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The Sharecroppers
The Sharecroppers
- GenresHistorical FictionNovels
350 pages, Hardcover
First published October 30, 2013
467 people want to read
About the author
Denisa Nickell Hanania
4 books5 followersMrs. Hanania was raised on the southern edge of Lake Michigan near Indiana’s tranquil sand dunes and hardwood forests. She loves writing, traveling, speaking, and spending time with her family. Her book, The Sharecroppers, was awarded first place for fiction at the 2013 Author Awards.
She believes Stories are a gift. First, they are a gift to the author. Then, the gift is passed on to the readers.
Although industry professionals argue authors should stick with one genre and one target audience, Mrs. Hanania chooses to write the stories that touch her heart. “I don’t look at it from a marketing standpoint. The most important questions to me are: Is this a story worth telling? How will this story benefit the reader?”
Her most recent book is an example. Instead of being limited to a specific age group, The Traveling Cabin was written for multiple generations to enjoy together. Parents, siblings, and grandparents can “meet the same new characters” and share experiences. This creates additional connections between family members and deepens the relationships.
Her most recent book is an example of writing a story for all to enjoy. Instead of being limited to a specific age group, The Traveling Cabin was written for multiple generations to delight in together. Parents, siblings, and grandparents will always remember the shared experience of meeting new characters and reading the drama of an unfolding story. This creates additional connections between family members and deepens their relationships.
Mrs. Hanania also published her first illustrated children’s book, Me & THAT BABY! in 2022. “I didn’t set out to write a children’s book. Two of my grandsons took up position across from each other on either side of my knees jockeying for favor with me. I was shocked.”
Thus, Me & THAT BABY! was born! This darling book is a fun way to acknowledge children’s feelings and reframe their view of any little intruder. The book encourages close relationships with a sibling or cousin and sets the stage for good mental health in a family.
“When I visit preschools to read this book to the children, I start by stating that ‘babies are little lugs. Babies don’t actually do anything, but everybody gets excited when the baby smiles.’ I tell them, ‘I don’t get it ‘cause I’ve been smiling for years, and nobody gets excited.’ The children are immediately engaged. They can relate to those feelings.”
Mrs. Hanania often gets asked if she is a Christian author. “I would say I am a Christian who writes books. Being a word person, it matters to me which is the noun—meaning the essence or core of something and which is the adjective—a partial description of the noun. My core is found in Jesus. Writing is one thing I do along with being a wife, a mother, a grandmother, and a friend. The books I write are not overtly religious, but they come from a deep belief in how much God loves us and wants us to be whole.
She believes Stories are a gift. First, they are a gift to the author. Then, the gift is passed on to the readers.
Although industry professionals argue authors should stick with one genre and one target audience, Mrs. Hanania chooses to write the stories that touch her heart. “I don’t look at it from a marketing standpoint. The most important questions to me are: Is this a story worth telling? How will this story benefit the reader?”
Her most recent book is an example. Instead of being limited to a specific age group, The Traveling Cabin was written for multiple generations to enjoy together. Parents, siblings, and grandparents can “meet the same new characters” and share experiences. This creates additional connections between family members and deepens the relationships.
Her most recent book is an example of writing a story for all to enjoy. Instead of being limited to a specific age group, The Traveling Cabin was written for multiple generations to delight in together. Parents, siblings, and grandparents will always remember the shared experience of meeting new characters and reading the drama of an unfolding story. This creates additional connections between family members and deepens their relationships.
Mrs. Hanania also published her first illustrated children’s book, Me & THAT BABY! in 2022. “I didn’t set out to write a children’s book. Two of my grandsons took up position across from each other on either side of my knees jockeying for favor with me. I was shocked.”
Thus, Me & THAT BABY! was born! This darling book is a fun way to acknowledge children’s feelings and reframe their view of any little intruder. The book encourages close relationships with a sibling or cousin and sets the stage for good mental health in a family.
“When I visit preschools to read this book to the children, I start by stating that ‘babies are little lugs. Babies don’t actually do anything, but everybody gets excited when the baby smiles.’ I tell them, ‘I don’t get it ‘cause I’ve been smiling for years, and nobody gets excited.’ The children are immediately engaged. They can relate to those feelings.”
