Now a Denver Post bestseller
"Addictive. Highly recommended!"—Paulette Jiles, New York Times bestselling author of News of the World
Beautifully rendered, Where Coyotes Howl is a vivid and deeply affecting ode to the early twentieth century West, from master storyteller Sandra Dallas.
Except for the way they loved each other, they were just ordinary, everyday folks. Just ordinary.
1916. The two-street town of Wallace is not exactly what Ellen Webster had in mind when she accepted a teaching position in Wyoming, but within a year's time she's fallen in love—both with the High Plains and with a handsome cowboy named Charlie Bacon. Life is not easy in the flat, brown corner of the state where winter blizzards are unforgiving and the summer heat relentless. But Ellen and Charlie face it all together, their relationship growing stronger with each shared success, and each deeply felt tragedy.
Ellen finds purpose in her work as a rancher's wife and in her bonds with other women settled on the prairie. Not all of them are so lucky as to have loving husbands, not all came to Wallace willingly, and not all of them can survive the cruel seasons. But they look out for each other, share their secrets, and help one another in times of need. And the needs are great and constant. The only city to speak of, Cheyenne, is miles away, making it akin to the Wild West in rural Wallace. In the end, it is not the trials Ellen and Charlie face together that make them remarkable, but their love for one another that endures through it all.
2 of 2 copies available
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
April 18, 2023 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781250277916
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781250277916
- File size: 5302 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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February 27, 2023
Dallas (Little Souls) delivers a sprawling and immersive story of homesteaders carving out a life in Wyoming. Seeking adventure, 23-year-old Ellen Webster leaves her Iowa home in 1916 to teach in a one-room schoolhouse in the small town of Wallace, imagining a Wild West adventure of bronco riding, cowboys, and pine-covered mountains. Though the brown, flat plains are a disappointment to her, rancher Charlie Bacon is not. The two are smitten at first sight, and after they marry and settle on a small ranch, Ellen tends to the batten-and-board house and garden and Charlie oversees a neighbor’s cattle and a few of their own. Soon a baby is on the way, though prairie life proves difficult, with blizzards, scorching summers, drought, and disease. Ellen and Charlie’s relationship, meanwhile, is tested by a series of losses, but their love is strong. So are Ellen’s bonds with other prairie women, among them Gladys, whom Ellen stands by despite the risk of scandal when Gladys returns to prostitution after her children die. Another friend, Ruth, is abused by her husband, and despite warnings from Charlie that interfering would make things worse, Ellen helps spirit Ruth out of town to safety. Well-rounded characters, convincing period details, and a sumptuous setting make this sing. Readers will be hooked. -
Starred review from February 1, 2023
Dallas' (Westering Women, 2020) blunt, brutal latest explores the mythic soul of the American West and the endless flatlands of early-twentieth-century Wyoming through a female lens. Ellen arrives from Iowa to teach school but quickly falls in love with ranch hand Charlie Bacon. Affable by nature, she befriends women for miles around: Ruth, a talented quilter hiding her bruises; Gladys, a generous former prostitute with a green thumb; Frances, a loner whose blunt nature belies her desire for human connection. In time, Ellen bears quiet witness to both their small joys and overwhelming sadness, including her own, as motherhood eludes her in deeply tragic ways. Where Coyotes Howl relies on its characters rather than on its plot, but it works. The women aren't parodies. Their hardships pile up as thick and fast as a Wyoming blizzard, and readers can't help but develop empathy for their trials. Life's cruelties run the gamut: domestic violence, mental illness, sexual assault, suicide, and the deaths of many children. These numerous trigger warnings shouldn't dissuade a potential reader; they simply depict the misfortunes that punctuate lives filled also with love, kindness, and grace.COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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