A Thousand Acres | A Thousand Acres

At a glance:

Author: Jane Smiley
First Published: 1991
Type of Work: Novel
Type of Plot: Domestic realism
Time of Work: 1979 and 1982
Setting: Northwestern Iowa
Genres: Long fiction, Domestic realism, Family literature
Subjects: 1970’s, Family or family life, Parents and children, Suicide, Blindness or blind persons, Midwest, 1980’s, Child abuse, Incest, Cancer, Farms, farmers, or farming, Fathers, Adultery, Sisters, Accidents, Tragedy, Heroes or heroism, Environment or environmental health, Draft, military, Poisons or poisoning, Shakespeare, William, or Shakespearean plays
Locales: Iowa

Virginia (Ginny) Cook Smith, the narrator and the oldest of Larry Cook’s three daughters. Even after marriage to Ty Smith, Ginny is the mainstay of the Cook homestead, tending her widowed father, her ailing sister Rose, and the large farm on which they all live. After repressing the memory, Ginny later accepts the fact that Larry sexually molested his two oldest daughters. Ginny clashes with Larry over management of the farm and with Rose over affection for Jess Clark.

A Thousand Acres | A Thousand Acres

At a glance:

Characters Discussed

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