Where Willows Grow

Step Back in Time

This book has Kim Sawyer¿s signature depth of characterization. As the reader, I quickly fell in love with Anna and her struggles. The characters were rich and diverse. Harley is a man who has pulled himself up and works hard to support his family. Jack has a successful dairy farm, but is focused on the love that¿s been denied him. Dirk is a man who will teach Harley what sacrifice is about. And Anna is a woman trying to make the best of an impossible situation. I also love the way Kim makes the setting come alive. She pulls together unknown pieces of Kansas history that add richness and depth to the plot. I also enjoyed the fact that this book was set during the Depression. This has been a time period that has been overlooked by many historical authors, yet Kim makes it come to life in a manner that kept me engaged from page one.

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The Course of True Love Never Did Run Smooth. . .

But true love triumphs in this touching, insightful story, set in the Depression in drought-stricken Kansas. Using believable characters, Kim Sawyer weaves a tale of God¿s provision and the redemption of broken dreams. . . . Anna Mae loves her husband, but it¿s been a while since she and Harley shared much more than frustration. They¿re on the brink of losing the farm they both dearly love because of the severe drought and the depressed economy. Out of desperation, Harley decides to take a WPA job, which will mean leaving his wife and two little girls. Anna Mae, unhappy about the situation, doesn¿t even say good-bye to her husband, and they part in anger. . . . Far away from her husband, Anna Mae¿s situation seems to go from bad to worse, especially when lifelong neighbor, Jack, decides he still loves Anna Mae and it would be best if her son-of-a-sharecropper husband didn¿t return at all. . . . This book delivers quite an emotional punch and will touch your heart, as true love, in all its many forms, wins out in the end. Don¿t miss it!

strong Americana family drama

In 1936 Spencer, Kansas, Anna Mae Phipps feels all alone in the world as the family farm is dying due to the drought and her beloved spouse Harley has left their home to work construction for the federal government¿s Works in Progress Administration. She feels isolated and abandoned as she has no husband, no mule, an infant Marjorie, an older preadolescent child Dorothy, and a third on the way. Anna Mae fears that Harley will not come back to her and the kids if he does he probably will not find them on the farm that they will surely lose. --- Harley misses his family as he loves his wife and two children. He desperately needs to bring in income to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads that is why he sold their last mule and took a crazy job on the other side of the state building a castle in Lindsborg. He left his spouse angry with him, but he knows the corn cannot grow and if it did who could afford to buy it. He plans to make enough money so that he can come home to his family on their farm. --- WHERE WILLOWS GROW is a strong Americana family drama that focuses on the impact of the Depression in Kansas. Readers will feel Anna Mae¿s sense of desertion and hopelessness while also knowing how much Harley misses her and their children, but feels he must do what is needed to insure his family is fed and sheltered. Though the economic climax seems to simple, historical fiction readers will appreciate Kim Vogel Sawyer¿s deep look at what a 1930s family did to survive on a drought ridden Plains. --- Harriet Klausner