Cussy meets Mrs. Claxton’s niece, Susan, a nursing director who is professionally curious but kind about Cussy’s methemoglobinemia, making Cussy feel respected rather than gawked at. Cussy explains to Susan that the methylene blue drug she was given to turn her “white” had terrible side effects, so she chooses to remain “blue.”

After dinner, Mrs. Claxton provides Cussy with new clothes, telling her she is a “librarian now, not a prisoner” (152). Cussy settles into the airy sleeping porch for her room. That night, the Claxtons’ dog, Daisy, curls up on Cussy’s stomach. Cussy feels the baby flutter for the first time and feels a deep sense of peace and safety.

On Monday morning, Cussy and Mrs. Claxton walk to the library. Cussy is in awe of the city’s sights and sounds, including milk and bread left by delivery trucks, a blue steel letter box on a street corner, and a crowded playground for children. She is particularly struck by the fact that in the bustling city, no one stops to stare at her blue skin. During their walk, they witness police arresting a man for vagrancy, prompting Mrs. Claxton to remark that poverty itself is treated as “a crime.” As they cross the busy streets, Mrs. Claxton points out the names of the roads so that Cussy can learn her way around the neighborhood.

Mrs. Claxton gives Cussy a tour of the Western Colored Branch Library, a stately Carnegie building with the words “Knowledge is Power” carved above the doors (161). She explains it was the nation’s first full-service public library for and staffed by “coloreds.” Cussy meets a friendly librarian, Lillian Carver. Mrs. Claxton advises Cussy to keep her inmate status a secret to avoid gossip. 

Mrs. Claxton shares her main concern: Many adults in the community cannot read or write, which prevents them from passing the literacy tests required to vote. Inspired, Cussy suggests establishing a “Moonlight School,” a program based on one that successfully taught adults in Appalachia. Mrs. Claxton enthusiastically agrees, and the library staff begins preparing fliers. 

Later, Cussy and Mrs. Claxton distribute the fliers door to door. They also encounter a Black woman named Patty who is hostile about Cussy’s skin color. Mrs. Claxton points out to Patty that the discrimination Cussy faces is similar to their own experiences of racism.

Mrs. Claxton hesitates when they reach a brothel, concerned that the Reverend would disapprove. Cussy observes that women from the brothel in Troublesome Creek turned out to be the Pack Horse Library’s biggest donors. Mrs. Claxton is persuaded, and they meet the brothel’s madam, Johnna. Cussy is astonished when the women who work there admire her skin color. Two of them, Frankie and Otilia, agree to attend the classes. Later, they visit an elderly, lonely man named Kipple “Kip” Culbreath, who is inspired to learn to read after Cussy talks to him about books.

Continuing their door-to-door rounds, Cussy and Mrs. Claxton visit Lizbeth Hall, a young, bruised white woman. The mother of two young children, she is trapped in an abusive relationship and too fearful to commit to the classes. They then meet a paperboy, Steven, who is overwhelmed caring for his sick parents and young sister. He dismisses the class, feeling he is too burdened with larger problems to attend. Cussy points out that if he could read, he could get a better-paid job and hire carers to help with his family.

That evening, Reverend Claxton confronts his wife about visiting the brothel, forbidding her to associate with “harlots.” During their argument, Cussy overhears the Reverend use the word “heathen,” which triggers painful memories of her own ostracization. Cussy intervenes, using a biblical story to argue that the women deserve a chance to learn. Mrs. Claxton backs her up, and the Reverend relents. He agrees to announce the new literacy classes at his church and ask other local pastors to do the same.

On Tuesday morning, July 7th, Cussy reads the newspaper headline announcing Sassyann Sipes’s execution. The paper contains a gruesome photograph of a previous electrocution, which horrifies Cussy and makes her contemplate running away. Inside, the Claxtons are listening to a live radio broadcast from the governor. He announces that Sassyann has been hospitalized after surviving the execution due to an electric chair malfunction. The governor suggests that Sassyann survived because “God turned her away and Satan wouldn’t have her!” (186). Reverend Claxton mutters that Sassyann is a “sinner,” but Mrs. Claxton quietly calls her a “warrior.”

As they walk to the library, Mrs. Claxton asks about Sassyann, and Cussy explains that she taught her to write. Cussy then confides in Mrs. Claxton, revealing she and her husband, Jackson, were imprisoned for violating “miscegenation” laws. Mrs. Claxton is outraged on her behalf and promises to add Sassyann, Cussy, Jackson, and their daughter Honey to her church’s prayer circle. Cussy also mentions the polio outbreak at Jackson’s prison. At the library, they find a large delivery of writing tablets and paper for the class. The warden calls for her daily check-in, and Mrs. Claxton firmly states that Cussy will remain until her scheduled departure on Sunday.

The first evening literacy class draws eight patrons, including the two women from the brothel, Kip Culbreath, and a hesitant Steven the paperboy. Patty arrives but leaves in a rage after seeing the sex workers, threatening to get Mrs. Claxton and Cussy fired. An elderly woman named Ardell Winters asks Cussy to read a six-month-old letter, which reveals the birth of her great-grandson; the news motivates her to learn to write. Though the students are enthusiastic, Cussy feels a pang of disappointment at the low turnout, worrying she has let Mrs. Claxton down.

Cussy has a nightmare in which Sassyann’s fiery face hovers over her and Warden Sanders appears behind her with a damning finger. The Claxtons rush in to comfort her. The next morning, Warden Sanders calls and asks if Cussy can return on Friday, but Mrs. Claxton refuses.

A special noon class is held for night-shift workers, including Frankie and Otilia, a policeman, and two firemen. On Wednesday evening, Cussy and Mrs. Claxton are stunned when 82 people arrive for the class. The news has spread through local churches and businesses. As Cussy begins the lesson for the crowded room, Mrs. Claxton watches her with an expression of pride.