Hello Lovelies!
Today's TBT is about a series which I adored as a child (pre-Harry Potter days of course).
Referred to in many different ways, the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder were my jam when I was six or seven.
I seriously read the first book like five or six times. I always tried to keep reading, but I'd get stuck on Farmer Boy (because I was like who's this weird boy and what's he doing in my book?). Little House on the Prairie, I enjoyed, but I didn't like as much as the Big Woods. And I tried to read On the Banks of Plum Creek but for some reason, kept not finishing it.
This last semester, I had to read Little House in the Big Woods for one of my classes, and it made me remember just how much I adored the book when I was younger. It made me want to reread (or read) the rest of the series.
These books are not unproblematic. Their treatment of Native Americans and Black people is especially disconcerting to my grown-up eyes. However, now that I am older, I feel like I can read them and see them as both problematic and still enjoyable in other ways. (I did get super uncomfortable reading Pa's song during the first book, but I also still appreciate the day-to-dayness of the rest of the book).
I have a hard time rating these books, so I'm not going to. On the one hand, I loved them when I was younger, and I love them now. But on the other hand, I'm not entirely sure I would read them to small children today (without a little bit of personal editing or a lot of conversations outside of reading time).
I loved these books so much as a kid. I don't think I read past 'On the Banks of Plum Creek' until a few years ago when I decided to reread the entire series. I will always love the first three the most, but 'The Long Winter' was also fantastic/horrifying. I wish there would be a reprinting with some facts about Native American perceptions and other important contextual info at the end, like how the American Girl books always had a little non-fiction part after the main story.
ReplyDeleteMy love for homesteading type activities is a direct result of the Little House books. Despite their problems I'm happy they planted that seed in me early.
-Caitlin
Yes!! That would be amazing. Someone should contact the Wilder estate and be like, this would be a great thing to do.
DeleteAnd like I mentioned, I totally want to do a reread of the whole series! I've been trying to remember if I did ever get past On the Banks of Plum Creek, but I don't think it happened! I would love to read the rest of the series.
In rereading In the Big Woods, it did make me want to try out some homesteading things. I can totally see the correlation :D