The Brewers' Big Horses

by Mildred Walker, David Budbill (Introduction)

Little Sara Bolster loved the great shining horses that drew the Henkel brewery wagon through the streets of Detroit in the 1880s. Those horses came to signify her fate, for she married the Henkel son and later, as a widow, took over the business. Sara’s struggle against the intolerance and hypocrisy of family and friends who disapproved of a woman running a brewery and opening a beer garden makes her a standout among the characters of Mildred Walker. The Brewers’ Big Horses recreates the manners and traditions of Germans in America as Prohibition gets up steam.

Genres: Fiction

441 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Mildred Schemm Walker (May 2, 1905 – May 27, 1998) was an American novelist who published 12 novels and was nominated for the National Book Award. She graduated from Wells College and from the University of Michigan. She was a faculty member at Wells College from 1955 to 1968. Walker died in 1998 in Portland, Oregon.

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Micebyliz · Rating 3 out of 5]

i've often wondered if things change more rapidly at certain times in history or if we just perceive them that way because the changes are important to us. Prohibition, women's suffrage (oy how we suffer!) and WWI change idyllic life in the Midwest in this novel by Mildred Walker. The introduction by David Budbill is very helpful for understanding the depth of Walker's brilliance as a novelist. He says she has wonderful metaphorical abilities, has feminist sensibilities, and makes deep psychological observations. i will drink to that!

[Edith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This Mildred Walker novel spans from 1882 to 1918 and it moves right along. There are frequent big jumps in time between one chapter and the next. It takes place in Armitage City, Michigan, a town built on the logging industry.....where the respectable Bolster family with four daughters lives on the wealthy west side of town. Acceptable behavior is very proscribed among their society and the subject of class permeates this novel. (The unusual name of the mother is Corona!) On the other side of town live the German immigrants/foreigners who are more recent US citizens.

Youngest daughter Sara has a mind of her own, though, and she ventures out of the comfortable circumscribed existence in which she has been raised. This is her story of crossing the class line and creating an alternate kind of respectable life in this city.

The story is told in a linear straight forward manner which reads easily. It bumps into the First World War and the early Prohibition Movement. And there is a German brewery in the story....thus the "Brewer's Big Horses". I think Mildred Walker was trying to say something big in this novel about the American people and immigrants in the melting pot which is our big complex country. She wants the reader to broaden their view and open their heart to all the color that is our nation.
Quite an ambitious novel. An enjoyable read.

[Marilyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read a few books by this author. Her writing is comfortable. I cozy into my chair and continue on.

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a huge Mildred Walker fan and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and seeing the evolution of the leading character Sara Bolster Henkel who becamea feminist businesswoman before she could even vote. The original book was published in 1940 right on the cusp of WWII, yet a consistent theme throughout the book was the elevation of the German immigrants as jolly, loving, hardworking immigrant people. It seems surprising as the book was written during the scary rise of the Nazis. I see the point she was trying to make, Germans rather than Nazis, but it couldn't help making me uncomfortable. However, I will happily recommend this book for the wonderful writing , characters and story.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

A slice of life from another time. I loved the class distinctions and how important they were, the “mixed” marriage between someone English and German, and all the little details. Walker’s writing is always so clear and evocative. I do wish this one had a little more of an ending, though.

[Andi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. Walker is an incredible story teller capturing the highs, lows and everything in between of Sara Bolster, Detroit, and the late 1800's and early 1900's.

[Kathy Halsan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another Mildred Walker book with good history, strong female characters, and a good story. This book takes place in the decades before prohibition. The main character is a young women with wealth and socal standing who marries a German man from across the river. When she is widowed, she runs her nusband's family brewery in a time when women stayed at home. A good book!

[S Sande · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of Walker's earlier books. Makes a clear point of social issues of the day. And, as she always does, the story portrays a strong woman.