Erik Svehaug
tells the poignant and resilient journey of Willy, a girl born during a threatening rainstorm that set the tone for a life filled with challenges and triumphs. Raised on a farm constantly menaced by floods and lightning, Willy's innate delight and musical laughter provide solace and strength to her family, even as they face hardships like sickness and loss. As Willy grows, she takes on more responsibilities, becoming a cornerstone of the household. However, her life takes a dark turn when she is assaulted by her cousin and later, another attacker. These traumatic experiences, combined with the death of her mother and the increasing demands of the farm, shape Willy's transition from a joyful girl ...
"Willy was born delighted in the middle of a rainstorm that threatened to flood the root cellar where they were hiding from the lightning. She had wide-open blue eyes. Her tiny expressive face soundlessly oohed and aahed and grimaced and startled with each feeling from the very beginning and, soon, she had a coo of contentment that nurtured her mother and then a three-tone song of a laugh that always made her siblings smile. Thunderstorms and floods threatened them so often but Willy's birth let Mama engage with them easier from then on."