The Road from Roxbury

Little House: The Charlotte Years #3

by Melissa Wiley

Meet Charlotte Tucker, the little girl who would grow up to be Laura Ingalls Wilder's grandmother. The war of 1812 is over, and Charlotte thinks life in Roxbury is back to normal. Will and Lucy have moved in with her family, and Charlotte adores looking after Lucy's baby. Before long, however, Charlotte feels like her world has been turned upside down. Baby William seems to have taken over her house. To make matters worse, Charlotte has a new teacher at school -- will her life ever be the same again? The Road from Roxbury is the third book in The Charlotte Years, an ongoing series about another spirited girl from America's most beloved pioneer family.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Childrens, Fiction, Middle Grade, Historical, Classics, Juvenile

256 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2002

About the author

Melissa Wiley is the author of The Nerviest Girl in the World, The Prairie Thief, Fox and Crow Are Not Friends, the Inch and Roly series, the Martha and Charlotte Little House books, and other books for kids. Melissa has been blogging about her family’s reading life and tidal homeschooling adventures at Here in the Bonny Glen since 2005. She is @melissawiley on Twitter and @melissawileybooks on Instagram.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Melissa Wiley's Martha years and her Charlotte series is good, too. Perhaps it's really more of a four star novel, but something about Wiley's writing style in these books really resonates with me and I feel so emotionally invested in these stories I can't give them less than five stars. The focus in this book is on the arrival of Lucy's baby and the expanding of Lucy and Will's life and the way Charlotte adjusts to this (Lucy and her husband Will live with the Tuckers, Will is Mr. Tucker's striker); coming to understand the (ostensibly harsh) new schoolmaster; and a rather dramatic episode in which Charlotte's little sister nearly drowns in the marsh. Another big focus is on the new gaslight that was installed in town and how exciting this is for everyone -- I love these wee insights that really bring yesteryear to life for today's littles, how something that to us seems so mundane was really thrilling and incredible back in the day. Note that these novels historical fiction and mostly fabrication as to what Laura's grandmother's childhood was really like... but they do a great job of bringing characters and era to life.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book better than the last because I felt like a lot of different and interesting things happened in it. We go from typical school days and problems with the teacher and gaslights and a trip to Boston and a baby being born to Mary almost drowning and a Trip to a fair and a new place. I assumed by the cover and the title that this meant they were moving west but I guess it just represented the new town Charlotte got to visit. And I think her desire to see new places that is mentioned so many times in this book goes in conjunction with the cover to give rise to her future wanderings and moving west.

[Kasey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable read and I would greatly encourage Little House fans to read the whole little house series beginning with Laura's great grandmother, Martha, and ending with Laura's daugher, Rose. It was so much fun reading about the different times these women lived in. Rated three stars because it is way below my reading level so it is a entertaining fast read

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm slowly but surely climbing the branches of the Little House family tree. I'm very grateful my new library has these books that are no longer in publication, but they don't feature my favorite Ingalls ancestors. The Charlotte years have to the most boring and uneventful sagas of Laura's history. As I've stated in every review about Charlotte, thankfully her Scottish mother Martha more than makes up for her daughter's bland personality. The Road from Roxbury was rather uneventful featuring a colicky baby born to the young couple staying in the Morse homestead and depressed schoolteacher giving his students a poor education to his unhappiness. Double oof. This may be my least favorite Little House Legacy book I've ever read. The faster I finish Charlotte's collection, the better. I have one book left and hopefully I can find the elusive novels in Caroline's collection.

[Jaime K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lydia is 12 now, and Charlotte nearly 8. So this is about 2.5 years after the previous book. There is now an extra wing on the house that Lew built for Will and Lucy Payson - and their new baby William.

Charlotte is old enough for winter school. I'm a bit sad that she no longer has the days with mama like she did before, but now Mary has those winter days to grow closer to her mother.
And at least she's with her other siblings.

I agree with her - if Master Jenkins is constantly sighing and seems bored, he shouldn't be teaching! I see this in education all the time and those teachers bother me. His enthusiasm over gas lights though is humorous.

Actually, it's fun to see everyone's excitement over the as lights.

It was warming to think of Martha telling her childhood stories, especially ones that Charlotte and her siblings never heard before. AND it's a great reminder that every single one of our own days is part of our stories, even if those days don't hold "excitement."

It's fantastic to see how a mispalced act of kindness changes people and their awareness of their surroundings.

Ellie Till is a good friend, and her family is quite interesting. Jonas Till is humorous and great-aunt Rho is a great woman.

Charlotte's conflicting emotions about baby William are so very relatable.

