Finished: Some Luck (Smiley) A very low-key, but interesting book about four generations of an Iowa farm family, concentrating on the main family, the Langdons, Rosanna and Walter, and their six children, Frank, Joe, Mary Elizabeth, Lillian, Henry and Claire as they are born, grow up, live their lives, have their own children, etc. Each chapter is a different year in their lives and the point of view switches from person to person, even within chapters. We see the true highs and lows of a farm family starting in 1920 and the hardships they had to deal with, the weather, the depression, the wars, etc. We get to know a little bit about each person, and grow to really care for them. Frank, the oldest boy, is brilliant, but hard to get a read on whether he truly loves anyone back or not. A large part of the story is spent about his time in World War II. Joe becomes a farmer like his father, and becomes even more successful at it than he does. Mary Elizabeth dies as a baby in a freak accident. Lillian becomes the perfect daughter who finds happiness in marrying and raising her own family. Henry is a smart college student when the story ends, who loves books of all kinds, but mostly 18th century literature. And Claire, the baby, is a young teen when the book ends. She has grown up closer to her father than her mother and is devastated at the end of the book when 57 year old Walter, who knows he's not as healthy as he should be, goes out to the farm land, lays down and dies. Of course, Rosanna and Walter are the backbone of the family and their story is one of love, dedication, sacrifice and hard work. Walter's death is at the end of this book which is supposed to be the first book in a trilogy. Darn it. I'll probably have to read the next one to see what happens to everyone! Smiley is a very nice writer and I enjoyed the book very much. :-)