First published in 1927,Islanders tells the story of an indomitable woman. The novel begins as Ellen's lover, brother, and father go off to the gold rush in California in 1849; it concludes as Ellen's grandniece waits for her lover to go off and fight in World War I in 1917. In between, other men of the family go off to war to make their fortunes--leaving the women, "islanders," to run the farm and care for their families. The prolific writer Helen R. Hull offers a portrait of rural American women's lives over three generations.