This is the kind of book that makes me joyful as a reader

• Book: The Personal History of Rachel Dupree
• Location: South Dakota
• Author: Ann Weisgarber

This is the kind of book that makes me joyful as a reader. It’s immediately engrossing, it illuminates a life that is otherwise foreign to me, and paints real landscapes and situations I’ve never experienced. Set in 1917 at a ranch in South Dakota by the Badlands, the story is told by Rachel DuPree, an African-American woman who married an ambitious man, whose entire identity and self-value is tied up in the land he owns. The book opens with a punch: a longstanding drought requires the extreme measure of lowering the smallest child into the ranch’s well in order to scoop up what water may be had. From the beginning, Rachel is torn between desperately wanting the water to keep her children and livestock alive yet wracked with horror at her acquiescence of this act.

This book is emotional but not out of any lurid or melodramatic scenes — instead, the oomph comes from the hard reality of life for Rachel and her children. Alternating between Rachel’s present and flashing back to how she ended up in South Dakota in 1917, we learn about two hard, determined people — Rachel and her husband Isaac — and the results of a gamble and a hope. The grim basis of Rachel and Isaac’s marriage was what grabbed at my heart the most — it was at times beautiful and at times horrifically cruel. But I could completely appreciate Rachel’s loyalty and the choices she made because she was such a real character.

Race, understandably, features in this novel: the discussion of skin color shade among the society African-Americans in Chicago, the perception of Booker T. Washington and Ida B. Wells in the African-American community, and the ‘us-vs-them’ story created by the homesteaders and settlers to differentiate themselves from the Native Americans on the reservations in South Dakota. Class and education also affect the story and characters, as both Rachel and Isaac want something more for themselves and their children — but have wildly differing ideas as to what that means. Again, what was so compelling for me as I read was this marriage and Rachel’s challenge to balance her happiness, her children’s well-being, and her husband’s wishes with what she thinks is right.

Upon finishing, I immediately thought two things: one, that one should vacation to the Badlands because they are staggeringly gorgeous but OMG, I never want to live there again and two, that I wanted there to be another book. Although the ending of this one was perfect, I could have used another 300 pages or a second volume to follow Rachel and her family some more. I was reminded a bit of Sigrid Undset’s Kristin Lavransdatter (a favorite of mine that I never wanted to end!). This would make an excellent book club selection since the themes of family, obligation, compromise in marriage, and prejudice are common ones. Apparently this book has been optioned for a film, so read it now before the movie is released!

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