Mary Coin

I came across this book after I read The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah. Kristin's book was so beautifully tragic and I wanted to stay in that time period of immense struggle. It is an interesting idea to imagine a story behind the photo of the “Migrant Mother” and what her life may have looked like and how that photo came about. I understand the reason behind the current day history professor his story but I could have done without that part of the book. That's personal preference as I thought the book would have been compelling even without that storyline. It seems that dual storylines are popular with novelists but sometimes it's not necessary.

I picked this novel up on a whim at the library because I've always found the photo featured on the front cover (Migrant Mother by Dorothea Lange) to be such an arresting image. The idea of telling the story behind that photo was quite interesting to me, and I'm happy to say the novel was a compelling read. I loved the writing, each of the three main characters was fascinating, and the look at life during the 1930s was completely engrossing. Especially poignant to me was the author's decision to make each of the mothers in the book face difficult choices for her children, and the results of both of their choices. This is a really excellent novel, and I'd love to read more of this author's work.