A Wolff in the Family by Francine Falk-Allen
A Wolff in the Family is a sweeping historical saga of a family’s life, hardships, travels, scandals and secrets. Fans of Kristen Hannah’s The Four Winds and Jeannette Walls’ Half Broke Horses will be captivated by this multigenerational tale that is based on the true story of author Francine Falk-Allen’s maternal grandmother, the real “Naomi”. She clarifies, “The story I’ve told here is made up of my fictional suppositions based on a compilation of the facts I was given by relatives.” This sprawling historical novel holds the emotional honesty of real life, and the compelling nature of fiction.
A Growing Family and Rising Tensions
Naomi, a Kansas farmgirl, happily married railroad engineer Frank Wolff in 1908, and their family grew immensely over the next two decades. By the summer of 1919, in the midst of Prohibition, there are seven children, with twins on the way. By 1920, there are 10 children, and the number continues to grow.
Frank Wolff is an overbearing yet absent father and husband, often away at work — though he spends much of this time traveling to Wyoming to see Mrs. Minnie Woods, who runs a boarding house for railroad men.
His wife Naomi stays home, playing the dutiful housewife by tending to her brood of children and keeping the house in order. She puts the eldest, Frances, to work — much to Frances’ dismay, as she’s barely in double digits — and gives tasks to the younger ones as soon as they are able to help with household chores.
In the Wolff household, the women are vital in keeping things running. But as the years pass, Frances seeks out her own freedom in employment outside of the household. “Now she really was getting interested in growing up, whatever that meant and whatever it took.”
From illness and death to a rise in the cost of living as more children become part of the family, finances grow tight and tensions begin to rise in the family. For Frances, the choice between staying in school and getting a job becomes a major conflict of loyalty to her family versus the desire to support herself and be free from her family. Years later, an offer of marriage provides her with the perfect escape from the chaos of the Wolff household. Soon, that hunger for freedom spreads to other members of the family.
Love, Betrayal, and Life-Altering Decisions
Frank Wolff finds himself spending more time with Minnie Woods, and when Naomi notices her husband’s frequent returns smelling of perfume, Frank makes excuses. In the meantime, Naomi grows closer to Charles Foreman, a hired hand who works for her mother on occasion. “It was nice to have a friend who appreciated her — and, moreover, treated her like she was more than a helpmate.”
Frank and Naomi continue to realize that their relationship has strained over the course of years. Then, in 1929, Frank makes a decision, against Naomi’s will, that will change the course of their lives forever — he just doesn’t realize the burden it will bring. When the aftermath of his choice becomes unbearable, he is backed into a corner and forced to do something even more drastic, something that will destroy his family. Will fate and determined family intervene, or are their lives set in stone for good? By the time the Second World War rolls around, the Wolff family is completely unrecognizable from how it appeared two decades earlier.
Exploring Gender, Class, and Freedom
Author Francine Falk-Allen tackles issues of class, race, gender, and historical events like Prohibition, the Depression, and WWII. Across generations of the Wolff family, the novel highlights the gender divide between men and women in society and in the household, detailing which behaviors are acceptable for men and for women, and where there is a double standard. She does so in her depiction of an overbearing father, cases of infidelity and shifting loyalties, and women seeking autonomy and freedom from what is expected of them.
A Wolff in the Family is in many ways, a story of love — no matter how complicated it becomes. We see a mother’s dedication to her children and love for her family. Naomi, much like her eldest daughter Frances, is determined to make her own life the best it can be, given the unfavorable circumstances. The long road may have had multiple stops along the way, tracks that needed repairing, and courses that needed to be rerouted. But when A Wolff in the Family ends with the birth of the author, Francine, it is clear that the Wolffs’ story would always lead to this moment, regardless of the path it took to arrive.
About Francine Falk-Allen:
Francine Falk-Allen, born in Los Angeles and raised in Northern California, ran her own business for 33 years while pursuing creative passions like singing, songwriting, painting, and writing. After contracting polio at age three, she has navigated life with post-polio challenges but continues to travel and stay active. Now residing in Marin County with her husband, she leads a polio survivors’ group, a local writing group, and serves on the City of San Rafael’s ADA Committee. Her memoir Not a Poster Child has won three awards, and she enjoys reading, outdoor activities, and her quirky cat, with plenty of British tea and the occasional champagne.
