Book Blurb:
Texas, 1934. Millions are out of work and a drought has broken the Great Plains. Farmers are fighting to keep their land and their livelihoods as the crops are failing, the water is drying up, and dust threatens to bury them all. One of the darkest periods of the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl era, has arrived with a vengeance. In this uncertain and dangerous time, Elsa Martinelli—like so many of her neighbors—must make an agonizing choice: fight for the land she loves or go west, to California, in search of a better life. The Four Winds is an indelible portrait of America and the American Dream, as seen through the eyes of one indomitable woman whose courage and sacrifice will come to define a generation.
My Review: 4 stars
The Four Winds was a heartbreaking and heroic tale that takes you to the dry farms of Texas to the plight west in search of a better life. I really enjoyed this book even though at times, the desperation of the characters was too much to bear.
The main protagonist, Elsa, was a character to root for and remember. I’m writing this review months after I read the book and still, she’s stayed with me. She was a hard-working, brave woman who was emotionally stunted due to her parent’s lack of love for her. At her first chance at love, she jumps deep and thankfully, she finds the protection of familial love, if not romance.
Hannah, a master storyteller, has covered many genres in her career, but I think her historical fiction work is the best. You can tell that her research was extensive and because of that the story was richer and well nuanced. At many times I stopped to google more info about the dust bowl. Had I not read I Will Send Rain, I would’ve had very little intimate knowledge about this era.
There are many themes running through this book, such as courage, friendship, trust, environmental issues, survival during the Great Depression, motherhood, self-image, romance and hope. The author’s note was especially good as it alluded to today’s pandemic and how it relates to past traumatic historical events.
Book clubs unite! This one has tons to talk about.
Quotes I liked:
Passion is a thunderstorm, there and gone. It nourishes, yes, but it drowns, too.”
“The children’s lives would never be the same after today. Their opinions of everything would change, but especially their opinions of themselves, of the durability of love and the truth of their family. They would know forever that their father hadn’t loved their mother–or them–enough to stay with them through hard times.”
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