In The Four Winds, Elsa Wolcott is a plain and incredibly tall unmarried woman of twenty-five. Her parents hoard their love for her making her think she is unlovable. It is 1921.
“By twenty-five, the die was cast. An unmarried woman was a spinster. ‘On the shelf’ they called her, shaking heads and tsking at her lost opportunities.”
When she gets a chance at romance with eighteen-year-old Italian farm boy Rafe, Elsa grabs it. When she falls pregnant, her family forces Rafe to marry her and wash their hands of Elsa. Little does Elsa know how bad things will get a decade later when Rafe’s family farm is literally swept up into The Dust Bowl.
Wow, The Four Winds is a heart-breaking tear-jerker. It is also a meditation on the mother-daughter relationship where Elsa gets to play both roles at different times of her life. Ultimately, it is an empowering story of resilience and the ability of humans to direct the course of their life even during adverse times. I can’t imagine a better time for this to be released. 5 stars and a favorite!
Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.