Blue Shadows Farm by Wisconsin Writer Jerry Apps
Fictional Story of a Civil War Veteran Homesteading a Family Farm
Sep 15, 2009
Blue Shadows Farm published on September 16, 2009, tells the story of how civil war veteran, Silas Starkweather finds his way to Wisconsin, takes advantage of President Lincoln’s 1862 Homestead legislation and builds a house. Along the way, neighbors he never knew mattered and family he thought he cared little for become more important than the piece of paper he rigidly safeguards, at least until the day he dies.
Women Characters in Blue Shadow Farms
The story of the Starkweathers begins with Silas but continues on with Abraham who keeps Silas’ secret. But it is the illegal wealth, in the end, which kills him. The years of the Depression affect the women of the Starkweather family left behind, Faith and little Emma.
A thread of determination is spun throughout the story of Blue Shadow Farms. While this tale begins with Silas, it is the women that emerge as the toughest characters, beginning with Sophia Reinert and ending with Emma Starkweather. It is not until 2000, when Emma uses Silas’s plan to ensure the survival of the farm, continuing the real importance Silas learned so long ago, saving the land.
Pastor Increase Joseph and Standalone Church
Eccentric Pastor Increase Joseph and his Standalone Church reemerge in Blue Shadows Farm. It is then that Silas’ and Sophia’s inconsolable grief, for the death of their beloved Elsa, is turned toward the work done by Pastor Increase Joseph.
In Apps previous book The Travels of Increase Joseph, published in 2003, readers learn about the founding of Link Lake, Wisconsin, and the philosophy of protecting the land. The book recounts the itinerant preacher’s journeys and the followers that call themselves the Standalone Fellowship.
Wisconsin Author Jerry Apps
Jerry Apps is professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is often called a rural historian, who grew up on a Wisconsin farm. The author lives near the village of Wild Rose in central Wisconsin.
Novel Blue Shadows Farm
Jerry Apps is author of Blue Shadows Farm. Terrace Books is the trade imprint of University of Wisconsin Press that published this hardcover book on September 16, 2009. Readers can locate this book with ISBN 978-0-299-23250-4.
The 390 pages of the Blue Shadows Farm book is spread across 64 short chapters, an epilogue and a list of related reference materials in the back. Diary entries added at the end of many chapters by Apps provides more insight into the Silas and Emma characters.
Blue Shadows Farm spins a saga of early Wisconsin family farms started by German and Norwegian immigrants mixed with modern challenges many in the badger state now face. The book is an enjoyable read.
Readers will find more Wisconsin writings here about conserving land by Dennis Boyer and childhood stories by Dave Crehore. To learn more about wildflowers in Wisconsin and the surrounding Great Lakes area consider this native plants field guide.
Permission received for all photos used in this article.
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