Randy's Review: Sweet Wine From These Grapes by Howard Domnick

I first published this review June 18, 2011

“Sweet Wine From These Grapes” by Howard Domnick is a captivating story of two families meeting by chance the day before the famous run for new land in Oklahoma. They become life-long friends, steeled and honed by ever-present hardships encountered daily as they wrested an existence from an unwilling prairie. The author, Howard J. Domnick (1915 – 2007), was an Oklahoma educator in the Enid, OK area. He also wrote several pageants and books depicting the opening of the Cherokee Strip including this book and “Danny on the Prairie”. Coming from pioneer stock, Domnick had watched with enduring interest the struggle of men and women taming and conquering one of America’s last frontiers. It was his philosophy that these people, contrary to general consensus, were not mis-fits and ne’er-do-wells, but were people of sterling character and purpose who stand shoulder to shoulder with the patriarchs of American history. 

The time line of the book is from the day before the land run of 1893 until Oklahoma becomes a state in 1907. The main characters of the book are Joe Adams and Ridgley Barton. Joe Adams is a store owner from Pittsburg, PA who is seeking a better climate to raise his sick daughter. Ridgley Barton is the second son of a Georgia Plantation owner seeking escape from the old southern plantation traditions. The author uses these two men and their families to chronicle the lives and events of those pioneers who settled the Oklahoma territory.

One of the problems I have with the book is that the author never mentions the Cherokee Indian Nation and the interaction that had to occur between the previous land owners and the current ones. I think the author would have made his novel more interesting and more true to Oklahoma history had he included the Cherokee into his story.

Another problem I have is that the main characters live through those 14 years of extreme hardship unmarred. My research of that time period tells me that the period between 1893 and 1899 were extremely bad times in the Oklahoma strip. Only 20 to 30 percent of the people who staked a claim stayed on the land long enough to get a clear title. Those were years of great hardship and almost every family was scarred with death, illness or some other tragedy.

As a book of fiction I would recommend this book. The author tells a story based on historical fact and it has a happy ending. This book is an easy read. The author will draw you into the story to where you can’t wait to find out what happens next.

by Randy Cohorn