It is 1921 and Texas is having a time of abundance. The Great War (WWI) is over. The land is filled with abundance and America is on the edge of a new era. There is much optimism.
Elsa Wolcott, who is considered at age 25 to be too old to get married (in a time when marriage was a woman's only option or so it was considered), only sees a bleak future.
But then she meets Rafe Martinelli and her life completely changes. According to her parents, who have never really shown her unconditional love, her life is ruined. Her reputation is in ruins and there's only one choice for her: get married to Rafe and raise their baby. She barely knows Rafe yet the Martinelli family (Tony and Rose, Rafe's parents) accept her and show her what real love is. They also show her how to work on a farm.
By 1934, the whole world is changing. Millions of people are out of work and one of the worst environmental catastrophes has hit the Great Plains: the Drought. Some states are now known as being in "the dust bowl"). The farmers are fighting to save and keep their land. Their livestock are dying, crops are failing and the water is drying up. Even the earth cracks open.
Everything on the Martinelli farm is drying up...even Elsa's marriage. Every day is a battle to keep her children and in-laws alive, but the battle is with nature and nature is winning.
Finally, Elsa must make a difficult choice: fight for the land she has come to love, or flee with her children and go west to California...the land overflowing with milk and honey.....to look for a better life for her family.
What will they find when they get there??
MY THOUGHTS
This book is riveting from page 1. I wept at the cruelty of Elsa's parents and older sisters. I cheered her on for her bravery and determination in the midst of such hardship.
This story centers around the Great Depression, specifically 1934-1935.
The main themes of this story are the mother-daughter relationship; the haves vs the have nots; strength and integrity in the face of unjust living and racism; the harsh realities that divided our nation. It's about hope, perseverance, and love.
The character development, as with most Hannah novels, is rich and compelling. Each character is someone I'd love to meet. Her setting in Texas and California is so well done I had no problem putting my self in Elsa's shoes.
We learn about the Dust Bowl, the plight of the migrant workers and what the Californians meant by "Okies". We learn about strikes and fair wages. We learn about cowardice vs bravery.
The ending is bittersweet........exquisitely written and very poignant.
I love that the author also included a note at the end explaining the parallels between the Great Depression and the Pandemic.
There were many quotes I loved from this book but here are a few that jumped out at me:
"I see one-third of a nation ill-housed, ill-clad, and ill-nourished....the test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little." ~Franklin D. Roosevelt~ (pg 59 The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah, c. 2021)
"We draw our strength from the very despair in which we have been forced to live. We shall endure." ~Cesar Chavez~ (pg 193)
'"I'll be here for you," Elsa said....."Maybe that's how God provides. He put me in your path and you in mine."......Elsa hadn't known until right then how much difference a friend could make. How one person could lift your spirit just enough to keep you upright. (pg 259)
"....we fought, we struggled, we hurt each other, so what? That's what love is, I think. It's all of it. Tears, anger, joy, struggle. Mostly, it's durable. It lasts......" (pg 407)
"It wasn't the fear that mattered in life. It was the choices made when you were afraid. You were brave because of your fear, not in spite of it." (pg 423)
"Love. In the best of times, it is a dream. In the worst of times, a salvation........The four winds have blown us here, people from all across the country, to the very edge of this great land, and now, at last, we make our stand, fight for what we know to be right. We fight for our American dream, that it will be possible again.......A warrior believes in an end she can't see and fights for it. A warrior never gives up. A warrior fights for those weaker than herself. It sounds like motherhood to me." (pg 426)
"As we know there are lessons to be learned from history. Hope to be derived from hardships faced by others. We've gone through bad times before and survived, even thrived. History has shown us the strength and durability of the human spirit. In the end, it is our idealism and our courage and our commitment to one another---what we have in common--that will save us. Now, in these dark days, we an look to history, to the legacy of the Greatest Generation and the story or our own past, and take strength from it." ~Kristin Hannah~ (pg 450 from the Author's Note)
In my opinion, this book is appropriate for ages 14 and older.
On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, I rate this a 10.
3 comments:
Great review, Faith. This book is on my "to-read" list. I have heard nothing but good things about it, and that is a period of time I find fascinating. Thanks for the review!
Great review Faith as always - lots of detail but no real spoilers.
I love stories centered around this time and events. I've read one other from this author last year, The Winter Garden, and loved it. This one's waiting for me at the library to pick up. It is such a chunker, though, so I find it intimidating.
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