4 stars. I grew up on these books, and as far back as I remember, they were there. This one has always been one I particularly enjoyed reading because of the survival aspect… There’s something very appealing and fascinating in the idea of leaving everything you know, travelling in a wagon, building a new home from scratch… And I loved the prairie.

However, I’m old enough now to be a little disenchanted. To start with, I’m deeply frustrated by how pointless it all is. All the blood, sweat, and tears that went into the prairie trip… everything they suffered… all the uproot and struggle… what was it worth in the end? They have to leave everything and start over somewhere else. And they never really had to go there at all. Pa wanted to go, because Pa wanted to travel. He liked the wild life. But if it was really good land he wanted, he could have stayed in Minnesota. I feel so sorry for Ma, now. I can put myself in her shoes, and I’m in awe of her strength and womanliness and motherhood. And yet in all my irritation with Pa, I can admire his strength and effort.

Yet they’re not blameless. The blatant racism in this book is saddening. While Laura herself doesn’t exactly condone it, Ma is clearly anti-Amerindian, and so are the Scotts and Mr. Edwards. It breaks my heart for the Osages and other tribes forced to clear out because settlers took their land without permission. It angers me that the settlers thought that the Osages “didn’t deserve” the land because they didn’t farm it—that it “belonged” to people who would “do something with it.” Even Pa, who is the least racist, subscribes to this idea. And I’m sorry, too, for the three little Ingalls girls forced to live through the terror of the “jamboree” and the war cry, because their parents brought them there. Yet I have to remember that Pa and Ma are not that old here, and they are—unfortunate as it is—perpetrating the ideas that have surrounded them. It doesn’t excuse them, but it’s a truth that has to be admitted.

But despite the problems, I don’t think the book should be censored or banned. It’s important to acknowledge this happened. It’s important to see this primary source evidence of one point of view, even if it’s wrong. It’s important to know this history, heavy as it is.

Do I still love the book? Not in the same way. I don’t think I’ll ever see it the way I did. It’s become something tangible, instead of a simple little story of a girl travelling. And it’s an image of life, too, which can seem so cruel and without resolution. An image of humanity, which is so blinded and selfish at times. And it’s fascinating to me to see a portrait of pioneers with their good and bad points—their failings and strengths.

A Favourite Beautiful Quote: “Hundreds of meadow larks were rising from the prairie, singing higher and higher in the air. Their songs came down from the great, clear sky like a rain of music. And all over the land, where the grasses waved and murmured under the wind, thousands of little dickie-birds clung with their tiny claws to the blossoming weeds and sang their thousands of little songs.”

My ancestors were these same whites who colonized land that wasn't theirs. I can admire their courage, ingenuity and sacrifice for a vision they genuinely believed was righteous, while believing just as genuinely that it was anything but. Reading this book was like living again in a place where being white meant continually reckoning with white debt, which is just barely distinguishable from white guilt (for a good essay on that, go here: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/06/mag...).

This book contains some of the ugliest and most over racism I've ever read in a children's book, including frank approval of the forced removal of Native Americans from their lands by the US government and the oft-repeated phrase about "the only good Indian ...." I've read arguments about how it's not only OK but good to go ahead and read classic children's literature that is racist and sexist to children, so long as you also discuss the racism and sexism with them. (For instance, see http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/artic....) But after reading this book I have to say: not in my public school and not with young children. The language and images are too damaging and they still have a pedagogical power of their own -- something the political correctness phobes don't want to believe. What _I_ believe is that race should be discussed in schools, from early grades all the way through, but not on these terms. I also believe there is a time and place for deconstructing racism in literature, but not by trotting out and re-enacting historical racist tropes for young kids.

As with the previous book in the series, we get an interesting look at how life was in an era gone by. The characters were mostly the same from the previous book, and both them and the new supporting characters were easy to connect with. However, I found the ending events of the book confusing, and wished for a more in depth explanation as to why the Ingalls family had to leave their home on the prairie. I remember wanting that explanation as a child as well! All things considered, it was an interesting re-read for me.

