Spring for Susannah by Catherine Richmond

Published by Thomas Nelson

Susannah, the daughter of a vet,  is headed to the Dakota territory to meet Jesse Mason,a man she has never met, but married, before she left Detroit.  He is the brother of the pastor of their church, and he has asked his brother to find him a wife, to help him on his farm.

Upon arrival, she discovers she will be living in a small sod house, barely large enough for the necessary things to survive.  Her husband is surprised at her small stature, but when his ox is having problems with delivering her calf, he finds his wife is much more suited to farm life than he suspects.  Her vet training by helping her father saves the mother and the calves.

When grasshoppers eat most of their crops, Jesse decides to leave Susannah to teach the local children in the settlement, while he goes to make some money to help them survive the coming winter.   When he doesn't return, and there is no way for Susannah to get in touch with him to tell him she is pregnant, she survives on potatoes for most of the winter, sharing with others the use of her soddy, and trading vet duties to settlers for taking care of the animals.

Meanwhile Jesse is in an Indian village recovering from almost drowning, with no way of knowing if Susannah is alive, or even still in the Dakota Territory.

This is a very interesting book, one I would recommend to anyone who enjoys reading about life before modern times.  Personally, this is my favorit era to read about.

I recieved a copy of this book, free, to read and review, no other compensation was given.  All opinions expressed here are my own.