Audiobook Review - The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah

So I was saying a few weeks ago that I'm not sure yet if audiobooks are for me, because I often find myself getting distracted and it's just not the same as reading a physical book. But this book completely changed the audiobook game for me. I felt completely immersed throughout the whole story and I could actually see what was happening in my head like I was reading a physical book.

The Four Winds takes place in the 1930s during the Great Depression in the Great Plains where drought has ravaged the land and the ever-increasing dust storms threaten the lives of many. Elsa Martinelli, the main character of this book, has to make the choice between staying on the dying land that she loves or going west to California in search of a better life. 

The characters in this story felt very genuine and real. Elsa is such a practical woman and I really enjoyed seeing her growth throughout the story. She starts out as an insecure woman, who thinks she's not deserving of love, and becomes this strong, confident, and courageous woman who sacrifices everything for the greater good. I also really enjoyed how the author portrayed Elsa's children Loreda and Ant. Loreda, the firstborn, is a girl who's not happy with her life in Texas and doesn't understand why the family can't just up and move to California when life in Texas starts to get tough. However, she realizes, after they get to California and face reality, that (spoiler) life isn't all that much better. Honestly, Loreda started to get on my nerves a little with how mean and rude she was to her mother but I liked how they reconciled by the end of the book. My favorite characters by far were Tony and Rose. Although not Elsa's family through blood, they truly became her family and it was so beautiful. 

The story itself was really good. The storytelling was impeccable and I truly felt like I was transported to the 1930s during The Dust Bowl. Absolutely recommend this to anyone looking for a heartbreaking, gut-wrenching, but inspiring read.