Following on the heels of the first book, Little House on the Prairie continues the Ingalls family pioneer story from second daughter, Laura's perspective as they depart the deep woods of Wisconsin in covered wagon to journey through Minnesota and south west until they arrive in the Indian country that will be Kansas.

Pa is taken with the rich soil and the prairie along the river and he builds them a house and starts to farm. They are near Osage encampments and along a well traveled Indian trail so their encounters with the Native Americans are memorable and add tension and adventure to Laura's narrative. Perspective was naturally very different compared to modern thought on that period in American history of Indigenous peoples and pushing west settlers of European heritage.

Besides the tension of Natives and settlers over the land, Laura also narrates of frontier life on the wild prairie from wild animals, prairie fires, and floods to a special Christmas with Mr. Edwards, cholera (or was it malaria) hitting the family, and explorations around. Pa's putting in crops and giving them a fine sturdy house with glass windows, real floors, and furnishings including the rocker he made for Ma.

As a child, I focused on Laura and Mary's doings and thoughts mostly, but as an adult listening in after many years, I was able to strongly appreciate Caroline and Charles' part in these stories. They went through scares, hardships, and worries that a child caught the hints of and observed, but adult reader could fully appreciate how they tried to keep calm and give their children a happy childhood. The love of this couple for each other and their children came shining through. I had forgotten or never realized just how suspenseful most of the events in this book were- crossing the lake and the Mississippi right before the thaw, crossing flooding rivers, rushing prairie fire, Native American council of war not even a mile off, and more. Pioneer life was definitely brought to vivid life.

Cherry Jones continues to utterly satisfy with her narration work and I adore the way she voices Pa particularly when he's singing.

All in all, it was a wonderful trek back through a childhood classic and favorite. Recommend for children and adults alike.

[Review contains spoilers]

Pa loads his family and all their earthly belongings into a wagon and they head off from the Little House in the Big Woods described in Book 1 to claim a plot of land in Kansas, which has recently been opened to settlers. Unfortunately there has been some government douchebaggery whereby the native Indians who currently occupied the territory were not informed, or maybe Pa and some other settlers couldn't read the map correctly, I was never entirely clear on what the problem was. But in a nutshell, there were a lot of uncomfortable and/or frightening interactions with the local Indians. Ultimately it turned out that the settlers, by government decree, had to leave the area and abandon all the hard work they had done to build their small homes and begin farming the land.

I was constantly amazed at all the things Pa and Ma knew how to do to survive alone in a land where there are no other people, no stores, no way to communicate, etc. Such self-sufficiency seems unimaginable to a modern reader, whose day might encompass nothing more challenging than using a manual can opener. On the other hand, throughout this account, Pa seemed to make some spectacularly poor decisions that put the family in unnecessary danger.

I was surprised to find that this book has no similarity to the TV series that I loved beyond all reason when I was a child - it is not set in Walnut Grove and none of the characters are from the series are here, except for Mr. Edwards. As in the previous book, I enjoyed the descriptions of life as a pioneer told through the child eyes of Laura Ingalls; but the story was kind of dark.

These books have been a blast to read. How I wish I could be as innovative and self-sufficient as they were back then! To be able to just build your own solid house is incredible, not to even mention all of life’s other requirements!

This is the book that truly started the Little House fandom. While it’s not the first in the series, it’s the book that launched the show that captured the heart of a generation. And continues to enchant viewers and encourage new readers over 40 years after the first episode aired.

That first episode, the pilot, follows the eponymous book almost exactly. Every event in the book takes place in that first episode. Since I saw the show first, reading this book felt like revisiting old friends, and having them retell a story I already knew but with details I had missed. Once again, the prose was simple and the story was less about the plot than the details. And that works just fine for a story like this. I loved seeing the Ingalls build a new life for themselves on the prairie, and I can’t even imagine having to leave everything I had build to start again somewhere unknown.

I read so much as a child, but I still managed to miss so many books. Maybe that’s why I still love children’s fiction. I never really grew up, and I can revert back to that place of childlike joy and wonder when I read something new and wonderful. I reverted while reading this book, and the book before it. Hopefully the rest of the series will appeal to me in the same way.

