The Rainmaker is a tale of love and a tale of hope, set in “a western state on a summer day in a time of drought.” Just as the Curry family is beginning to despair, Starbuck — a self-proclaimed “Rainmaker” comes on the scene. He is full of dreams, passion, and self-confidence — a quality unhappily unmarried, young Lizzie Curry especially lacks. Starbuck promises that he will bring rain and break the drought that is claiming the Currys crops and their cattle, if they agree to pay him the hefty sum of $100.