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A White Wind Blew: A Novel (Waverly Hills) Paperback – February 4, 2014

by James Markert (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 182 ratings
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"Compelling and thought-provoking." ―John Burnham Schwartz, author of Reservation Road

When the body fails, you've got two choices. Send the doctor in, or send a prayer up. But when no miracle arrives, how do you pull out a measure of hope?

Dr. Wolfgang Pike would love nothing more than to finish the requiem he's composing for his late wife, but the ending seems as hopeless as the patients dying a hundred yards away at the Waverly Hills Tuberculosis sanatorium. If he can't ease his own pain with music, he tries to ease theirs ― but his boss thinks music is a waste, and in 1920s Louisville, the specter of racial tensions looms over everything. When a retired concert pianist arrives, Wolfgang is thrust into an orchestra of the most extraordinary kind that emerges to change everything.

Previous page
  1. Part of series
    Waverly Hills
  2. Print length
    400 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Sourcebooks Landmark
  5. Publication date
    February 4, 2014
  6. Dimensions
    5.5 x 1 x 8.75 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    1402284349
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1402284342
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

.".. a fantastic historical fiction book that really left an impression on me." - Rainy Day Ramblings

" Excerpt: The book is at its best when Pike, McVain and their eclectic band of musicians are beating the odds, whether against tuberculosis or against stifling institutional mores." - Lexington Herald

"Beautiful, beautiful book. James Markert masterfully painted a time and a place that most people would like to forget and made it a place we almost wished we could be." - Romantic Historical Lovers

"Excerpt: Like rich dark chocolate tempered with sea salt, A "White Wind Blew" is bittersweet and addictive. I kept coming back to the story, reluctant to leave it even when I knew I should be sleeping." - A Bookish Libraria The Bookish Dame Reviews

"Excerpt: Markert develops Waverly Hills and its residents in ways that are realistic and touching the couple who meets and marries only to fall ill weeks later; the man devastated by war and unable to play the music he once loved; a black man whose entire family was taken by disease but who serves in defiance of it and who acts as go between for the two hospitals. Markert lends them a dignity no one else at the time does..." - The Picky Girl

"Excerpt: Markert has written a book with real heart and which also benefits from such an interesting setting as a tuberculosis sanitarium. A "White Wind Blew" is lovely and a very diverting way to spend an afternoon. " - Devourer of Books

"Excerpt: What is striking about Markert's portrayal of musical medicine is how he touches on the diverse ways music can have an effect on us... I recommend reading A "White Wind Blew" so that you, too, can be carried away by a story of how music changed people and a community through the words of an entertaining storyteller." - Music Therapy Maven

"The book is at its best when Pike, McVain and their eclectic band of musicians are beating the odds, whether against tuberculosis or against stifling institutional mores." - Lit Chat

"The historical detail in this book is fascinating... There are so many intertwining details in this book and Markert does a really amazing job of weaving everything together into a really moving book!" - A Bookish Affair

About the Author

James Markert lives in Louisville with his wife and two children. He has a history degree from the University of Louisville, and is a USPTA tennis professional. His comedy screenplay, 2nd Serve, was produced by Sundance Award Winner Gil Holland and recently premiered.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Sourcebooks Landmark (February 4, 2014)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 400 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1402284349
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1402284342
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.12 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 1 x 8.75 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 182 ratings

About the author

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James Markert

James Markert

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James Markert is a historical novelist, produced screenwriter, husband, and father of two from Louisville, Kentucky. James holds a history degree from the University of Louisville, and his novels cover a range of time periods and topics, including Jekyll and Hyde, Prohibition, the Dust Bowl, the Sixties, and World War I. He also writes supernatural thrillers under the pen name J.H. Markert.

