Wallace Clendenen

Abiding Love: One Woman's Journey Through Prohibition, the Depression, and World War II Wallace Clendenen

Like other women growing up during the era of Prohibition and the Great Depression, Ellen learns early on that life is all about sacrifice, and lots of it. Her father dies when she's still a girl, supposedly while hauling moonshine out from the mountains of Tennessee. With the economy in shambles and a family to take care of, Ellen's mother now must take over her late husband's moonshine business. And when that burden grows too much for her and she dies, the family's neighbor, Wes, sees an opportunity to take over her turf. Wes does more than just take over the bootlegging business. He also asks Ellen to be his wife, and she agrees, even though she realizes it's a marriage of convenience. When she accepts that she won't ever truly love her husband, however, she doesn't seem to have any options left. Join Ellen on a heartbreaking yet, at times, uplifting journey as she struggles to gain control of her own destiny while an entire country wrestles with the divisions caused by Prohibition, the turmoil of the Great Depression, and the reality of World War II in Abiding Love.