The Little House Books, Vol. 1: Little House in the Big Woods / Farmer Boy / Little House on the Prairie / On the Banks of Plum Creek

by Laura Ingalls Wilder, Caroline Fraser (Editor)

In 1930, at the age of sixty-three, Laura Ingalls Wilder began to write of her experiences growing up on the American frontier. Born in a log cabin just after the Civil War, she “had seen and lived it all”—the wild woods, Indian country, the building of the railroads, the hardscrabble life of the homesteader, the overnight rise of towns and farms—an entire epoch in the settling of America. She found a unique form in which to tell her story, an episodic sequence of novels for young readers now loved the world over. Together the Little House books constitute a classic of children’s literature and a definitive firsthand account of the pioneer experience.

In this and a companion volume, Library of America presents all nine of the Little House books in the order in which they were published. The first four are novels of childhood, beginning with Little House in the Big Woods (1932), in which Laura Ingalls, age five, keenly experiences the turning of the year in the Wisconsin wilderness. Each season has its work and its rituals, overseen by Ma and Pa with cheerfulness and an exacting economy. Hunting, planting, harvesting, butchering—Laura learns all of these by example, and by helping her parents in any way she can. In the evenings she delights in Pa’s stories, the songs played on his fiddle, and the cozy warmth of the hearthside.

Farmer Boy (1933) tells the parallel story of Almanzo Wilder, the boy who will soon light out for the territory and eventually meet, court, and marry Laura, but who first must learn his father’s way of life on a farm in upstate New York. Little House on the Prairie (1935) takes Laura’s family from Wisconsin to Kansas, where they attempt to stake a claim despite illness, prairie fires, and uncertain encounters with Osage Indians. In On the Banks of Plum Creek (1937), the family moves to Minnesota and raises a promising crop of wheat only to lose it to a voracious swarm of grasshoppers.

These four novels, like the five that follow, are presented by Library of America without the illustrations and typographical trappings of editions designed for young readers. Here Wilder’s prose for the first time stands alone and can be seen for exactly what it is—a triumph of the American plain style. An appendix contains two little-known speeches in which Wilder discusses the craft of writing historical fiction.

Genres: Classics, Childrens, Young Adult, Literature, Historical Fiction, Fiction, American

648 pages, Hardcover

First published August 30, 2012

About the author

Ingalls wrote a series of historical fiction books for children based on her childhood growing up in a pioneer family. She also wrote a regular newspaper column and kept a diary as an adult moving from South Dakota to Missouri, the latter of which has been published as a book.

Reviews

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this two-volume boxed edition to replace my childhood copies, of which I had only two of the books anyway, and because, well, look how beautiful the set is. The editor Caroline Fraser says, It was an interesting exercise to publish the books without the illustrations. When you read them as an adult and you are divorced from that apparatus, you tend to see them more as text and less a children’s book. Darker aspects of the material come forth. I’m all about ‘dark’ (as in reality), so that was one reason for me to reread these. Another reason was to see how I felt about the way the Native Americans were written of, something I didn’t consciously attend to as a child.

Second reason first: Of course the Native Americans are called Indians within these pages, many times “wild Indians,” including in two of Wilder’s speeches printed in the appendix. Ma is obviously prejudiced; she is petrified of the Indians. Pa is different from the other white men of the prairie who believe “the only good Indian is a dead Indian.” Pa tells Mr. Scott, “Indians would be as peaceable as anybody else if they were let alone.” He goes on to sympathize that they’ve been moved so many times that “naturally they hated white folks,” though he also says they “ought to have sense enough to know when [they] are licked.” As a child I wouldn’t have realized the Ingallses were in Kansas illegally, as were many other whites. The excellent end-notes explain that, as well as other historical events, including the so-called Minnesota Massacre, which Wilder’s adult characters reference but don’t explain.

Obviously I don’t know what Wilder wanted to convey in the chapter titled Indians Ride Away, but what I take from it now (and I didn’t remember its incident, though I found it so powerful this time) is its perfect portrayal of the consequences of unconscious racism. Pa has been bantering with Laura for some time about her desire to see a “papoose.” As a miles-long procession of Osage leaves the territory, Laura finally gets her wish. While Ma is simply bewildered by Laura’s reaction to one of the babies, Pa is stunned and chastises Laura. Yet his previous teasing is certainly what caused Laura to think of the baby as a possession her father could give her.