Mrs. Hanania often gets asked if she is a Christian author. “I would say I am a Christian who writes books. Being a word person, it matters to me which is the noun—meaning the essence or core of something and which is the adjective—a partial description of the noun. My core is found in Jesus. Writing is one thing I do along with being a wife, a mother, a grandmother, and a friend. The books I write are not overtly religious, but they come from a deep belief in how much God loves us and wants us to be whole.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
September 25, 2014
I guess you could safely call this book an historical novel. After all, it does cover decades of American history as experienced by a family of Arkansas sharecroppers. More importantly, it details the day-to-day and year-to-year lives of those sharecroppers, allowing readers to appreciate the grace and integrity with which they faced their many hardships. In the face of unscrupulous landowners, great loss, and disappointments, they maintained their integrity and dignity, proving that being poor in the pocket doesn't equate to being poor in spirit.
I'd also call it a love story. Not a Harlequin romance kind of love story, but a tale of love shared between a man and woman through decades of hard knocks and hard work; a tale of love for family, country, and the simple pleasures of life; a love of the land and its bounty.
It's also a labor of love, for this is the story of the author's own family... of her great grandparents. It's clear that she did a tremendous amount of digging to harvest such rich and memorable details to fill the pages of this book. And it's clear that she has a great deal of respect, love, and appreciation for the lives her great grandparents lived, and for the rest of her family.
In the epilogue, the author wrote of her great grandmother, "For those of us who loved her, and perhaps that now includes you, her courage, strength, and perseverence continue. As surely as Little River flows to the Mississippi and on to the ocean, her life inspires us."
Yes, yes, I DO love the family as chronicled in this book. And what's more, by all the work and love the author put into writing it, I believe she proved that the values instilled in their children by her great grandparents are still going strong in the family today. I believe Hanania's great grandparents would be exuberantly proud of her. This book is a love letter to her entire family.
And I... LOVED it.
I'd also call it a love story. Not a Harlequin romance kind of love story, but a tale of love shared between a man and woman through decades of hard knocks and hard work; a tale of love for family, country, and the simple pleasures of life; a love of the land and its bounty.
It's also a labor of love, for this is the story of the author's own family... of her great grandparents. It's clear that she did a tremendous amount of digging to harvest such rich and memorable details to fill the pages of this book. And it's clear that she has a great deal of respect, love, and appreciation for the lives her great grandparents lived, and for the rest of her family.
In the epilogue, the author wrote of her great grandmother, "For those of us who loved her, and perhaps that now includes you, her courage, strength, and perseverence continue. As surely as Little River flows to the Mississippi and on to the ocean, her life inspires us."
Yes, yes, I DO love the family as chronicled in this book. And what's more, by all the work and love the author put into writing it, I believe she proved that the values instilled in their children by her great grandparents are still going strong in the family today. I believe Hanania's great grandparents would be exuberantly proud of her. This book is a love letter to her entire family.
And I... LOVED it.
August 18, 2014
A little bit of everything in this story. The true meaning of life is written in these pages.
November 3, 2017
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review. I would like to apologize to the author for not reviewing it sooner.
This was a beautiful story of Marina and her family, who are sharecroppers in Arkansas. The story begins in 1912 and ends in 1984. Like life, the family endures hardship but with hard work and love they get through it.
I would have loved to have known Marina, Jake, and their family. Twilight on the porch, eating all of the amazing food she cooked, and chatting about the day sounds absolutely amazing to me.
This story might be slow paced, but that's what made it so enjoyable. I was able to sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.
This was a beautiful story of Marina and her family, who are sharecroppers in Arkansas. The story begins in 1912 and ends in 1984. Like life, the family endures hardship but with hard work and love they get through it.
I would have loved to have known Marina, Jake, and their family. Twilight on the porch, eating all of the amazing food she cooked, and chatting about the day sounds absolutely amazing to me.
This story might be slow paced, but that's what made it so enjoyable. I was able to sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.