I am a fan of the Laura Ingall's Wilder books, and I am enjoying them even more as an adult, sharing them with my daughter. This one moved a bit more slowly than Little House in the Big Woods, but I was still fascinated. I can hardly imagine a life so primitive. Some say Pa was crazy for moving his family away from the Big Woods where they had a solid footing, but the settler's spirit is responsible for the growth and development of our country and is still the heart of the American way. Who doesn't look to better the situation of their family even when it means stepping into the unknown? Mrs. Wilder's detailed descriptions of the hard work and difficulties fill me with awe and respect. It was such a different world in so many ways, but still I can relate to the deep family love and commitment that shines through on every page.

A word about some reviews knocking her for her politically incorrect treatment of Native Americans: We can and should be disturbed by history. It can at times seem unfair, ugly, and even wrong; however, ignoring it or rewriting it to suit our current cultural standard is ignorant. The truth is, during this period of history there are no easy answers regarding settlers and Indians. There was fear, distrust, and wrong-doings on both sides. Her description is historically accurate. It is how she really saw it. I do not think we would do our children any service by sugar-coating history as some reviewers seem to argue. It is by struggling with the injustices of the past that we invaluably inform our judgements and actions regarding the complex questions of today. Please let us not rob our children of the hard truth. Let us give them knowledge and experience and arm them to do better and be better today.

My youngest child, who was the audience for this fourth read of LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE, struggles, frequently, between what is real and what is fiction, in stories.

Laura Ingalls Wilder's books particularly confuse her; she doesn't understand how a woman in her 60s could possibly be narrating the stories from a young girl's perspective.

She asked me some interesting questions this time: Do you think that Laura asked her family members what their memories were, or were they just her memories? Do you think she really remembered all of it, or did she fill in the parts that she forgot? Do you think it's all true?

I thought these were excellent questions, and ones we could wonder of many memoirists: Did all of it happen? Was it just your perspective? Was it all true?

I couldn't really answer my daughter's questions, but I did ask her this: Did you feel as though little Laura was a reliable narrator, and did you feel that her story told her truth? My daughter didn't hesitate to answer: “Absolutely.”

This is Laura's story, well, one of her stories. One that begins in the late winter/early spring of 1873, when Mary is 8, Laura is 6, and Carrie is 2. It's the year when Pa gets restless, because he can now hear “the ringing thud of an ax” which wasn't his own, on nearby farms in Wisconsin.

So, off they head, to Kansas Territory. . . and, as they leave their beloved little house in the big woods, Laura writes, “So they all went away from the little log house. The shutters were over the windows, so the little house could not see them go.”

Lines like these, when Laura is able to personify objects and animals around her with such childlike wonder, remind me how well she does do what my daughter wondered: she remembers it, as she felt it, when she was a child.

Young Laura's joys, fears, and her naughty impulses, (or, at least naughty, when compared to her perpetually good sister Mary's impulses), are so delightful and so very real.

Not only did Ms. Wilder share with us the gorgeous, open spaces of an unpolluted and sparsely populated prairie; she shared with us her truth, of how she felt and what she wanted.

This time around, I especially liked this little exchange between 6-year-old Laura and her mother:

“Why don't you like Indians, Ma? Laura asked, and she caught a drip of molasses with her tongue.
“I just don't like them; and don't lick your fingers, Laura,” said Ma.
“This is Indian country, isn't it?” Laura said. “What did we come to their country for, if you don't like them?”

Too true, Laura. I know that you and your father both had the heart, and the sense of adventure, to imagine something bigger and better for this beautiful country than the exclusion of the original members of it.

This was my fourth read of this classic, and it won't be my last. Somehow, it got even better.

Well, let's take care of the controversial aspect of this book first. Yes, there are a couple of racist characters who are racist against First Nations' people (but not the African American doctor) in this book, and that is a fact. However, not every character is racist. What I think is this shows a very realistic depiction of people in the States in the early 1870s. In fact, Laura's father takes people by their character and who they are, but her mother fears them and is racist. One can sweep that under the rug (bad), one can suddenly ban this book (wow, another banned book? What would that accomplish?) or one can use it as a teachable moment with children, which is what I did with mine.

