The morning of January 12, 1888, was unusually mild, following a punishing cold spell. It was warm enough for the homesteaders of the Dakota Territory to venture out again, and for their children to return to school without their heavy coats—leaving them unprepared when disaster struck. At the hour when most prairie schools were letting out for the day, a terrifying, fast-moving blizzard blew in without warning. Schoolteachers as young as sixteen were suddenly faced with life and death decisions: Keep the children inside, to risk freezing to death when fuel ran out, or send them home, praying they wouldn’t get lost in the storm?
Based on actual oral histories of survivors, this gripping novel follows the stories of Raina and Gerda Olsen, two sisters, both schoolteachers—one becomes a hero of the storm and the other finds herself ostracized in the aftermath. It’s also the story of Anette Pedersen, a servant girl whose miraculous survival serves as a turning point in her life and touches the heart of Gavin Woodson, a newspaperman seeking redemption. It was Woodson and others like him who wrote the embellished news stories that lured northern European immigrants across the sea to settle a pitiless land. Boosters needed them to settle territories into states, and they didn’t care what lies they told these families to get them there—or whose land it originally was.
@wakelys Thank you! I got the idea to add the snow while I was shoveling. LOL. I wrapped the book in a baggie and covered it with snow. What a story. I actually had to put the book down and just cry. I have read and treasure all the Little House on the Prairie books by Laura Ingalls Wilder but those stories don't portray how difficult a life pioneers truly had.
@Dawn This book will make you cry. My grandmother came from Ohio in a wagon ... so I am fascinated by pioneers. I have all the "Little House on the Prairie" books.
March 19th, 2023
Leave a Comment
Sign up for a free account or Sign in to post a comment.
