The Ticket

by Karen Schutte

The Ticket to freedom and opportunity is an American family saga.
When Karl Kessel receives another man's ticket to emigrate from Germany he leaves behind his young wife and two small sons, all for the promise of the opportunity he covets. Arriving in America, Karl is obsessed with becoming the owner of a farm - to be his own man. When Karl's wife Katja steps off a train with their sons in the wilds of sparsely settled Wyoming, she questions, ''Is this where I am to spend my life?'' Katja soon discovers that it is not only the geography of her situation which will make her life difficult, as she gives everything her husband demands of her, but it is never enough. In her debut novel, Karen Schutte spins a compelling family story, based on the true story of her own great grandparents' life in rural Wyoming. Her unvarnished narrative exposes the harsh realities of life in the last century. The Ticket is an unforgettable and touching account of a true American family, filled with ambition, promises, love and loss, and ultimately, a legacy of survival.

Genres: Fiction

352 pages, Paperback

First published September 13, 2010

About the author

I am a 2nd generation German American and a historical novelist. I write books/stories based on my family history. Born and raised in the Big Horn Basin of Wyoming, I graduated from UW with a degree in Design Mktg. I was a professional interior designer ASID for 25 years. Now I WRITE and WRITE! THE TICKET, SEED OF THE VOLGA, FLESH ON THE BONE, and THE TANK COMMANDER---a series of four family saga books. GERMAN YANKEE is the first in a new family saga series to be released in October 2018. I love to write--it is an emotional and psycological release and expression. It is my avenue to preserving my own family heritage and a way for me to leave my mark in this world! My husband and I have four sons, and 9 grandchildren.

Reviews

[Bridget · Rating 5 out of 5]

I ended up reading this book over the weekend and I was left utterly speechless. The Ticket is an emotional read that will make you take time to reflect on your own life as it compares to Katja's. I would highly recommend this book to any avid reader.

[BookTrib.com]

Before sailing across the Atlantic under someone else’s name to start a new life in America, Karl Kessel’s father-in-law had some foreboding words for him: “Do you believe your dreams are worth the price that you and your family will be forced to pay?”

That question becomes central to the conflict in The Ticket (Green Spring), a historical novel based on author Karen Schutte’s own ancestors’ emigration in 1906. As I turned the pages, Karl and his wife Katja go through eight children, five decades and two world wars. At the end, was it really all worth it to leave their heritage behind for the New World?

Don’t be fooled into thinking this is a history book. Schutte is a fiction writer; she excels at plunging us into the hopes and sacrifices of the relatives many have forgotten about, the ones that stare blankly through grainy black-and-white photographs. They sit stiff, their clothes look odd, and how did they even survive without electricity?

The Ticket attests again and again to their shared humanity by forcing me to feel the story as the characters did. I experienced Karl’s every jolt of anxiety as his ship left the European port without his wife and children. On the dock, a “few persistent souls [watched] as the formidable black hull of the ship slipped into oblivion.” Karl’s plan is to get his own land to farm, something denied to him by his German customs. Then he would send for his family.

The rest of the review: https://booktrib.com/2019/09/the-tick...

[Nicholas · Rating 3 out of 5]

First half of the book was great, second half was not so good.

[Gina Tobey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was curious to read the book because of my personal background. As the story unfolded I found myself drawn in and repelled at the same time - too many things had a familiar ring to it. The author covered a lot of history and its impact on the characters in honest and insightful detail. I would've liked to given it four stars, but the writing style and the german expressions/misspellings needed some work.

[Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable read where you feel you know the characters. Rather simple prose but it seemed appropriate for the story. The challenging life lead by those immigrants that settled the west was well portrayed, as were the joys and sorrows of their lives. I'm glad I read it.

[Xulon]

For more information on this book visit http://karenschutte.com/.

[Candice Carden · Rating 4 out of 5]

The wording in this book was sometimes at a grade-school level, but it was an interesting story.

[Nicholle · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story was good - the execution needed some help.