About the book-
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 thoughts-
I love historical fiction, but I tend to stick to my favorite go-to time period which is the WWII. Sometimes I may veer out of this era to something interesting that grabs my attention but I will admit the last time I remember reading a book set durng the Dust Bowl/Great Depression era was in high school for my senior research paper when I very begrudgingly read The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. I haaaaaated it. I don't think I even finished it and because it was such a long project it turned me off of books set in that same era. I figured if anyone could write a book about it that would hold my attention it was Kristin Hannah and I was right. I couldn't put it down. The book was interesting from start to finish. It was set in Texas (which may have been more interesting to me than Steinbeck's novel set in Oklahoma, because I am a Texan) and California and deals with not only a family's particular struggles but also protests about unfair wages and living conditions. I found it to be such a great book that all these many years later it made me feel like maybe I should give The Grapes of Wrath another chance. Kristin Hannah's historical fiction is always excellent. I recommend it to anyone who loves history.
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