Yonnondio: From the Thirties - Paperback

by Tillie Olsen (Author), Linda Ray Pratt (Introduction by)

Yonnondio follows the heartbreaking path of the Holbrook family in the late 1920s and the Great Depression as they move from the coal mines of Wyoming to a tenant farm in western Nebraska, ending up finally on the kill floors of the slaughterhouses and in the wretched neighborhoods of the poor in Omaha, Nebraska.

Mazie, the oldest daughter in the growing family of Jim and Anna Holbrook, tells the story of the family's desire for a better life - Anna's dream that her children be educated and Jim's wish for a life lived out in the open, away from the darkness and danger of the mines. At every turn in their journey, however, their dreams are frustrated, and the family is jeopardized by cruel and indifferent systems.

Front Jacket

Pillars of American literature, these two newly repackaged titles have been loved and admired by readers for decades. Set during the Depression, "Yonnondio: "From The Thirties is the timeless and hauntingly timely story of the Holbrook family, struggling for a more tolerable existence. Written by the author in the 1930s and rediscovered by her in the 1970s, "Yonnondio will always be an unfinished work that makes us long for more of that young author's brilliance. This reissue presents newly discovered fragments and scenes that satisfy some of that longing and give a more complete picture of the fate of the mother, Anna, one of literature's most believable and enduring woman. "Tell Me A Riddle is a collection of four stories: "I Stand Here Ironing," "Hey Sailor, What Ship?," "O Yes," and the title novella, which won the O. Henry Award in 1961. Anthologized over a hundred times, the stories live on in the hearts of readers everywhere. John Leonard provides a new introduction that is a personal reminiscence as well as reaffirmation of Olsen's place in American literature's pantheon of great writers.

Author Biography

Tillie Olsen (1912-2007) grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, and lived most of her adult life in San Francisco. She is the author of Silences and the short-story collection Tell Me a Riddle.

Linda Ray Pratt is a professor in and chair of the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is the author of Matthew Arnold Revisited.