Description:
An epic story of the opening up of the Canadian West from 1907, through the drought and depression of the thirties, and the saga of a Montréal family which stakes its future on the Prairies.
In 1907, when Saskatchewan was almost empty, Daniel Greer, a clerk from Montréal, arrives with Liza, his wife, and their two sons. They have come to homestead. A bee is organized by neighbours to build them a sod hut. Faced with such spartan conditions, tension develops between Daniel and Liza who wants to return east.
Still attired in bowler hat and city vest, Daniel ploughs his first furrow. He runs to get Liza when the first shoots appear. They attend a party at their neighbours, the MacPhersons. Liza changes her attitude towards the land after a talk with their hostess. But during the winter they must struggle to survive.
Seven years of prosperity are succeeded by long years of drought and the depression. Colin, the older son, marries. Russell, the younger son, leaves the farm. The Greers live on hand-outs from the relief depot during the long years of the depression while other families are leaving the Prairies. In 1938, Daniel dies of a heart attack and there is tension in the family. Colin and Thora, his wife, want to start a new life away from the farm but Liza won't leave. Then, after nine years of drought, the rains come and life starts anew.