October 6, 2017
Okay, so I feel like this book was written by someone who is not an avid reader. I could be completely wrong, but that’s how it feels to me, and it would explain so much about the way this book was written. I have personally known many people who want to write books and do not read much themselves. You can see why that might be a problem; it’s like someone who doesn’t listen to classical music suddenly proclaiming they are going to compose a symphony. There are quite a few indications that is the case here, including the fact the author doesn’t know what a prologue or epilogue are, so I would be quite surprised if that wasn’t the case.
I ended up going with two stars simply because this was a self-published effort. Were it not, I would only have given it one. A proper editor at a reputable publishing company could have really helped this book.
It wasn’t awful, I just think the writer doesn’t really know how to properly formulate a story, and could probably really benefit from a good creative writing course. The bones of a good story were there, it just fell really flat.
Ficton either has to be plot driven or character driven. This was neither. There is no real big plot to drive the story, and it clearly would have naturally lent itself to being a character driven story being it is based on real people. The problem was that there was very little actual character development throughout the entire book. This meant that they didn’t feel like real people, they felt flat and dull. There was nothing in the writing that made you actually feel connected or attached to any of the people. Right from the beginning, you are thrown in right before the two main characters marry and start a family—there is no build up, no exploration of the characters as individuals prior to their marriage, nothing to establish a sense of who they are, and therefore give a foundation for you to root for them to succeed together. You need to care about the characters in a story like this, and I just didn’t.
The storyline was choppy and sloppy. The author clearly wanted to highlight certain family anecdotes and stories, and she tried to make the story revolve around them, which was not the way to go about it. She was unable in tying together these anecdotes to weave the sections together well, or properly transition the story. It made for very odd, specific jumps in the timeline and left gaps barely given an acknowledgment. The story needed to be focused more on the people, and less on these stories and the endless descriptions of things related to the time period and setting.
The scenes either need to move the plot forward, or be important to the character development. Most of them weren’t. There was a lot of repetition; so much smiling, and repressing of smiling was done that they must have had mighty sore cheeks. The was a lot of needless description that did not further the storyline, and were also very repetitive; the descriptions of tasks in minute detail, and of the food, got very old, very fast. Had they been woven into the story to further the plot in some way, or were used to really develop the character, it would have been one thing, but they were just thrown in there. I appreciate that the author was trying to capture the lifestyle, but those types of things can’t just be thrown into the story for the sake of themselves. The writing itself was a bit simplistic, and unsatisfying.
There are a lot of other issues that an editor would have helped with; the lack of commas where needed, which created run-on and confusing sentences, the use of commas where one was not needed, the inconsistent dialogue style.
The thing is, I think this book had the potential to be good, it really did. It just feels like it was written by someone who has not yet gathered the knowledge of the basics of the craft of writing fiction.
I ended up going with two stars simply because this was a self-published effort. Were it not, I would only have given it one. A proper editor at a reputable publishing company could have really helped this book.
It wasn’t awful, I just think the writer doesn’t really know how to properly formulate a story, and could probably really benefit from a good creative writing course. The bones of a good story were there, it just fell really flat.
Ficton either has to be plot driven or character driven. This was neither. There is no real big plot to drive the story, and it clearly would have naturally lent itself to being a character driven story being it is based on real people. The problem was that there was very little actual character development throughout the entire book. This meant that they didn’t feel like real people, they felt flat and dull. There was nothing in the writing that made you actually feel connected or attached to any of the people. Right from the beginning, you are thrown in right before the two main characters marry and start a family—there is no build up, no exploration of the characters as individuals prior to their marriage, nothing to establish a sense of who they are, and therefore give a foundation for you to root for them to succeed together. You need to care about the characters in a story like this, and I just didn’t.
The storyline was choppy and sloppy. The author clearly wanted to highlight certain family anecdotes and stories, and she tried to make the story revolve around them, which was not the way to go about it. She was unable in tying together these anecdotes to weave the sections together well, or properly transition the story. It made for very odd, specific jumps in the timeline and left gaps barely given an acknowledgment. The story needed to be focused more on the people, and less on these stories and the endless descriptions of things related to the time period and setting.
