About the Book

A story of resilience and redemption set against one of America’s defining moments―the Dust Bowl.
It’s 1935 in Oklahoma, and lives are determined by the dust. Fourteen-year-old Kathryn Baile, a spitfire born with a severe clubfoot, is coming of age in desperate times. Once her beloved older sister marries, Kathryn’s only comfort comes in the well-worn pages of her favorite book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Then Kathryn’s father decides to relocate to Indianapolis, and only the promise of a surgery to finally make her “normal” convinces Kathryn to leave Oklahoma behind. But disaster strikes along the way, and Kathryn must rely on her grit and the ragged companions she meets on the road if she is to complete her journey.

Back in Boise City, Melissa Baile Mayfield is the newest member of the wealthiest family in all of Cimarron County. In spite of her poor, rural upbringing, Melissa has just married the town’s most eligible bachelor and is determined to be everything her husband―and her new social class―expects her to be. But as the drought tightens its grip, Henry’s true colors are revealed. Melissa covers her bruises with expensive new makeup and struggles to reconcile her affluent life with that of her starving neighbors. Haunted by the injustice and broken by Henry’s refusal to help, Melissa secretly defies her husband, risking her life to follow God’s leading.

Two sisters, struggling against unspeakable hardship, discover that even in their darkest times, they are still united in spirit, and God is still with them, drawing them home.

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In My Opinion

A challenging, yet moving debut, If It Rains takes place during the Dust Bowl during the 1930s. Readers follow the journeys of two sisters on different paths, but a book ties them together.

Both Kathryn and Melissa have there moments where you don’t really like them but once you get a peek behind the curtain, so to speak, you connect with them. This is a book about facing challenges, doing good no matter the cost, and the deception of appearances. It’s also a book that is difficult to read at times. It will challenge you.

But it also offers hope (which is often woven in with that well-loved copy of The Wizard of Oz). If you are in the mood for a strong, thought-provoking historical fiction read, put this one at the top of you list.

Disclosure statement:
I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including NetGalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.