The Personal History of Rachel DuPree

Ann Weisgarber

Pan; €7.99

PRIDE and prejudice are the prevalent themes running through this book. From the dramatic first chapter it’s a powerful story of courage in the face of adversity.

It’s 1917 and newly-weds Isaac DuPree and his wife Rachel have left Chicago to follow Isaac’s dream of being one of the first African American families to own a ranch in The Badlands, South Dakota.

Isaac is a proud former Buffalo Soldier. He wants to take advantage of The Homestead Act passed by the United States Government in 1862 which states that any unmarried man or woman can claim 60 acres of public land for a filing fee of $18. So begins their marriage. For Rachel it’s love and an opportunity to have her own home with the man of her dreams. For Isaac it’s a business contract. It was never going to be easy but when Issac stopped the wagon in the “middle of nothing” and said they were home Rachel realised what a daunting prospect it was going to be.

When they are hit by drought, the well is dry, the animals are dying and Rachel is expecting her sixth child. With five mouths to feed she realises that desperate measures are needed. Isaac’s obsession with acquiring more land and livestock is unyielding. Land is a measure of a person’s worth he tells Rachel. Subsequently Rachel realises there will never be enough land to sate his voracious appetite, to the detriment of his family.

Racism is also prevalent, from the white people to the black people and also within the black community in Chicago. The Sioux Indians are the Dupree’s nearest neighbours. Isaac has an intense hatred for them calling them worthless drunks. Rachel’s devotion to her children, and wish for them to have an easier life, is what ultimately brings her to a difficult decision.

Ann Weisgarber’s first novel is a gem.