I found this idea on Simon's blog @ Stuck in a Book. He picks an author for each letter of the alphabet, sharing which of their books he's read, which I ones he owns, how he came across them etc.
First I thought, I wouldn't find any author with the initial I that I could use but then I remembered Laura Ingalls Wilder. I do not remember whether I read any of her books as a child. Probably not. My first recollections of Laura Ingalls and her family is from the TV series.
Ingalls Wilder, Laura "Little House Books" 1932-1971
Little House in the Big Woods (1932) (Goodreads)
Farmer Boy (1933) (Goodreads)
Little House on the Prairie (1935) (Goodreads)
On the Banks of Plum Creek (1937) (Goodreads)
By the Shores of Silver Lake (1939) (Goodreads)
The Long Winter (1940) (Goodreads)
Little Town on the Prairie (1941) (Goodreads)
These Happy Golden Years (1943) (Goodreads)
On the Way Home (1962, published posthumously) (Goodreads)
The First Four Years (1971) (Goodreads)
And then there is the book
Rylant, Cynthia "Old Town in the Green Groves: Laura Ingalls Wilder's Lost Little House Years" - 2002
This story was based on Laura's memoirs.
Facts about Laura Ingalls Wilder:
Born February 7, 1867 in Wisconsin
Died February 10, 1957 in Missouri, aged 90
Married Almanzo Wilder 1885
Her life was more or less how she describe it in her books. Her parents were pioneers who moved around and settled in South Dakota. Laura first worked as a teacher until she got married and became a farmer's wife. They had two children but only her daughter Rose survived.
If you live in the United States or go there on holidays, maybe you would like to visit the Laura Ingalls Wilder House and Museum.
There is also a lovely website about her books, mainly for children.
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One of my favorite series of books! I read them over and over growing up. And I would love to go to that museum someday. :D
ReplyDeleteOne of my friends has been, Lark. She even sent me a postcard.
DeleteBut yes, many people have read her as a child but I only discovered it later and still loved it. She wrote for all generations.
I literally grew up reading and rereading these books. I loved them so much that I fervently wished I had been a pioneer girl too. As an adult, it's been interesting to learn more about Laura's actual life--much harder and grimmer than portrayed in these children's book. Her politics, her writing process (and the role her daughter played), have shifted my feelings about her, but her books definitely shaped me and were a huge part of my reading life.
ReplyDeleteI totally understand, Jane. I suppose it was even more interesting for an American girl to read this than for a European one. I have read a few things about Laura and think she was pretty forward for her time. And I suppose I read the books with different feelings anyway since I was already grown up and had children of my own when I first read her books.
DeleteWhen I was young we visited the homestead in De Smet, South Dakota. I loved all things pioneer at that time. My feelings about her and her books have changed as an adult, but I loved them as a child.
ReplyDeleteI did like her books as an adult, as well, Sarah. Maybe also because of the TV series.
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