Overview
In Mansel Robinson's acclaimed play, appearing in book form for the first time, this crisis - drought, falling prices, rising costs, rising despair - is brought brilliantly into focus. Gerry and Bill O'Neill have inherited their father's farm. Their sister Bryna married a farmer. But things aren't as good as they once were. In fact, things are terrible. People are losing their farms, their homes, their way of life. The Saskatchewan farm is becoming a thing of the past, and the farmers themselves are going down with the ship.
As Gerry and Bill each fight to save their livelihood, they nearly become enemies in the process. They each devise schemes to try to keep things afloat - Gerry turning to illegal means and Bill looking to Saskatchewan's co-operative past. And complicating things is Eddie, Gerry's new girlfriend; she's from Sudbury, she's a poet, she's on a government grant, and she's the daughter of a CNR brakeman - so that's four strikes against her. And Bryan - she's got troubles of her own.
With his working man's consciousness, his sensitivity, his humour and his craftsmanship, Robinson weaves together a timely, moving and thought-provoking drama that clearly demonstrates the devastating effects of Saskatchewan's agricultural crisis.