In twenty-one interwoven stories, author Robert Amerson re-creates life
on his family's 160-acre farm in the remote Hidewood Hills of eastern
South Dakota from 1934 to 1942. Each story, told from the perspective of
a family member or farmer neighbor, captures the moods, sounds, sights,
and relationships of these rural Americans at a time of tremendous
change. Nine-year-old Robert Amerson is a dreamer fascinated by books,
airplanes, and cars. As he grows older, he becomes impatient with
old-fashioned horse farming, and he struggles to balance his
responsibilities to the farm with the attractions of high school and
life in town. His father Clarence, a master at making do, labors
unceasingly but never seems to get ahead. His mother Bernice, who fights
off dark emotions along with frustration at not "having it nice, "
concentrates her energy on getting her children an education. In this
time of Depression-related hardships, edging toward the eve of World War
II, co-operation and hard work are key to the survival of small farms.
Neighbors join together to butcher hogs, run the one-room school, build
roads, thresh grain, and celebrate the landmarks of their lives. They
turn out, without fail, to help a family suffering a disaster-filled
summer. And they work hard for the means to better their lives with new
tractors, gas-powered washing machines, indoor bathrooms, wells that
produce good drinking water - and, eventually, rural electrification and
milking machines. In From the Hidewood, Amerson has written far more
than an "I remember when" account. In exquisite detail, he portrays a
particular moment in time with a power that could help many readers
better understand their own pasts.
