book data
324 ratings,
4.06
average rating, 78 reviews
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published
December 1st 1992
by University of Nebraska Press
binding
Paperback, 306 pages
isbn
0803297416
(isbn13: 9780803297418)
description
For this Bison Books edition, James Welch, the acclaimed author of Winter in the Blood (1986) and other novels, introduces Mildred Walker's vivid hero...more
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3 stars (61)
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2 stars (7)
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1 star (2)
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avg 4.06
editions: all | this edition
editions: all | this edition
Read in March, 2009
It took a while for this book to "grab" me, but once it did I was hooked. I loved the metaphor throughout the story of winter wheat and its comparisons to love and life. As Ellen's mom said, "That don't mean nothing. We get mad, sure! Like ice an' snow an' thunder an' lightning storm, but they don't hurt the wheat down in the ground any." (The strong, good wheat can still grow through the toughest of times.)
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Thank you for this great recommendation Tami. This is written in one of my favorite settings - the Dust Bowl of the 1930's. However, the plot focuses on a young woman's perception of the strange relationship between her parents. Very interesting.
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Read in April, 2009
Squeaky clean book dealing with the reason for being, beauty, hands, seasons, times when one feels trapped in his/her circumstances, disappointments in parents (and the resolution of those feelings),being free from anyone else (good/bad p. 164), and an interesting Walt Whitman poem (p. 141 "There was a child went forth every day"). Finally, the comparison of how love grows like winter wheat, susceptible to cold, wind, temperatures and the affects of strong and week roots. Ellen explo...more
Read in January, 2001
Written over sixty years ago about ranchers living in remote parts of Montana, this old fashioned coming of age novel has a surprising currency. Its bittersweet portrayal of human relationships has a deep ring of emotional truth, and its understanding of the constantly shifting nature of identity makes it almost postmodern. Meanwhile, it can be read with a kind of page-turning breathlessness that keeps readers hoping that everything - against all odds - will somehow turn out for the best.
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I enjoyed this book. The book takes place in the 1940's and is about a young woman, from rural, central Montana. It takes the reader through a year and a half of her life as she experiences the pain and awakening of growing up. From leaving her family wheat farm to go to college, to having to sit out a year because of bad crops, we share with her the insights she gains into her parents and herself.
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I love reading this book. The author paints amazing pictures in my head with her writing. I also always cry at the end. Not because I am sad, but it is a touching ending. It is a simple story of a girl's life from ages 18-21 approx. I have had friends say it is a little slow for them, but I have never met anyone who hated it.
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Read in March, 2009
Beautifully written story about love and loyalty. The author paints the Montana prairie exquisitely. The characters are realistic and intriguing. It will make you see love and relationships in a new and hopeful light. I enjoyed every word in this book.
I especially liked that there was no offensive material in this book. Its a great read for all ages.
I especially liked that there was no offensive material in this book. Its a great read for all ages.
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Read in June, 2009
I only gave this 3 stars because I could put it down. That being said, I liked the main character and could feel her emotions thoughout the book. Most of the book takes place in Montana in the 1940's. I enjoyed the visual imagery, although at times excessive, and the metaphor of the wheat.
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Read in February, 2009
This coming-of-age story about a young woman's life in Montana reminds me of "O Pioneers" by Willa Cather. I love the imagery in the book and Walker's comparison of mature love to winter wheat. "They had love that was deep-rooted and stronger than love that grows easily."
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Stephanie
I liked this book a lot but I would have liked a little more closure. Does she go on to college? What happens with Leslie & Warren? A lot of loose ends for me. I know I've read this before but couldn't remember when or what happened in it.
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Read in March, 2009
Simple easy read. Interesting look at life on a ranch among the harsh Montana elements. It's a coming of age story (although the time period is less than 2 years' time), but I like the perspective it gives of true love.
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Read in August, 2008
This book asks / answers the question "what is love" from the perspective a a young girl going off to college. Life experiences and watching her parents change her view through the story. This was a very good book.
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Read in November, 2008
I love books that I can learn something from. I learned about the wheat growing part of our country and the different types of wheat that is grown, where and why. A lovely story to be enjoyed by all.
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Read in January, 2008
What a pleasure to read a well written book! I could see myself in this book as a daughter, a wife and a mother. Beautifully written, the book compares life and it challenges to growing winter wheat.
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Read in May, 2009
This book was written in 1944 so it's a bit hokey by today's standards. It is a nice clean read however and a snapshot of the times. Light fictional/ romance novel.
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Read in January, 1999
a child's view of her parents marriage and way of life....and her view on the same as she gets older--funny how age changes things.
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I read this for book group and enjoyed it quite a bit. One of the classics I'd never read. It was chosen as "One Book Montana." It's a cross between My Antonia by Willa Cather and The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig. It's a coming of age story for a young woman in Montana, an only child who lives on a farm. Her ability go go to college depends on how the wheat crop sells. The story concerns her first love/loss/and subsequent decisions. Her parent's relationship figures heavily into...more
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Read in February, 2009
There is always more than one point of view. Love hurts. Flexibility is good.
Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in February, 2008
First book that I read for a book club. I loved this! Couldn't put it down and was done with it in two days (that is saying a lot since I have two little kids around). For some reason I kept thinking of my Grandma while reading this. Such a different life than I have now. I loved the descriptions of the rural Montana land and the life of being a wheat farmer. At book club I was the only one who was pro Ellen-Gil. Email me if you want to know my reasons, I don't want to spoil any of the st...more
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quotes from this book
"The words came so fast they seemed to roll down hill. Nobody ever calls it all that; it's just spring wheat, but I like the words. They heap up and make a picture of a spring that's slow to come, when the ground stays frozen late into March and the air is raw, and the skies are sulky and dark"
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