"Lindsay Snyder is a 30-year-old professional woman living in Savannah. She has decided to break up with her long time boyfriend Monte because he is not interested in marriage and a family. To get away from the situation for awhile, she takes a vacation with her friend Maddy to Buffalo Valley, a small struggling town in North Dakota where her grandmother lived, and her father was born.
Lindsay is charmed by the townspeople. They are desperately seeking a high school teacher, so Lindsay decides to take the job for at least a year. She will live in her grandmother's house which has never been sold.
Lindsay has a childhood memory of seeing her grandmother now deceased, hiding something in a brick in the fireplace. She decides to try to figure out the secret while she's there. She enlists the help of Gage a local farmer. While she is attracted to him, she's unwilling to start another relationship on the rebound leaving Gage with hurt feelings.
Lindsay's energy and enthusiasm as the town's only teacher starts the process of revitalization. The townspeople are friendly, but reserved. They don't believe that an easterner can truly understand life in the Dakotas and are afraid she will leave when severe weather hits. The difference in lifestyle and values comes to head in her relationship with Gage. Gage's high school brother is a talented artist. Lindsay encourages him to consider art school after high school. This angers Gage as his brother is supposed to inherit and run the family farm.
Another source of tension is Lindsay's determination to solve her grandmother's mystery. She finds information that links her family to Gage's. Gage does not agree with the action she plans to take with this information increasing the tension between them.
Gage's high school brother Kevin is instrumental in finding a compromise that works for them all. In spite of dropping grain prices, the entire town begins to feel some hope for the future. "
Susan Coffey, Resident Scholar
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Review Analysis of Dakota Born
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- upbeat
Time/era of story
- present (2000-2010)
Internal struggle/realization?
Yes
Struggle over
- search for family/history
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- teacher
Age:
- 20's-30's
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 20's-30's
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 5 (an average amount)
United States
Yes
The US:
- West
Prairie?
Yes
Farm/Ranch?
Yes
Farm/Ranch:
- farm
Small town?
Yes
Small town people:
- nice, like Andy/Opie/Aunt Bee
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Sex in book?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- descript of kissing
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
