A Student of Weather

A Student of Weather follows two sisters growing up on a farm in Saskatchewan during the Great Depression. When a young teacher arrives to board with their family, both girls develop intense feelings for him, setting in motion events that will shape their lives for decades to come. The story moves between Saskatchewan and Ontario, spanning thirty years as the characters navigate love, rivalry, and the harsh realities of their circumstances. Through detailed observations of weather and landscape, the novel tracks the changing relationships between the sisters and their shifting connections to place. The narrative explores themes of desire, jealousy, and the ways childhood experiences imprint themselves on adult lives. In examining the contrasts between two sisters and two regions of Canada, the novel considers how environment and temperament intersect to determine who we become.

Readers appreciate the rich atmospheric details and precise observations of prairie life in 1930s Saskatchewan. Multiple reviews highlight Hay's poetic prose style and complex characterization, especially of the two sisters at the story's center. Many readers note the book's exploration of weather as both setting and metaphor, with one Goodreads reviewer saying it "captures the harshness and beauty of the Canadian prairie landscape." Common criticisms focus on the slow pacing and what some call an unsatisfying conclusion. Several readers mention struggling to connect with or understand the main character's choices. Ratings: Goodreads: 3.8/5 (1,100+ ratings) Amazon: 4.2/5 (50+ ratings) LibraryThing: 3.7/5 (200+ ratings) "The writing is beautiful but the story dragged in places," notes one Amazon reviewer, reflecting a common sentiment about the novel's literary strengths versus its narrative momentum.

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🌾 The novel is set during the Great Depression and Dust Bowl era in Saskatchewan, a time when severe drought and dust storms devastated Prairie farms and forced many families to abandon their homesteads. 📚 Elizabeth Hay worked as a radio broadcaster for CBC before becoming a novelist, and her experience with oral storytelling significantly influences her narrative style. 🏆 A Student of Weather was Elizabeth Hay's debut novel and was shortlisted for the prestigious Giller Prize in 2000, launching her career as one of Canada's most respected literary authors. 🌪️ The book's vivid descriptions of Saskatchewan weather patterns were informed by Hay's childhood experiences in the region, where weather dramatically shapes daily life and human character. 🎨 The novel explores the complex relationship between two sisters through contrasting imagery: one sister is associated with light and warmth, the other with darkness and cold, reflecting the dramatic weather extremes of the Canadian prairies.