Dakota Born (©2000)

This is the first book in the Dakota Trilogy.
by Debbie Macomber

The place: Buffalo Valley, North Dakota. Like so many small towns, it’s dying. Stores are boarded up, sidewalks cracked, houses wanting a coat of paint. But despite it all, there’s a spirit of hope here, of defiance. The few people still left in Buffalo Valley are fighting for the life of their town.
      She spent time here during childhood vacations because her father’s family had settled in Buffalo Valley years ago and her grandmother lived there until her death. Now Lindsay returns to see the family house again, to explore family roots — and to reevaluate the direction of her own life.
      Buffalo Valley needs her, and she needs to be there. When the town advertises for a teacher, she applies; she’s qualified, willing — and the only applicant!