When I first read this as a young child, of course I recognized the racism--I was born during a big civil rights movement after all--but because the First Nations kids I went to school were coastal Salish (entirely different culture than the nations in this book), and they lived in the same kind of houses and wore the same kinds of clothes to school, etc. this book seemed as far removed to me as fairy tales, etc.

Now that I have mentioned that, this doesn't mean that this book was badly written, and there is a lot in there to learn about what it was like to start a farm in the middle of the prairies in the 1870s. Laura is a feisty young girl, and even her desire to have a First Nations baby after looking one deeply in the eyes is very much something six year olds are wont to desire because they have NO real idea of what the adult world is really like as a rule or how much other parents love their children, etc--when I was that age I planned to become the Queen of England, and not by marrying Charles, either, and I was going to do it when I was 16.

So all of that aside, I still enjoyed most of this even though some of it is very uncomfortable material.

Read with Grandchild 4.4. . . .

This is our third Laura Ingalls book, and it was greatly enjoyed by granddaughter - her first time through this one. As for me - I've read it through many times.

In reporting to her father when he was doing some house maintenance outside their 100+ year-old home she confidently told him that he didn't need to worry about the chimney; that if it fell apart, she knew exactly how to build one, and in fact, could rebuild the entire house, as we learned how from this book. (She was pleased with herself as she told me this story after one of the chapter reads.)

Having read a number of books about the Ingalls and the parents in particular - and in light of the perspective changes when considering this period of history - it turns out Pa was headed out onto land that was not his, and I wondered about all the things parents don't tell their children. What were the things Pa and Mr. Edwards and all those "settlers" really saw out on that prairie. . .rather dark thoughts propose themselves as answers.

As a child reading of the family watching the tribes pass by their door heading east on their long walk away from their thousands-year homelands was just another chapter in the book. This time, with my own girl, she was reading to me, and tears were falling for those long gone families.

A privilege to read this book with her. Thankful for the nth time that Laura and Rose made sure this series came to pass.

(Note: Listened on audio.)

Another wonderful installment in this series. I completely understand why this became a classic. It’s so fascinating to see things from the Ingall family’s perspective as they travel out west and try to settle on the prairie. I haven’t often read books in this type of setting, so it’s a great change of pace, and I feel I’m learning so much about what life was like back then. Those were some really tough people to be able to go out and do the things they did without the help and conveniences of modern technology.

This book was actually a little more exciting than the first one because the family actually faces some significant dangers that threaten their lives. But, just like before, there were also plenty of sweet moments that made me smile. I actually don’t remember any particularly funny moments, though, which was something the first book had several instances of. Still, I really loved this book and I’m glad to finally be reading and enjoying this classic series.

Content Advisory:

Prejudice: Pa treats the Indians he meets with a great deal of respect as fellow human beings and leads his family to behave respectfully as well (though Ma is very much afraid of the Indians, especially when they come in the house, demand to be fed, and occasionally take things they want without asking). However, they have a neighbor who believes “The only good Indian is a dead Indian,” and says this out loud several times.

Violence: The Ingalls Family (including the dog, Jack) is in peril several times due to crossing a deep river, wild fire, wolves, malaria (Nothing icky described. The disease gives everyone a bad fever and makes them too weak/sleepy to function normally.), and/or other humans.

A significant theme in the book is related to the fear of an Indian massacre happening. The violence of a massacre that is said to have happened elsewhere is not described. However, there is a point where the fear of another massacre becomes very real because the Ingalls family is able to hear in the distance a gathering of the Indians in which there are many drums, and at one point, much yelling. Laura in particular becomes very afraid, screams and cannot sleep.  We find out near end of the book that one group of Indians *did* say they wanted to go kill all the white people in the area, but a second group of Indians stood up for the white people and wouldn’t allow the massacre to happen. This argument between the groups is why the Ingalls family heard so much yelling going on, and ultimately everyone is safe.

There is brief description of some animals that were killed for food: A rabbit is said to have been “shot through the eye”, and a bird had it’s head “shot clean off”.