The scenes either need to move the plot forward, or be important to the character development. Most of them weren’t. There was a lot of repetition; so much smiling, and repressing of smiling was done that they must have had mighty sore cheeks. The was a lot of needless description that did not further the storyline, and were also very repetitive; the descriptions of tasks in minute detail, and of the food, got very old, very fast. Had they been woven into the story to further the plot in some way, or were used to really develop the character, it would have been one thing, but they were just thrown in there. I appreciate that the author was trying to capture the lifestyle, but those types of things can’t just be thrown into the story for the sake of themselves. The writing itself was a bit simplistic, and unsatisfying.
There are a lot of other issues that an editor would have helped with; the lack of commas where needed, which created run-on and confusing sentences, the use of commas where one was not needed, the inconsistent dialogue style.
The thing is, I think this book had the potential to be good, it really did. It just feels like it was written by someone who has not yet gathered the knowledge of the basics of the craft of writing fiction.
January 11, 2025
*I received a copy through a First Reads giveaway*
A beautiful account about a couple whose days are kept plenty busy maintaining a household full of children (on a very slim budget) and moving from land to land maintaining the crops for various landowners. The couple strives to work hard and own land of their own and after many years of hard honest work, they realize their dreams. However, a cruel turn of events takes their home away from them and they are back to working for landowners. But it is their love for one another and their family that enriches their lives in a way that no material possession can. The characters were so well developed that I felt I knew them – I love when a book makes me feel that way. As a child, I often heard bits of conversation from the past and how my parents helped their folks tend the farm; I could almost imagine my grandparents befriending and working alongside Jake and Marina. A beautiful story that made me reflect on my life and most definitely helped me open my eyes to the hard those who came before me worked to provide me with an easier life.
A beautiful account about a couple whose days are kept plenty busy maintaining a household full of children (on a very slim budget) and moving from land to land maintaining the crops for various landowners. The couple strives to work hard and own land of their own and after many years of hard honest work, they realize their dreams. However, a cruel turn of events takes their home away from them and they are back to working for landowners. But it is their love for one another and their family that enriches their lives in a way that no material possession can. The characters were so well developed that I felt I knew them – I love when a book makes me feel that way. As a child, I often heard bits of conversation from the past and how my parents helped their folks tend the farm; I could almost imagine my grandparents befriending and working alongside Jake and Marina. A beautiful story that made me reflect on my life and most definitely helped me open my eyes to the hard those who came before me worked to provide me with an easier life.
September 29, 2014
I won this book from a contest on Goodreads.
Marina & Jake Hartmann were married in 1912. Growing up in Arkansas with her brothers and widowed mother, Marina and her siblings were used to hard work. It was chores around the house, working in the cotton fields then more chores and more chores. Jake, who moved away from his home in Southern Indiana also knew what hard work was. Since he came to Manila, he met Clay Burrows and he offered Jake a job cutting timber. Now Jake & Marina live in their sharecroppers' cabin on Clay's land but dream of one day of owning their own place on their own land. In the autumn of 1920 they found their land and Jake began clearing and building. They even have a stream called 'Little River' that is part of the Mississippi. But in 1926, the storms that had been surrounding them finally hit Mississippi County and this storm made history where rivers that ran into the Mississippi were overflown and now they just hope and prayed their home would not be swept away as so many other had. Finally with the threat behind them, their only loss was one hen. In 1929 the stock market crashed, but Jake and Marina always paid cash. They started off as sharecroppers and now almost two decades later, they have a growing family and their own land and home. But an unexpected turn of events happen and they were forced to up and leave the home they loved and return to Clay Burrows sharecroppers' cabin. The years ticked by and the Hartmann family continues to grow. Being sharecroppers was not an easy living but the Hartmann's worked hard and long hours and they were proud at how their children kept up the pace and never complained.
A wonderful story of years gone by and the difficulties a family faces throughout, but together they stay strong!
