The Children's Blizzard by Melanie Benjamin

The Children's Blizzard by Melanie Benjamin
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars - On January 12, 1888, a sudden, unexpected blizzard appeared on the Great Plains, catching everyone off guard. The day had started off balmy, after an extended period of frigid weather. Children went back to school after being trapped inside for a few weeks, adults were out doing chores and errands, all dressed lightly. It hit around noon, and schoolteachers, many just teens themselves, were forced with the decision of trying to ride it out in the schoolhouse, or sending the children home. Two schoolteachers, sisters themselves, made very different decisions, which would shape both their lives and the lives of all the pupils families, for many years to come. In fact, the book is split into two parts, the first part describes the blizzard itself, and the second part of aftermath.
Perhaps the most interesting part of this book was the six pages of author's notes at the end, where the author describes her motivation and research in writing this book. As a historical novelist, she wanted to write a book focused on children, which inspired the idea of writing about the children's blizzard. Instead of placing real characters into a created setting, in this book the setting or event was the focus, and the characters - while based on some real people, were created. She explains the Signal Corps, who reported the weather, the importance of railroads in developing this part of the country, the maltreatment of the first peoples, and the role of newspapers in attracting immigrants to populate the area. This last part was particularly interesting to me, as the families involved were Swedish immigrants, and my own grandparents immigrated from Sweden and Norway in the early 1900s.
Book 157 of 2021


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