Land of Dreams and Twilight Serenade

HIGH NOON, APRIL 22, 1889—50,000 DREAMERS RUSH IN
At high noon on April 22, 1889, fifty-thousand settlers camped on all sides of the Oklahoma territory began a fever-pitched race to claim their 160 acres of land and a new life. Most started at the sound of a cannon or gunshot on horseback, wagon, or foot at the appointed time around the territory. Land was claimed and sizable towns sprung up in a single day. More followed. But trouble was afoot too as the hopes, dreams, and even survival of the competing settlers collided with each other and the harsh realities of life in wild “unassigned” lands took over. The opportunity was great, but not everyone played by the rules, and the free land sometimes came at a very high price.

This wonderfully researched, four-volume historical fiction series, Taming the Wilderness, captures the unforgettable struggles, dreams, failures, and triumphs of the settlers of the great Oklahoma Land Rush of 1889. Each volume presents two complete novellas with well-crafted characters and life stories not soon forgotten.

Land of Dreams
The cold facts are that trouble happens in families, and some members are more affected than others. What happened to Camille Wainwright should never happen to any young teenage girl. It was clear the Wainright family had a serious problem, and a geographical move could make things a lot easier, especially for little Carly as she grew older. Something must be done. Let the chips fall where they may! But how painful those chips can be when they fall, and what bruises they leave behind.

Twilight Serenade
Many talents and skills were blended in the new Oklahoma Territory. Those who made the trip to the Unassigned Lands were not lazy slackers or hangers-on. They were “doers” with the confidence of those who knew that what they did was of value. The performing arts also came. Poetry from the northern state and music from the banks of the Mississippi came together in the form of two young girls, and with the help of a kidnapper, it combined in a most confusing way in a wooded thicket of the newly settled Oklahoma Territory. It happend like this....



Author Bio

Ms. Joann Klusmeyer is the daughter of pioneer missionary parents. She grew up in rural Arkansas and learned and served in the little country church her father built and then pastored. Ms. Klusmeyer is a prolific author with over 50 titles to her credit (and counting).

Her family-friendly children’s book series includes:
• The Great I AM Bible Story Series for Kids;
• The Young Pioneers Adventure Series for Kids
• The Wentworth Triplets Mystery Series for Tweens & Teens, and
• The Footsteps in the Canyon Adventure Series for Tweens & Teens.
Ms. Klusmeyer’s historical fiction series for adults, set between the 1880s and the 1920s, includes:
• The Burnt Tree Junction Series,
• The Ozark Mountain Series,
• Taming the Wilderness Series,
• The Sheltering Stones Series, and
• The Wishbone Hollow Trilogy.