Book Club, most of us discussed how little we knew about this era in general and were that much better for it after reading The Four Winds. It is SO beautifully written and told that it gave me ALL the feels and I loved it immensely.

This book made me laugh, made me upset, made me cry and at one point I threw it across the room. How simple kindnesses can enrich our lives beyond wealth and how complex relationships within families can shape our lives. The Four Winds touched on themes of humanity, of faith, of hardship and what it means to hope.

She was my favorite character, although every character in this book is relatable. Her daughter, Loreda is a tough spirit that doesn’t speak the language of the reserved but does share the dream of a life outside of her own. Elsa is strong but, in many ways, reserved. The plot follows Elsa, an underestimated dreamer that doesn’t fit into her family and craves a world beyond her own. Kristin highlights what the dust bowl was like through the eyes of a community, of farmers, of the government and of a single family doing their best to survive. This era was dubbed ‘The Dust Bowl’ as walls of dust and sand swept across the plains, ruining both crops and livestock. As if the Great Depression and a severe drought weren’t enough, states from Texas to Nebraska were being plagued by dust storms during the 1930’s. The Four Winds was an Autumnal Tints Book Club pick for February. ::hides under blanket:: I know I know, people love her BUT, in my defense, I don’t read historical fiction. My Thoughts:ĭisclaimer: this was my FIRST Kristin Hannah book.

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. 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. One of the darkest periods of the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl era, has arrived with a vengeance. 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. Millions are out of work and a drought has broken the Great Plains. The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah From the Cover:Ĭourtesy of Texas, 1934.

The four winds book review