Newport Book Club: Death of a Rainmaker: A Dust Bowl Mystery by Laurie Loewenstein
Tuesday, June 1, 2021
7:00 pm - 8:00 pm
A classic murder mystery set in the 1930s Dust Bowl that portrays the era with great beauty, tenderness, and sorrowful authenticity.
When a rainmaker is bludgeoned to death in the pitch-blackness of a colossal dust storm, small-town sheriff Temple Jennings shoulders yet another burden in the hard times of the 1930s Dust Bowl. The killing only magnifies Temple’s ongoing troubles: a formidable opponent in the upcoming election, the repugnant burden of enforcing farm foreclosures, and his wife’s lingering grief over the loss of their eight-year-old son.
As the sheriff and his young deputy investigate the murder, their suspicions focus on a teenager, Carmine, serving with the Civilian Conservation Corps. The deputy, himself a former CCCer, struggles with remaining loyal to the corps while pursuing his own aspirations as a lawman.
When the investigation closes in on Carmine, Temple’s wife, Etha, quickly becomes convinced of his innocence and sets out to prove it. But Etha’s own probe soon reveals a darker web of secrets, which imperil Temple’s chances of reelection and cause the husband and wife to confront their long-standing differences about the nature of grief.
This is a live program that will be conducted both in-person and via Zoom, a free online video conferencing platform. Registration is required. Limit of 10 attendees in-person. Please note in the Special Needs section of the registration form if you prefer in-person or Zoom attendance. For those attending via Zoom, on the day of the program, we will email you with a link to join the live program. You are not required to have a Zoom account. However, if you would like to create a free account you may do so at https://zoom.us/signup. Questions may be directed to Valerie Davis at vdavis@cc-pl.org.
Everyone, age 6 or older, who attends library programs are required to wear masks.
Please note any accommodation requests in the Special Needs section of the registration form.
Age Range: adult
Newport Branch
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