Super Short Summary

Set in the 1930s American South, John Ehle’s The Winter People follows widowed clockmaker Wayland Jackson and his young daughter, Paula. After their truck breaks down in the Appalachian mountains, they seek refuge in a poor village where they meet single mother Collie Wright and her baby, Jonathan. The respective parents become entangled in each other's lives and ultimately fall in love, despite tensions arising from Collie's past and a historic family feud. The novel depicts the evolving relationships amid the challenges of the Great Depression. Sensitive topics include instances of violence and familial conflict.