Marina & Jake Hartmann were married in 1912. Growing up in Arkansas with her brothers and widowed mother, Marina and her siblings were used to hard work. It was chores around the house, working in the cotton fields then more chores and more chores. Jake, who moved away from his home in Southern Indiana also knew what hard work was. Since he came to Manila, he met Clay Burrows and he offered Jake a job cutting timber. Now Jake & Marina live in their sharecroppers' cabin on Clay's land but dream of one day of owning their own place on their own land. In the autumn of 1920 they found their land and Jake began clearing and building. They even have a stream called 'Little River' that is part of the Mississippi. But in 1926, the storms that had been surrounding them finally hit Mississippi County and this storm made history where rivers that ran into the Mississippi were overflown and now they just hope and prayed their home would not be swept away as so many other had. Finally with the threat behind them, their only loss was one hen. In 1929 the stock market crashed, but Jake and Marina always paid cash. They started off as sharecroppers and now almost two decades later, they have a growing family and their own land and home. But an unexpected turn of events happen and they were forced to up and leave the home they loved and return to Clay Burrows sharecroppers' cabin. The years ticked by and the Hartmann family continues to grow. Being sharecroppers was not an easy living but the Hartmann's worked hard and long hours and they were proud at how their children kept up the pace and never complained.
A wonderful story of years gone by and the difficulties a family faces throughout, but together they stay strong!
April 8, 2015
To start, I'd like to say that Denisa Hanania is my Composition Class teacher. So I may be biased in saying that The Sharecroppers is wonderful. (And that she is an incredible teacher). :)
Mrs. Hanania has mastered a writing style that is not too wordy, yet paints a beautiful picture in your mind. She does not waste words, but uses them to tell the readers exactly what they need to know about the story.
The story itself takes you in, and compels you to finish it. Once I started, I couldn't stop. I felt like I was going through daily life with Marina. Picking cotton, gardening, homemaking; I experienced all of these just by reading The Sharecroppers.
Mrs. Hanania so eloquently crafted a beautiful retelling of the most precious thing one has: life. The joys of finding a spouse, caring for children, and completing daily tasks. The pains of being cheated, recalling bad memories, and losing loved ones. All of these things are handled with such honesty and clarity in The Sharecroppers.
The Sharecroppers is also somewhat 'educational' as Flora and Rosa Lee would argue. Marina and her family go through wars, industrialization, natural disasters, and the Stock Market Crash. The history in The Sharecroppers adds to the richness of the book.
All in all, I enjoyed The Sharecroppers very much. It is a good feeling to know first hand that your writing teacher is a skilled author :). Even if Denisa Hanania is not teaching you to write, I highly recommend reading the Sharecroppers. You won't regret it.
Mrs. Hanania has mastered a writing style that is not too wordy, yet paints a beautiful picture in your mind. She does not waste words, but uses them to tell the readers exactly what they need to know about the story.
The story itself takes you in, and compels you to finish it. Once I started, I couldn't stop. I felt like I was going through daily life with Marina. Picking cotton, gardening, homemaking; I experienced all of these just by reading The Sharecroppers.
Mrs. Hanania so eloquently crafted a beautiful retelling of the most precious thing one has: life. The joys of finding a spouse, caring for children, and completing daily tasks. The pains of being cheated, recalling bad memories, and losing loved ones. All of these things are handled with such honesty and clarity in The Sharecroppers.
The Sharecroppers is also somewhat 'educational' as Flora and Rosa Lee would argue. Marina and her family go through wars, industrialization, natural disasters, and the Stock Market Crash. The history in The Sharecroppers adds to the richness of the book.
All in all, I enjoyed The Sharecroppers very much. It is a good feeling to know first hand that your writing teacher is a skilled author :). Even if Denisa Hanania is not teaching you to write, I highly recommend reading the Sharecroppers. You won't regret it.
October 27, 2014
*I received a copy through a First Reads giveaway*
A beautiful account about a couple whose days are kept plenty busy maintaining a household full of children (on a very slim budget) and moving from land to land maintaining the crops for various landowners. The couple strives to work hard and own land of their own and after many years of hard honest work, they realize their dreams. However, a cruel turn of events takes their home away from them and they are back to working for landowners. But it is their love for one another and their family that enriches their lives in a way that no material possession can. The characters were so well developed that I felt I knew them – I love when a book makes me feel that way. As a child, I often heard bits of conversation from the past and how my parents helped their folks tend the farm; I could almost imagine my grandparents befriending and working alongside Jake and Marina. A beautiful story that made me reflect on my life and most definitely helped me open my eyes to the hard those who came before me worked to provide me with an easier life.
