THREADS

Whitney’s historical drama vividly captures the fears, desperation, and fortitude of a tightly knit Michigan farm family, depicted through the lives of a trio of sisters enduring the Great Depression.

Three narrators take turns recounting the events of a traumatic year on the Yoder farm. The alternating voices of very imaginative 7-year-old Nellie, narcissistic 11-year-old Irene, and superresponsible 16-year-old Flora reflect the differences in not only their ages, but in their temperaments. It is 1934, and Nellie has completed her last chore—sewing a button on her dress. She is now allowed to run off to greet the farm animals she loves and to explore the woods leading to the creek. On the way, as she fantasizes about finding buried treasure, she spots a small dirt mound. Perhaps this is where she will discover hidden jewels. She begins digging, and to her horror, she uncovers a “TINY BLUE-BLACK HAND.” Terrified, she races home. The sheriff is called and discovers a dead baby. Irene doubts the story since Nellie “gets things mixed up all the time.” But Flora organizes the girls into a club to secretly learn more about the infant’s identity and cause of death. The mystery runs through the entire novel, but it is only one of a series of disturbing incidents. Two girls from a neighboring town have disappeared; a drunk brute breaks into the Yoder food cellar; seedy preacher Brother Johnson arrives on the scene; and Nellie’s life is threatened. This gives the narrative sufficient action, but its greater strength rests with the sisters’ accounts of the simple day-to-day realities of Depression life. Ma and Pa are afraid they will not be able to pay their mortgage or taxes, and customers no longer have money to buy even eggs. And there is never enough food. “Bread, potatoes, and beans are what we eat,” says Flora, which lends special poignancy to the fact that Ma hands out bean sandwiches to the hungry young “train riders.” Unfortunately, the book contains many disparaging references to the Roma people.

An atmospheric, intimate Depression-era family portrait with three distinct, engaging characters.