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” has been a New York Times bestseller for more than eight years. The 

 starring Brie Larson, Woody Harrelson and Naomi Watts also won awards. 

,” is worth the wait. Set in 1920s rural Virginia, it centers on young Sallie Kincaid whose daddy runs the county where they live. Sallie wants to go into the family business, which includes running moonshine. But is she ready to fight through the conflict that awaits her? 

This week, on Big Books and Bold Ideas, Wells joined MPR News host Kerri Miller to talk about the relative morality of Prohibition in America. 

“In my neck of the woods, rural Virginia, whiskey making had long been a tradition,” says Wells. ”What Prohibition did was turn this money-making operation, that for many was the only cash crop they had, into something illegal. It turned law-abiding folk into outlaws.”

Wells also talked with Miller about how the era mirrors the tumultuousness of America today. 

Use the audio player above to listen to the conversation.

Subscribe to the MPR News with Kerri Miller podcast on 

for the latest book and author news and must-read recommendations.

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Journalist and author Jeannette Walls returns with a much-anticipated third novel. “Hang the Moon” follows a fiery young woman trying to maneuver within her own powerful family in Prohibition-era Virginia. 

Women bootleggers in the time of Prohibition

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