A beautiful account about a couple whose days are kept plenty busy maintaining a household full of children (on a very slim budget) and moving from land to land maintaining the crops for various landowners. The couple strives to work hard and own land of their own and after many years of hard honest work, they realize their dreams. However, a cruel turn of events takes their home away from them and they are back to working for landowners. But it is their love for one another and their family that enriches their lives in a way that no material possession can. The characters were so well developed that I felt I knew them – I love when a book makes me feel that way. As a child, I often heard bits of conversation from the past and how my parents helped their folks tend the farm; I could almost imagine my grandparents befriending and working alongside Jake and Marina. A beautiful story that made me reflect on my life and most definitely helped me open my eyes to the hard those who came before me worked to provide me with an easier life.
October 20, 2014
I won this book from a Goodreads Giveaway.
Where to start? The writing was so bad, that I thought I was reading something written by an elementary student. I don't know if I have ever read anything written this poorly. The dialog was stiff and unnatural. Sometimes there would be dialect where everyone spoke impeccably, and then with a more Southern accent. One of the children said one time, "Okay, but no broccoli. There's no need for broccoli." . What? I checked back. The child wasn't even two years old! And that wasn't the only time! My, my, if I had a two year old talking like that, I would have been amazed!
The book followed a chronological time line, so it was easy to follow. That was the only thing that was somewhat consistent.
I can not in good conscience recommend this book. Poorly written, juvenile (at BEST), full of errors, and in need of a serious and ruthless editor.
Where to start? The writing was so bad, that I thought I was reading something written by an elementary student. I don't know if I have ever read anything written this poorly. The dialog was stiff and unnatural. Sometimes there would be dialect where everyone spoke impeccably, and then with a more Southern accent. One of the children said one time, "Okay, but no broccoli. There's no need for broccoli." . What? I checked back. The child wasn't even two years old! And that wasn't the only time! My, my, if I had a two year old talking like that, I would have been amazed!
The book followed a chronological time line, so it was easy to follow. That was the only thing that was somewhat consistent.
I can not in good conscience recommend this book. Poorly written, juvenile (at BEST), full of errors, and in need of a serious and ruthless editor.
October 14, 2014
Disclosure: This book was won through a Goodreads Giveaway
The Sharecroppers is obviously a book written with a lot of love. It takes the readers through the life of an individual and a community, based on the lives of real people. The author provides wonderful details about the world the characters inhabit, with a particular focus on their foods. She also puts great effort into providing tidbits of history into every page.
My greatest wish for this novel would be that it would develop a greater emotional bond with the characters. For me, the narrator was very distanced from the subjects and there was little emotional involvement, and no cliff-hangers or questions to keep the reader turning pages.
Overall, I found the book to have a wonderful premise that could have used a slower pace to further development.
The Sharecroppers is obviously a book written with a lot of love. It takes the readers through the life of an individual and a community, based on the lives of real people. The author provides wonderful details about the world the characters inhabit, with a particular focus on their foods. She also puts great effort into providing tidbits of history into every page.
My greatest wish for this novel would be that it would develop a greater emotional bond with the characters. For me, the narrator was very distanced from the subjects and there was little emotional involvement, and no cliff-hangers or questions to keep the reader turning pages.
Overall, I found the book to have a wonderful premise that could have used a slower pace to further development.
October 20, 2014
This book will have you celebrating the characters' triumphs and mourning their downfalls.
The Sharecroppers is a fictionalized version of someone's real life. The real life of sharecroppers. It is beautifully told and a great read. Some events pass a bit quickly or are just brief glimpse into the chapter or section of their life. Those parts of the story are a bit choppy, however the whole story has a good flow and overall plot to it. The characters are real and relatable. They're interesting and well-rounded. They are true to themselves and each one is unique.
This story is an unique and good one. A highly recommended read for anyone interested in historical fiction.
(*Note I was given a free review copy through Goodreads Giveaway Program.)
