Notes from August 2011 Group

Rainwater by Sandra Brown

This month we discussed Rainwater by Sandra Brown

Bestseller Sandra Brown brings Depression-era Texas to vivid life in this poignant short novel. At the recommendation of Dr. Murdy Kincaid, Ella Barron, a hardworking woman whose husband deserted her, accepts David Rainwater, a relative of the doctor's, as a lodger at the boarding house she runs in the small town of Gilead, Tex. As the local community contends with a government program to shoot livestock and the opposition of racist Conrad Ellis, a greedy meatpacker, to poor families butchering the meat, Ella grows closer to David. Meanwhile, David becomes a special guardian angel to Solly, Ella's nine-year-old autistic son. Dr. Kincaid has gently suggested Ella put Solly in an institution, but she refuses to do so. Brown skillfully charts the progress of Ella and David's quiet romance, while a contemporary frame adds a neat twist to this heartwarming but never cloying historical.

This is a different type of book for Sandra Brown – more serious and historical (set in the Depression). Everyone in our group loved this book. It exceeded our expectations and an easy to read book. There are many conflicts in this story: racial tensions, rich vs poor, well vs sick, law abiding citizens vs the unjust. We had great discussions on these topics. Our group compared life in the Depression era with current day events. We could have spent much more time talking about this book.