Little House in the Big Woods
Little
House in the Big Woods is an
autobiographical children's novel written by Laura Ingalls Wilder and published by Harper in 1932 (reviewed in June).[3] It was Wilder's first book published and it inaugurated her
Little House series. It is based on memories of her early childhood in the Big
Woods near Pepin,
Wisconsin, in the early 1870s.
Based
on a 2007 online poll, the U.S. National Education
Association named the novel one of its
"Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children".[4] In 2012, it was ranked number 19 among all-time children's
novels in a survey published by School Library Journal – the first of three Little House books in the Top
100.[5]
The
novel describes the homesteading skills Laura observed and began to practice
during her fifth year. It does not contain the more mature (yet real) themes
addressed in later books of the series (danger from Indians, serious illness,
death, drought, and crop destruction). Hard work is the rule, though fun is
often made in the midst of it. Laura gathers wood chips, and helps Ma and Pa
when they butcher animals and preserve the meat. This is all in preparation for
the upcoming winter. Fall is a very busy time, because the harvest from the
garden and fields must be brought in as well.
The
cousins come for Christmas that year, and Laura receives a doll, which she
names Charlotte. Later that winter, the Ingalls go to Grandma Ingalls’ house
and have a “sugaring off,” when they harvest sap and make maple
syrup. They return home with buckets of
syrup, enough to last the year. Laura remembered that sugaring off, and the
dance that followed, for the rest of her life.
Each
season has its work, which Laura makes attractive by the good things that
result. In the spring, the cow has a calf, so there is milk, butter
and cheese. Everyday housework is also described in detail.
That
summer and fall, the Ingalls again plant a garden and fields, and store food
for the winter. Pa trades labor with other farmers so that his own crops will
be harvested faster when it is time. Not all work was farming. Hunting and
gathering were important parts of providing for the Ingalls as well. When Pa
went into the woods to hunt, he usually came home with a deer and then smoked
the meat for the coming winter. One day he noticed a bee tree and returned
early to get the wash tub and milk pail to collect the honey. When he returned in winter evenings, Laura and Mary always
begged him to play his fiddle;
he was too tired from farm work to play during summer.[6] In the winter, they enjoyed the comforts of their home and
danced to Pa’s fiddle playing.
Reception
The
novel (price two dollars) was reviewed at length for the New York Herald
Tribune in its June 12 issue. Jessie Hirsohl advised, "It should be
read by all Middle Border children—and by many others to whom its experiences
will not be even an echo of word-of-mouth inheritance. Too few, nowadays, can
tell as real and treasurable a story... Moreover, this story is delightfully
told." In conclusion, "The book's make-up is entirely in character—a
homespun-color linen jacket, and inner boards calicoed with tiny strawberry
leaves and blossoms. The illustrations are by Helen Sewell, and are pleasantly
reminiscent of woodcuts and daguerreotypes."[3]
Related books
In
addition to the Little House series, four series of books expand them to
include five generations of Wilder's family. The success of the Little House
series has produced many related books including two series ("Little House
Chapter Books" and "My First Little House Books") that present
the original stories in condensed and simplified form for younger readers.
There are also Little House themed craft, music, and cookbooks.
References
· "Little house
in the big woods" (first edition). Library of Congress Online
Catalog (catalog.loc.gov). Retrieved September 21, 2015.
· · "Little
house in the big woods";
Newly illustrated, uniform ed. LC Online Catalog. Retrieved September 21, 2015.
· · "Children's
Books: Recapturing Rapture". Review of Little House in the Big Woods.
Jessie Hirsohl. New York Herald Tribune. June 12, 1932. Page H5.
·
"Teachers' Top 100
Books for Children". National Education Association (nea.org).
2007. Retrieved August 22, 2012.
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