Washoe County Library System

Set in South Africa under white rule, Doris Lessing's first novel is at once a chronicle of human disintegration, an understated social critique, and a depiction of the quiet horror of one woman's struggle against a ruthless fate. Mary Turner is a self-confident, independent young woman who becomes the depressed, frustrated wife of an ineffectual, unsuccessful farmer. Little by little the ennui of years on the farm work their slow poison. Mary's despair...

In 1898, after her inattentive and unreliable husband's tragic death, artist Ida Pease must sift through the remnants of his life and work, separating the truth from lies and what matters from what doesn’t.

Orphaned as a teenager, Jim Burden comes to live with his stern grandparents on their isolated farm. His pain and loneliness ease when he meets the beautiful Antonia, the high spirited daughter of neighboring immigrant farmers. Antonia's lust for life in her new country endears the young woman to Jim, but not his grandparents, who want bigger and better things for their grandson.