RUBY & ROLAND

The sudden death of her parents in 1910 sends a teenager on a journey from heartbreak to self-discovery through the American Midwest.

Ruby Drake, named for the red birthmark on her chest, would be too sweet to be believed if not for her terrible secret—she’s in love with a married man. After being shuttled from her cold great-aunt’s home in Beardsley, Illinois, to the farm of a kindly German couple, the orphaned Ruby lands in Harvester, Minnesota, to work for Emma Schoonover, whose own children have died. There, farming becomes an “endless source of wonderment” for Ruby, and Sullivan’s (Good Night, Mr. Wodehouse, 2015, etc.) rapturous depiction of farm life makes it ring true. Ruby’s parents, who appear in memories and the small mementos Ruby carries with her from house to house, seem to watch over her from above. When she meets Roland Allen, his beautiful wife, Dora, is suicidal after the death of their firstborn daughter. Emma encourages Ruby to help Dora run the farm even though she never approved of Dora as Roland’s wife. Somehow, the two young women strike up a friendship, leaving Ruby in the difficult position of following her heart or doing what’s right. Barrett Cromwell, a family friend, would be a more suitable husband for Ruby, but will she trade love for stability? Though her droll observations root her in her time and place—“Is anyone ever their own boss?”—Ruby manages to build a life for herself with and without Roland. Whether her ending is happy or sad is a question to sit with and think about.

The joyful sense of community within this love story offers a charming and refreshing escape from the modern world.