James is the writer and co-producer of the feature film/tennis comedy 2nd Serve. James was a tennis pro for 25 years, before hanging up the racquets for good in 2020.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
182 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Elizabeth P. LeSueur
5.0 out of 5 stars I’d give it more stars if I could!
Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2023
Verified Purchase
This was a fascinating book that I couldn’t put down. It’s about the Waverly Tuberculosis Sanitarium in Louisville Kentucky, and I started it with trepidation, fearing that it might be too gruesome because of all I had heard about it through the years. It was beautifully written, and, though this sounds sophomore, I couldn’t even remember the fact that the book was being written by someone because it was so gripping. The protagonist in the story had a multifaceted personality, and I would love to know what he decided insofar as his choice of career, physician or priest, at the end of the book…or perhaps his life took a totally different path.
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denise reed lamoreaux
4.0 out of 5 stars interesting story
Reviewed in the United States on September 4, 2013
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well written and engaging; i would recommend this book! historically accurate and realistic. an overall decent read and a good bargain
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D. Kaelin
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Novel Set in Realistic Backgrounds of Louisville, Kentucky & Waverley Hills TB Sanitorium
Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2015
Verified Purchase
This was a great read. The characters were very well fleshed out and you really felt the conflict so many of them were experiencing. I am originally from Louisville, Kentucky, and my great grandmother lost her husband and three adult children--including my grandmother--to tuberculosis between 1937 and 1944. I know at least one relative was a patient at Waverley Hills and had both the sun therapy and the rib removal surgery so I had a personal interest in the background of this story. I really enjoyed the descriptions of downtown Louisville and Jefferson County in that historic period.

For anyone who doubts the KKK was a factor in Louisville, there was a cross-burning in a neighborhood near where I lived as late as 1989. For all the current TV shows that describe the treatments at Waverley Hills as barbaric, they should do the research and learn that many of them were the very best treatments available at the time when there were no antibiotics to treat TB. In fact, many of these treatments are still used today to treat lung cancer, TB, and other diseases.
5 people found this helpful
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Janet M Percy
5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining and Educational
Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2013
Verified Purchase
Takes place in a TB Hospital in Kentucky in early 20th century.The story is fictional, however there was such a place as this. I was spellbound by the characters and the situations. When I was young, I heard a lot about TB but never really understood the disease. I always thought you were doomed and went away to die, never to see your loved ones again. This story reveals that isn't always the case. It takes very special people to staff a facility like Waverly Hills. I was impressed as to how the author, James Market, managed to dispell rumors about TB and touched on people's predgidous attitudes towards the negro race. Thankfully those attitudes have changed for the better.
A wonderful story to read. I highly recommend it for your library.
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JoAnn Myers
5.0 out of 5 stars Who knew?
Reviewed in the United States on July 20, 2021
Verified Purchase
I was truly surprised by how much that I enjoyed this book. It was an intriguing and well developed story based on historical facts and a real place in Louisville, Kentucky. I found myself drawn into the characters lives and praying that they would survive. Loved this book.
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J Pearson
4.0 out of 5 stars A story of early music therapy and howour relationships shape us
Reviewed in the United States on September 24, 2013
Verified Purchase
I really enjoyed this book with its descriptive writing and accurate portrayal of the time. This book takes place in the 1920 at a tuberculosis sanitarium which actually existed in this time period)in Kentucky. The man character, Wolfgang, is a doctor who wishes to return to studying for the priesthood but feels that he needs to help with the tuberculosis epidemic first. He also strongly believes that music is healing--playing instruments for his patients as well as forming a choir against the head doctor's support for any of his uses of music. This book is also about his faith, his relationships throughout his life (with his parents, his wife, the patients, co-workers, his love/use of music, and racism. This would have been 5 stars for me except that I felt the story (for me) didn't always flow from chapter to chapter when there would be a shift from present to past as Wolfgang would begin to remember pasts events and relationships in his life. There was just a shift and you would get it by reading but I felt that having a chapter heading or even just there being a year at the beginning of the chapter would have helped the flow. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and the difference between 4 and 5 stars for me is just slight and probably a personal preference issue. There are many thought-provoking discussion questions at the end making it suitable for book clubs.
One person found this helpful
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nsprinks
3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Book
Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2013
Verified Purchase
I enjoyed reading the book. It was interesting & informative about life in the1920's. Taking place in Louisville, KY, I learned about how patients with TB were treated. Having lived in Louisville, I had heard of Waverly Hills. This was the reason I purchased the book.

I was not dissappointed.
2 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting. Good story line.
Reviewed in the United States on August 9, 2022
Verified Purchase
This is a great book. This is the second time I've read it. There are not many books that I would read twice.
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