Laura Ingalls Wilder: A Storybook Life

Heroes of History #13

by Janet Benge, Geoff Benge

From the big woods of Wisconsin to the Indian country of the Great Plains, new adventures and landscapes filled the rich childhood of Laura Ingalls Wilder. On a frontier steeped in both danger and great possibility, Laura would grow up to witness firsthand the rapid transformation of the West as pioneers and covered wagons gave way to farms, towns, and railroads.

A pioneer, teacher, farmer's wife, and storyteller, Laura Ingalls Wilder experienced one of the most exciting times in American history - history that this gifted writer brought to life for millions and preserved for generations to come (1867-1957).

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Audiobook, History, Childrens, Historical, Family

192 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2005

About the author

Janet and Geoff Benge are a husband and wife writing team with twenty years of writing experience. They are best known for the books in the two series Christian Heroes: Then & Now series and Heroes of History. Janet is a former elementary school teacher. Geoff holds a degree in history. Together they have a passion to make history come alive for a new generation. Originally from New Zealand, the Benges make their home in the Orlando, Florida, area.

Reviews

[Miranda Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

The problem with history books on Laura, is that we already know everything

The original Little House series is semi-autobiographical (semi, because Laura would sometimes censor the more terrible things she witnessed). Ergo, there is not much "new" content to publish on her.

That being said, this is a very well-done book - it covers all of the major life events from the little cabin in the woods to Laura's marriage to Almanzo. I enjoyed the selections from Laura's stories - condensing seven books into a short stories is no easy task.

Fair warning: don't read this one first if you are planning on reading the Little House series (everything will be spoiled). But, as someone who read this series as a child, this book was a delightful walk down memory lane!

If you want a new perspective on Laura's books, I'd suggest reading Pioneer Girl: The Annotated Autobiography. This takes Laura's original script for the Little House series and fact-checks everything. Very fun read.

Audiobook Comments
Read by Rebecca Gallagher - she did a wonderful job. Loved listening to it.

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[Daniel Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Her parents were farmers on the Great Plains in the 1870s and she married and did the same. Her husband had a stroke at 31 leaving him partially paralyzed but they managed, eventually sold the farm and moved to Florida and then to the Ozarks, where they took up farming again. At age 44, she began a writing career that eventually supported them without farming. Their daughter, Rose, a successful writer encouraged and helped her mother. Laura eventually wrote the Little House on the Prairie books. It might have been a great life, but it made for a boring story.

[Jami Balmet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this short and sweet biography on Laura!

[RebekahAshleigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really enjoyable book!

[Paige · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read and reread this. I still love it!!!

[Chandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was pretty neat for us to find out how much of Laura Ingalls Wilder's stories portrayed her actual life!

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't read this if you haven't read the series. It will spoil everything. If you have read the series, you only need to read the first and last chapters. Even then, very little information is added.

[Karla Osorno · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading this aloud to my daughter (who is 9). Inspired us to read more of her books.

[Seth · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a great book! I liked when she was a child.

[Evie Hix · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good easy-to-read biography. However, nothing could beat Laura’s own books.

[BrieAnna Older · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved getting more insight into Laura's life. I knew quite a bit from her books, but the additions and the actual chronological order of them was nice to read. This book even goes into what happened after the books ended. I find the Little House stories to be so comforting, but also a little bittersweet. Laura endured much hardship in her life and the thought of her outliving her whole family at the end I just find to be so sad. And the fact that she didn't see a lot of them most of her adult life. I think that all the progress she saw during her lifetime must've made her feel melancholy. Yet, the little pioneer girl still lives on through her stories and I'm so glad for it.

[Hank Pharis · Rating 2 out of 5]

(NOTE: I'm stingy with stars. For me 2 stars means a good book or a B. 3 stars means a very good book or a B+. 4 stars means an outstanding book or an A {only about 5% of the books I read merit 4 stars}. 5 stars means an all time favorite or an A+ {Only one of 400 or 500 books rates this!).

I would recommend any of the Benges books. I don't think I ever saw an episode of Little House on the Prairie but Wilder is a big deal in this part of the country so I tried this. And hers too was a very good story.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was hesitant to listen to this one but as always, it was excellent. I didn't know that LIW did not write her first book until she was 65.

Her father was a wanderer and liked change so they moved around a lot.

Grasshoppers and hail caused a lot of damage, money loss and difficulty to those on the prairie. This book gave a good picture of that life in the Midwest and West about 125 years ago.

LIW certainly was a enduror with all the heartache and difficulty she had to bear

I'm going to re-read all her books. You know how I am about youth fiction!

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a CliffNotes version of the Little House books, told in the third person manner that LIW used, but with the real events (ie moving back to the Little Woods after Kansas, death of Freddy, the hotel) and also continuing on until Laura's death. A nice introduction for children to the amazing LIW.

I did learn something. I knew Laura had visited Detroit. I didn't know that Almanzo had.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to this audiobook before visiting the home of Laura Ingalls Wilder in Mansfield, Missouri. It made the visit more meaningful. I really enjoyed learning more about one of my favorite childhood authors.

[JD' · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wanted to pick up a book and read stories about covered wagons, Indians, traveling west, adventures and faith. Little did I know I would begin to read the Adventures of the American woman who would inspire The Little House of the Prairie.

[Lindsay · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good but a good bit of this was just like her Little House on the Prairie series. We found it tedious to read the same accounts from the books we had already read with a couple of details that were different.

[Kathleen Meacham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite enjoyable biography.

[Rafael Martinez Renteria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es un libro interesante, habla implícitamente de la providencia de Dios.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a big Laura Ingalls Wilder Fan. I love learning about her and her family.

[Beacon House Academy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book of you want a quick overview of Laura's life.

[Katy Lovejoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laura Ingalls Wilder has always been my favorite author

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! Learned a lot of new things about her life.

[Madelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this one out loud. My small fans of Little House on the Prairie thoroughly enjoyed this biography. Easy to read and engaging for all!

[Tricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another treasure that we read as a family! The kids absolutely love this series and I love reading them to them! Now to figure out which one to read next!

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading more details about the life of Laura.

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting life of an author whose books I enjoyed as a kid!

[Kaitlyn Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not much was said about her faith, but we still enjoyed reading this together. This series is very well written and captivating.

[Juliana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro sencillo, ameno y entretenido!

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

Basically a synopsis of the Little House book series.