After reading and enjoying Scarlet Sister Mary I decided to read the other two books of Peterkin's available at the local library. Green Thursday was Peterkin's first book, published in 1924. It is set in the same South Carolina low country and is also a story featuring the Gullah people she knew so well.
Green Thursday, also called Maundy Thursday, is the day before Good Friday, and was the day Jesus celebrated the Last Supper before his crucifixion. It used to be considered a holy day, a day when a person did not work, like Sunday. But Killdee has a problem: the weeds are taking over in his farm fields. He fears if he doesn't keep after the weeds, he will lose his crop. So even though it is a holy day, Killdee hitches up his mule and plows up the weeds. He takes a break for lunch and puts his old mule, Mike, in the shed with some corn to munch on. But before too long, Mike is down on the ground, suffering from colic. Killdee rushes out to tend to Mike only to hear his wife's frantic cries. Their toddler, Little Rose, has fallen into the fire! The baby is so badly burned she soon dies. Killdee feels guilty, afraid that his disrespect for the holy day has brought the wrath of God down on his family. Yet he wonders why God would smite an innocent baby instead of the guilty one, Killdee himself.
The small book follows the lives of Killdee, his wife Rose and Missie, a girl Killdee got to help Rose take care of their new son. Like Scarlet Sister Mary it is a fascinating look at life as it used to be lived not so long ago.
Sometimes the dialect is a bit confusing, but with a little effort, it is a book that is well worth reading.
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