Prize winning author Michele Moore kept an overflow crowd in rapt attention as she shared stories about her historical novel The Cigar Factory at the February 21 meeting of the Daniel Island Historical Society. Both the extensive Q&A after her talk and comments as the crowd broke up indicate this was one very successful meeting.
Most of us have driven by The Cigar Factory building on E. Bay Street and read various news items as it has been renovated recently. But Moore took us back in time to put human faces on the brick facade.
Do you know what a sibi bean is? That’s just one of the fascinating bits of information shared. Moore talked about how her familiy’s tales of their hometown Charleston led her to write the fascinating story of black and white women who worked at The Cigar Factory. Writing the book involved an exploration of the Gullah dialect spoken by many in Charleston at the time. And, by the way, a sibi bean is Gullah for lima bean.
Want to know more? Check out the power of Moore’s prose in this clip.