The Sharecroppers is a fictionalized version of someone's real life. The real life of sharecroppers. It is beautifully told and a great read. Some events pass a bit quickly or are just brief glimpse into the chapter or section of their life. Those parts of the story are a bit choppy, however the whole story has a good flow and overall plot to it. The characters are real and relatable. They're interesting and well-rounded. They are true to themselves and each one is unique.
This story is an unique and good one. A highly recommended read for anyone interested in historical fiction.
(*Note I was given a free review copy through Goodreads Giveaway Program.)
November 25, 2014
I received this book from a Goodreads First Read Giveaway.
I really enjoyed this book. I did not expect to like this book as much as I did. I read it in about 3 days. I thought it was really interesting to learn about the sharecropping life, which I knew nothing about. I also thought it was interesting to learn about a different time. I liked how the story essentially spanned Marina's whole life and the ups and downs in it. This story made me appreciate how life was back then and how simple things were. I would definitley recommend this book to others. I enjoyed the characters and learned a little bit while reading the book.
I really enjoyed this book. I did not expect to like this book as much as I did. I read it in about 3 days. I thought it was really interesting to learn about the sharecropping life, which I knew nothing about. I also thought it was interesting to learn about a different time. I liked how the story essentially spanned Marina's whole life and the ups and downs in it. This story made me appreciate how life was back then and how simple things were. I would definitley recommend this book to others. I enjoyed the characters and learned a little bit while reading the book.
January 17, 2016
This is a wonderful southern family saga. It spans decades of experiences and hardships.
Marina and Jake struggle to raise a family as sharecroppers. It is a tough life, but for the most part, a happy one. Through life's challenges, the depression and war, Marina and Jake work hard to just put food on the table and clothing on their backs.
This novel is a little slow in places. However, I learned a great deal about survival during this time period. A really good read!!
I received this novel for an honest review
Marina and Jake struggle to raise a family as sharecroppers. It is a tough life, but for the most part, a happy one. Through life's challenges, the depression and war, Marina and Jake work hard to just put food on the table and clothing on their backs.
This novel is a little slow in places. However, I learned a great deal about survival during this time period. A really good read!!
I received this novel for an honest review
December 12, 2013
Wow! You will enjoy this book. I'm generally not one who seeks out historical fictions, but I am so glad that I read this one. It was a pleasure to read. I enjoyed the story, dialogue, and characters. This is a book that gave me new insight into my ancestors.
November 5, 2014
I am glad, glad, glad that I was not born a pioneer or that I did not grow up in the days of outhouses and nonstop work, work, work just to put food on the table. This book was a real revelation about exactly what growing up as a sharecropper was all about.
October 24, 2014
I won this book through Goodreads.
It enjoyed this book tremendously. It brings you back to simpler times. Through Marina, you see strength, beauty, and grace during the highs and lows of her life. By the end of the book, I found myself wishing she were my Granny!
It enjoyed this book tremendously. It brings you back to simpler times. Through Marina, you see strength, beauty, and grace during the highs and lows of her life. By the end of the book, I found myself wishing she were my Granny!
October 1, 2014
A wonderfully refreshing read. The characters were easy to love from the moment the story began. A solid story about the love and dedication that people have for their families. I've already passed it on so others can read and enjoy it as I did.
October 27, 2014
Very enjoyable reading. I now know all about what sharecropping is. I think there should have been more in-depth about the characters so I could feel more part of the story. Everything came together at the end which was awesome. I received this book through the goodreads contest.
June 3, 2016
*I received this book through a Goodreads Giveaway*
I really enjoyed this book. It talks of the struggles the sharecroppers went though but how family & love pulled them through their hard times.
I really enjoyed this book. It talks of the struggles the sharecroppers went though but how family & love pulled them through their hard times.
June 25, 2014
Very good book. I really enjoyed it!
October 8, 2014
Loved this book!
February 16, 2015
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway.. I really enjoyed reading this book. Once I started it I couldn't put it down. It was hard work to be a sharecropper. I fell in love with the family..
March 31, 2016
This book was wonderful. The author did an excellent job of capturing the "feel" of the Manila/Big Lake area. She was also very true to history.
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