if all her works are similar in quality it definitely won't be my last. Necessary Lies is set in rural North Carolina during 60's. Ivy, is 15 and practically running her poverty stricken family which consist of her grandmother who is diabetic and doesn't take good care of herself, Mary Ella, Ivy's 17 year old sister who is mentally handicapped and Mary Ella's two year old son William. Jane is a young social worker, newly married and new to the job. Jane becomes very invested in Ivy and her family and of course as the reader you do too. This book delves into the Eugenics programs that the U.S. had in place, and unfortunately can still be seen as being practiced in smaller ways with coerced consent being still practiced when giving tubal ligations to female prisoners as late as 2010 in California. This book makes you care very deeply about what happens with Ivy and her family and with Jane. Even though I've never been in either women's shoes I found them both very relatable. This story transports you very succesfully back to 1960 rural North Carolina, and into Ivy and Jane's lives. Great book, and I highly recommend it.