Unveiling Secrets and Shadows: A Riveting Journey in The Light Between Apple Trees
Another point of adoration for Ms. Kumar’s writing lies in the perfection with which she places external references and clarifications. When speaking of bumblebees, she quotes Emily Dickinson: “The lovely flowers embarrass me. They make me regret I am not a bee.” When reviewing the associations apples have had within different cultures, my eyes shone to read, “Sappho compares a bride to a ripe apple blushing on a tree, just out of a picker’s reach.” She is also appreciatively straightforward when pointing out the failures of some of the United States’ apple pioneers. Of Jefferson, she writes, “He epitomizes an inherent contradiction at the heart of the country’s birth: a cry for liberty from men who stood on the backs of enslaved workers.”
