{"product_id":"the-childrens-blizzard-9780399182303","title":"The Children's Blizzard","description":"\u003cb\u003eFrom the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Aviator's Wife\u003c\/i\u003e comes a story of courage on the prairie, inspired by the devastating storm that struck the Great Plains in 1888, threatening the lives of hundreds of immigrant homesteaders, especially schoolchildren.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"A nail-biter . . . poignant, powerful, perfect.\" --Kate Quinn, author of \u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Alice Network\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe morning of January 12, 1888, was unusually mild, following a punishing cold spell. It was warm enough for the homesteaders of the Dakota Territory to venture out again, and for their children to return to school without their heavy coats--leaving them unprepared when disaster struck. At the hour when most prairie schools were letting out for the day, a terrifying, fast-moving blizzard blew in without warning. Schoolteachers as young as sixteen were suddenly faced with life and death decisions: Keep the children inside, to risk freezing to death when fuel ran out, or send them home, praying they wouldn't get lost in the storm? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBased on actual oral histories of survivors, this gripping novel follows the stories of Raina and Gerda Olsen, two sisters, both schoolteachers--one becomes a hero of the storm and the other finds herself ostracized in the aftermath. It's also the story of Anette Pedersen, a servant girl whose miraculous survival serves as a turning point in her life and touches the heart of Gavin Woodson, a newspaperman seeking redemption. It was Woodson and others like him who wrote the embellished news stories that lured northern European immigrants across the sea to settle a pitiless land. Boosters needed them to settle territories into states, and they didn't care what lies they told these families to get them there--or whose land it originally was. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAt its heart, this is a story of courage, of children forced to grow up too soon, tied to the land because of their parents' choices. It is a story of love taking root in the hard prairie ground, and of families being torn asunder by a ferocious storm that is little remembered today--because so many of its victims were immigrants to this country.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Bantam\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/11\/2022\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780399182303\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 384\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.60lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.90h x 5.10w x 1.00d","brand":"Melanie Benjamin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41574588186805,"sku":"9780399182303","price":14.45,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_73047e5a-5618-41f2-b286-a252a711b965.jpg?v=1643696399","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-childrens-blizzard-9780399182303","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}