I discovered this novel years ago in a small bookstore in Mendocino. Written in 1944, it is the story of a young woman entering adulthood on her family’s Montana wheat farm at the cusp of WWII. Ellen struggles to understand the relationship between her father, who faces lingering health issues as a result of combat during WWI, and her mother, a Russian immigrant. Going away to college and falling in love for the first time, Ellen is faced with seeing her life through the eyes of Gil, a sophisticate who doesn’t understand the ranching life or the beauty in Montana’s vast expanses. Stunning writing combines with deep insight into relationships, and the human connection to the natural world.
–Cindy, Eagle Harbor Book Company, Bainbridge Island, WA
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