[Ashley Perham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, not that I'm one to judge by covers (sorta), but both the title of this book and the cover picture make it look is if the Tucker family is moving. And really, Charlotte only goes on a road away from Roxbury once in the book. I don't know, but the title doesn't seem to fit.

Moving on, I didn't enjoy this book as much as the other ones, but it was okay. I enjoyed that the theme of change is continuing throughout the series. In this book it was gas lamps and the Eerie Canal that would change the world! Over all, I felt like the book could have delved into some stories a little deeper, or maybe I just read too fast. Please do not start the Charlotte series with this book! The first two are better!

[Paul Lunger · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 3rd book in the Charlotte Years, Melissa Wiley's "The Road from Roxbury", takes us from 1816 into 1817 or 1818. In this we see Will & Lucky give birth to a baby boy, a rather cruel school master for the winter term, the mention of gas lights & the Erie canal as well as a near death experience for Mary. Wiley continues a very good job with moving forward the life of all the characters in the Tucker household & Charlotte herself shows some much needed growth. The story is well written & easy to read & again serves as a nice continuation of this series overall.

[Rea K · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this one, too. More history. More fascinating characters. More capers, some dangerous.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another pleasant story of life in early 19th century Roxbury. This one didn't have quite the throughline the others did--however fragmented--but was merely an episodic recording of six months in the life of 7 year old Charlotte Tucker, Laura Ingalls' grandmother.

[Lisa Baker]

I love these books! Charlotte (Lottie) is so cute. I really felt the excitement they felt regarding the gaslights in Boston. I felt their sadness when Will, Lucy, and baby William moved out. Also felt the fear when little Mary almost drowned. If you like Laura's stories, you'll love Charlotte's.

[Kaye · Rating 4 out of 5]

Little house, Charlotte's years. (Laura's grandmother)

[Zoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely does not have as much detail about the day to day life of the era as the original little house books had for THEIR era, but certain events are chronicled very nicely.

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

delightful

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Third book of the Charlotte years.. Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder's grandmother. Loved it!

[emma grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read in 2006-5....

[Lauri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another day, another Laura book.

[Joni Rupnow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute like the others.

[Katie (BooksRUs) · Rating 5 out of 5]

love this series!!!!!

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another enjoyable book about Charlotte Tucker -- Laura Ingalls Wilder's maternal grandmother. My eight year old daughter enjoys this series immensely. I've enjoyed reading it to her.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my favourite book in The Charlotte Years series and one of my favourites of all the Little House Books. I found The Road from Roxbury hilarious! I laughed out loud when Charlotte spoke in her Mama’s Scottish accent, when Master Jenkins thanked her for threading his button onto his coat. Will and Lucy are now married and are living with the Tuckers. The book begins with the birth of their first child, William. Lydia, Tom, and Charlotte begin the winter term of school where they meet their new schoolteacher, Master Jenkins. He is extremely disinterested, bored, and annoyed by the pupils at Roxbury school. Charlotte is seen as a troublemaker in his eyes since the very first day, in which she sat at the wrong bench. Lydia does not attend school for a few weeks, as she is sick. When she returns, Charlotte is anxious for her as Master Jenkins does not seem to notice the new pupil, as he should. Charlotte turns around in her seat to see if Lydia will introduce herself and Master Jenkins catches her turning around in her seat like a “whirligig”. After a lesson, the pupils are ordered to review a section of the speller. However, the Tucker children have only one speller and Lydia currently possessed it. Charlotte turned around in her seat once more without realizing it, to see if Lydia was finished with the speller, and Master Jenkins caught her. He sent Charlotte to the cloakroom as a punishment. As Charlotte sat in the cloakroom, gazing at the coats, she noticed one had a loose button. She assumed it was the coat of Albert Parrish, who had an ill mother. She decided to fix the button while sitting in the cloakroom. Just as she finished sewing, Master Jenkins retrieved her from the coatroom and caught her sewing on his coat. He did not realize that Charlotte was sewing on his button. After school, he paid a visit to Mama once he realized the misunderstanding and to apologize to Charlotte. For the rest of the term he is quite a bit more cheerful and understanding of the children. One day Papa, Mama, and Lewis journey to Boston to see the President. Charlotte is especially sulky about not being allowed to go as well, since she had always wanted to visit Boston and her best friend Susan Custer. Lydia decides to make a custard and Tom asks Charlotte and Mary if they would like to dig clams at Gravelly Point. Mary is very excited and Charlotte agrees to go. Once at Gravelly Point, Mary is fascinated by the turtles on the rocks and decides to climb up the rocks to catch a turtle. She falls in a water pool and begins to drown, as she and her siblings do not know how to swim. Tom was able to save her, with his quick thinking. He tied a rope around himself and told Charlotte to pull him in after he grabbed Mary. Charlotte had red, raw palms after from pulling with all her might. Mary was saved! Mama and Papa were relieved, but also proud of Tom and Charlotte. Will and Lucy buy a house and move out of the Tucker house. A Cattle Show is held in Brighton and the Tuckers hire a wagon and stay in the Bulls Head Inn for the night, in the room with the alleged lost Butterworth Ruby. Melissa Wiley has painted vivid pictures of all the characters and I feel as if I know Charlotte, Tom, and Lydia as friends.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Things so often did turn out, Charlotte thought, to be different from what you had imagined them to be" (Wiley 231).

