Steven R Brunhild

A Land Beset Steven R Brunhild

A LAND BESET Situated just outside of Chicago, the bucolic village of Wheatville, Illinois seems almost a throwback to the nineteenth century. In October of 1929 the sudden upheaval brought about by Black Sunday makes obvious their connections to the entire U. S. A. and the international economy. The worst depression in American history causes turmoil throughout the land, and wreaks havoc for the vast majority of citizens. Land Beset is focused on the stalwart, Jessie Leggett and her family. This sequel to KINFOLK AND WHISKEY finds three of the Leggett siblings, Jessie, Annabelle, and Walter, functioning as major members of Wheatville society. Annabelle's husband, Mason Dewitt, owner and proprietor of the Wheatville Bank, is the first to feel the upheaval of the local and nationwide economy. All others quickly discover its bite. Meanwhile, Jessie and her brother, Walter, struggle to keep the family hardware store functioning, while they and their neighbors soon discover squatters setting up a shanty-town on their back-lot. The newcomers bring their own share of problems and chaos, while the arrival of Raven, a new shopkeeper and reformed courtesan, creates her own share of concerns. Adding to the conundrum, a neglectful town council is indifferent to their responsibilities. Frustrated by the lack of leadership, Jessie steps up to help the community move in a more positive direction. The 1941 bombing of Pearl Harbor leads our heroes out of the Depression and into WWII, as Wheatville finds itself eventually thrust into suburbia.