The Two Ruths

By: Martha Emily Bellinger

Narrated by: Ann Richardson

Length: 4 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

In 1950, after her father passes away, Ruthie Stein knows she will continue to take care of their family's dairy farm, as she has always done, while also looking after her mother. But when her mother falls and breaks her hip less than two years later, Ruthie soon finds she cannot get by on her own.

Her neighbors, the Packers, recommend that their cousin Ruth, who is single and unemployed, come and assist Ruthie with her mother in exchange for room, board, and a small amount of money. The two women soon become close friends and then discover that their relationship goes even deeper than friendship, into an unexpected romantic love. Although they must be very careful while together in public, the two women blend their lives together over the course of the next decade and manage to find true happiness in one another. But when Ruthie suffers a bad fall, they must reevaluate how theyll proceed in their future.

In this novel, set in rural upstate New York in the 1950s and 1960s, two women meet, fall in love, and build a life together, in spite of the secrecy that society of the time requires.

©2018 Martha Emily Bellinger (P)2018 Martha E. Bellinger

Great story telling!

Judge Martha Bellinger is a literary talent with a keen ability to weave a beautiful story. She presents a love story of two strong and brilliant women during a a time period when “loud and proud” was not the norm. While keeping their love private, the two Ruths build a life on a farm in upstate New York. The story kept my attention for each new phase of their lives.

This is a great read/listen and I can’t wait for the next novel from this author!

Exceptional writing and narration

It is difficult to find lesbian romance novels that let you know how a gay or lesbian closeted couple survived in the 1950’s with grace and passion. This book gives you a beautiful story of how two women in rural America found each other in an unusual way, become each other’s first and only love, and felt no guilt about their love despite the norms of church and community. Ann Richardson’s narration is extraordinary.