Charlotte is growing up and learns several lessons in this third installment of the Charlotte Years, a series about Laura's grandmother. She learns about selfishness and attitude and how first impressions may not always be correct. The Tucker family once again goes through several trials including adjusting to an extra family living in their house. Will's family (Papa's striker) lives with the Tuckers, and Charlotte struggles to adjust to this especially when they have a baby. She can't put into words how she feels upset and angry sometimes when the baby fusses and takes a lot of work and patience. As the story goes on, she realizes she is also worried about his health and how much she truly loves him.

While I did enjoy this book as I have the others, I thought some parts were not really necessary or quite as enjoyable such as Mama's story of a troll stealing hens. In one chapter Charlotte visits her friend's house, the Tills. Then we never really see that family again, and I found myself wondering if that section was really needed. I wish there would have been more cohesion across all the chapters, but I did still enjoy this book and I am looking forward to seeing how the Charlotte series ends with the next book. (However, I know it will not be a completely satisfactory ending since Melissa Wiley was unable to finish writing another 2-3 books as she would have wanted. There was a dispute with her publishers, and there were unable to come to an agreement. You can read more details about it in my first Martha book review or here at this link: https://melissawiley.typepad.com/bonn....)

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A slightly slow, less engaging entry to the Charlotte series. I found that this one was less thrilling than book #2 after me finding that the previous one dealt with some more adult themes.

This book returns to normal programming, with Charlotte aged between 7-8 and dealing with the usual childhood issues that we’ve come to expect from the first book. She had a new teacher, who I could actually see Laura standing up to, if she’d been in that situation. Unfortunately, Charlotte comes across as quite meek in this, not like her future granddaughter. There’s not much that really happens - a big thing is the gaslights getting installed in Boston, but Charlotte misses out on seeing these (story of her life.) There’s also a near miss with the youngest sibling, Mary, which almost reverts back to the darkness of the previous book.

The one thing I would say about these books is the “stories” that the author insists on cramming in. I find these myths/legends, mostly told by Martha, quite detracting from the initial story, and I find myself skipping them. They feel like they have been shoehorned in to pad out the story more. But that’s just my opinion.

From reading the blurb on the fourth and final book, this looks like it will end when Charlotte is 10, so it’s definitely not following the same formula as the Caroline/Rose series. Which is a definite pity and a grumble I had with the Martha series also. But I guess it’s not taking up the same amount of shelf space!

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so sweet! It might be my favourite Little House book I’ve read, that isn’t a Laura book.
Rather than following the day to day events as the Caroline years did - washing day, baking day, etc., this book chronicled events. So, I found it a bit more fun and engaging.
I loved Charlotte, and her whole family. Lucy was a kind character, little William was adorable! The storyline with the school teacher melted me. 🥺 It was so cute.
Overall, I’d give this book 4.5/5 stars. The ending was a little bit random and didn’t make a whole lot of sense. But the rest of the book was excellent.

[Kate H · Rating 4 out of 5]

None of the other "Little House Years" books are as good as the ones about Laura but other then the Laura books I prefer the Martha books but the Charlotte books are a close third for me. I am from the Boston area so I enjoy reading about this region of the world plus the descriptions are excellent.

[Dominique · Rating 3 out of 5]

As I am binge reading this series, I can't shake the feeling that Charlotte comes across as so bland. I think it's partly that there isn't much information about Charlotte Tucker and that it's very hard to make a 7-year-old nuanced and interesting. The book is very enjoyable if a bit bland.

[Melissa Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun read . These books are great to read before bed . My favorite part was Charlotte dealing with her new teacher. I like the part about gaslights. It is amazing to see the excitement about it and how important it was to them.

[Bekah Forbes · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was a lot packed into this book, and it covered a range of emotions and events. I think the author does a good job showing how Charlotte processes the events in her life, both the traumatic and the joyful ones.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute story but too short!

[Ashley Keeler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always love these to give a vibe for the time period. Martha as a mother makes Caroline feel like such a drag—I live for the Charlotte Years because of it.