Read by Carrington MacDuffie

In the middle of the Great Depression, Montana native Julia Bennett arrived in New York City with no money and an audacious business plan: to identify and visit easterners who could afford to spend their summers at her brand new dude ranch near Ennis, Montana. Julia, a big-game hunter whom friends described as "a clever shot with both rifle and shotgun," flouted gender conventions to build guest ranches in Montana and Arizona that attracted world-renowned entertainers and artists. Bennett's entrepreneurship, however, was not a new family development. During the Civil War, her widowed grandmother and her seven-year-old daughter-Bennett's mother-set out from Missouri on a ten-month journey with little more than a yoke of oxen, a covered wagon, and the clothes on their backs. They faced countless heartbreaks and obstacles as they struggled to build a new life in the Montana Territory. Burning the Breeze is the story of three generations of women and their intrepid efforts to succeed in the American West. Excerpts from diaries, letters, and scrapbooks, along with rare family photos, help bring their vibrant personalities to life. "[A] remarkable blend of history and biography. There's a Ken Burns or Willa Cather-like feel of both intimacy and sweep to the storytelling, and a touch of the heroic. When I finished reading, I felt not only as though I knew these women (and was inspired by them) but that I had a deeper understanding of American history." "Only enormously gifted women could have won the contest between financial disaster and hard-earned success. This book is a wonderful read. You won't be saddle sore, but you will be thrilled by the ride." "Julia Bennett sure did 'burn the breeze' as she rode at full speed through a long life…[Hendrickson] vividly portrays the ups and downs of a remarkable woman, sprinkled with a dash of scandal."

Mode of access: World Wide Web