As to the first reason for my reading this edition: I agree with its editor that, without illustrations, the prose is the focus. (It only lost me, as I’m sure it did as a child, when Wilder explains how something is built or works.) But I still found myself at times wishing for the Garth Williams illustrations of my childhood copies. Nostalgia is powerful, for good and bad.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just a thrilling to read these books as an adult as it was as a child, and I have newfound appreciation for the endless challenges survived by the family.

[Joey]

"Little House in the Big Woods"

"She was glad that the cosy house, and Pa and Ma and the firelight and the music, were now. They could not be forgotten, she thought, because now is now. It can never be a long time ago."

My first re-read of the first Little House book in more than twenty years. More than anything, this book is valuable as a historical record, especially in the detailed descriptions of the land in 1870s Wisconsin, specific labor processes (from using an early thresher to making maple syrup), and the family culture of the American frontier. Was it really such a long time ago?

[Shawn Thrasher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Garth William's illustrations for Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House series are beloved and excellent storytelling in their own right. But the Library of America two volume edition of the books stripped the illustrations away, leaving you with Wilder's plain, pure language. She was a tremendously good writer (obviously, or she still wouldn't be in print), with sparse yet beautiful prose. I love the illustrations, but this was a real literary treat.

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never had read these books as a child and alway heard they were children's books so never read them. I found them to be quite good and well written. My favorite of the 4 in this volume was Farmer Boy. This surprised me, as Laura was not in it. I also like the fact that there was an actual time line of her life at the end of the volume, and it did not actually match the books. But did give insights to her real life.

[Margaret Tuomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an interesting classic. It includes the first 4 books of her saga and I will continue reading the following 5 books. Well written. Some passages would not be considered "PC" these days but gives a very different perspective from the view of the settlers.

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somehow I managed to live over six decades without ever reading Laura Ingalls Wilder. One of the reasons I am a subscriber to the LoA series is to have American classics pushed into my hands.

This Library of America volume concludes with two speeches that Wilder delivered to adult audiences. In one, she tells of two incidents that she left out of her books because she didn't think they were appropriate for her young audience. The books in this volume emphasize the hardship and resilience required to farm and homestead, but nobody dies. At first I didn't like this selective realism, but after reading of the horrors of the locust attack in 1874, I was happy that she left out anything worse.

I'm looking forward to the second volume.

[KarnagesMistress · Rating 4 out of 5]

The editors are correct. Reading the novels in this format, minus illustrations and other children's trappings, makes for a far different reading experience. Little House on the Prairie, especially, is affected by this treatment.
_____
Time: The 100 Best Young Adult Books of All Time (Little House on the Prairie is #22)
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2016 WCPLRC: A Young Adult Book; A Western http://inktank.fi/10-western-novels-e... ; A Classic
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Good Housekeeping: 50 Books Every Woman Should Read Before She Turns 40 (Little House on the Prairie)

[Chrissy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read these books many times as a little girl and loved them. It was fun rereading them now, and especially in the case of "Little House on the Prairie", interesting to note how they normalized racist views of Native Americans. A good example of the tension in loving something while also seeing how problematic it is. The writing is as vivid and heartfelt as I remember. I'll try to finish up by reading the second volume soon?

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

what's not to love? so comforting. so american. this is like the kiddie prequel to AND KEEP YOUR POWDER DRY.

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still love these as an adult. I liked having the "grown-up" edition to read, and enjoyed the supplementary materials and notes.

[Sylvie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I decided to reread these because I was travelling to the Midwest and Great Plains and was planning on reading Prairie Fires on the trip. It was interesting to read them after so many years. As a child, I had my favorites, which are mostly found in this volume. However, as an adult, Plum Creek fell flat and the racism of House stuck out like a sore thumb. (However, for the purposes of my trip, the latter really captured the beauty of the prairie better than most of the others.) I didn't reread Farmer Boy this time around, but Big Woods remains as delightful as ever.

Regarding this edition: Although I appreciated the notes (the two-volume set is edited by Caroline Fraser, the author of Prairie Fires), I really missed the Garth Williams illustrations.

[Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never read any of these books as a child. But, as an adult, they are great. Looking forward to reading the other volume.