The Curlew's Cry - by Mildred Walker (Paperback)

About the Book

The story of three decades in the life of Pamela Lacey and a Montana town, The Curlew's Cry spans World War I, the Great Depression, and the influenza epidemic of 1917, as it renders "a quietly told, honestly plotted story filled with careful details and with good descriptions of various aspects of life in the West" (Harriette Arnow, Saturday Review).

Book Synopsis

The Curlew's Cry is the story of three decades in the life of Pamela Lacey and a Montana town. Descended from pioneers and the daughter of a rancher, Pamela lives according to her own script, and nothing seems to happen as expected. The world beats on--World War I, the influenza epidemic of 1917, the Great Depression--and local fortune rise and fall with the price of beef. For Pamela the fight that counts is defined by a sense of independence and pervasive loneliness, by the twists and turns of love and friendship.

From the Back Cover

The Curlew's Cry is the story of three decades in the life of Pamela Lacey and a Montana town. Descended from pioneers and the daughter of a rancher, Pamela lives according to her own script, and nothing seems to happen as expected. The world beats on - World War I, the influenza epidemic of 1917, the Great Depression - and local fortunes rise and fall with the price of beef. For Pamela the fight that counts is defined by a sense of independence and pervasive loneliness, by the twists and turns of love and friendship. Tragic events transpire, but by the end of The Curlew's Cry it is clear that, if Montana brings out the best in man, it is also a place where women like Pamela can achieve power and magnanimity.

Review Quotes

"A deep understanding of the special quality that characterizes our frontier regions. . .is evident in this period story of Montana. . . .there is a compelling quality that holds reader interest."--Kirkus

"A quietly told, honestly plotted story filled with careful details and with good descriptions of various aspects of life in the West."--Harriette Arnow, Saturday Review

"This is a thoughtful novel, with nuances of meaningful beauty, as well as ruggedness and suspense. For Pamela, one feels that curlew's cry is finally answered when, at the peak of proven self-sufficiency, she responds to the unspoken need of an old friend who might have seemed patently undeserving."--Christian Science Monitor

"You are either a Mildred Walker enthusiast or you are missing one of the best writers on the American scene."--Philadelphia Inquirer

About the Author

Mary Clearman Blew is the acclaimed author of Runaway, All But the Waltz: Essays on a Montana Family, and most recently Balsamroot: A Memoir. The University of Nebraska Press has reprinted Fireweed and Winter Wheat, two other widely praised novels by Mildred Walker.