The Four Winds

"The Bestselling Hardcover Novel of the Year."--Publishers Weekly

From the number-one bestselling author of The Nightingale and The Great Alone comes a powerful American epic about love and heroism and hope, set during the Great Depression, a time when the country was in crisis and at war with itself, when millions were out of work and even the land seemed to have turned against them.

My land tells its story if you listen. The story of our family.”

Texas, 1921. A time of abundance. The Great War is over, the bounty of the land is plentiful, and America is on the brink of a new and optimistic era. But for Elsa Wolcott, deemed too old to marry in a time when marriage is a woman’s only option, the future seems bleak. Until the night she meets Rafe Martinelli and decides to change the direction of her life. With her reputation in ruin, there is only one respectable choice: marriage to a man she barely knows.

By 1934, the world has changed; millions are out of work and drought has devastated the Great Plains. Farmers are fighting to keep their land and their livelihoods as crops fail and water dries up and the earth cracks open. Dust storms roll relentlessly across the plains. Everything on the Martinelli farm is dying, including Elsa’s tenuous marriage; each day is a desperate battle against nature and a fight to keep her children alive.

In this uncertain and perilous time, Elsa—like so many of her neighbors—must make an agonizing choice: fight for the land she loves or leave it behind and go west, to California, in search of a better life for her family.

The Four Winds is a rich, sweeping novel that stunningly brings to life the Great Depression and the people who lived through it—the harsh realities that divided us as a nation and the enduring battle between the haves and the have-nots. A testament to hope, resilience, and the strength of the human spirit to survive adversity, The Four Winds is an indelible portrait of America and the American dream, as seen through the eyes of one indomitable woman whose courage and sacrifice will come to define a generation.

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480 pages

Average rating: 8.06

2,452 RATINGS

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103 REVIEWS

Community Reviews

Anonymous
Mar 26, 2025
10/10 stars
Great
Booksoverpeople2025
Mar 08, 2025
5/10 stars
This book I could not get into, I give it a rating of a 5, just because I really think others that I know will love this book, and I don't want others to take my word for it until they read. The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah is an absolutely stunning novel—one that I highly recommend to young readers who love historical fiction packed with raw emotion, resilience, and unforgettable storytelling. If you’ve never read Kristin Hannah before, this book will make you an instant fan. Set during the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl era of the 1930s, the novel follows Elsa Martinelli, a woman who has always felt like she wasn’t enough—never pretty enough, never strong enough, never truly loved. But when she’s abandoned by her wealthy family, she builds a life for herself in the Texas farmland with a husband and children. Then the drought comes. Crops fail. Dust storms turn the land into a wasteland. And Elsa is forced to make an impossible choice—stay and fight for survival in a dying land or take her children to California in search of a better life. What makes this book so amazing is how vividly Hannah brings history to life. You feel the hunger, the desperation, the mother’s fierce love that drives Elsa to keep going even when the world is telling her to give up. The imagery of the Dust Bowl is haunting, and the way Hannah describes the hardships faced by migrant workers in California is heart-wrenching. But at its core, this is a story about strength—especially the strength of women. Elsa’s journey from a timid woman to a fierce, determined mother is so inspiring. It’s a reminder that even in the worst of times, hope and courage can carry us forward. I highly recommend The Four Winds to young readers because it’s more than just a history lesson—it’s a story of survival, love, and the power of resilience. It makes you think about what people in the past endured and how their struggles shaped the world we live in today. It’s emotional, unforgettable, and so worth reading.
TexasRed
Feb 28, 2025
9/10 stars
I connected to this book strongly because of where I was born and raised. It also gave me a very real view of the day to day life of people during The Great Depression and The Dust Bowl that History classes never did. I felt it very deeply. I would have given it a 10 except that it was a sad read.
Erick
Feb 25, 2025
10/10 stars
Kristin Hannah turned me into a communist with this book. Also, she made me sad. She likes to make me sad.
ABuck
Feb 17, 2025
8/10 stars
As always with Kristin Hannah, this story provided fascinating insight into a historical time of hardship. The teams of love and sacrifice as well as strong women relationships are thought provoking and tug on heart stings.

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