Download And Enjoy The Selected Letters Of Laura Ingalls Wilder: A Pioneers Correspondence Authored By Laura Ingalls Wilder Shared As Audiobook
think Bill Anderson did a great job editing the letters, and I know the limits he had to work with.
But I think a good chunk of the letters to schools could have been cut, They got a little repetitive,
Still it was a fascinating look at the more personal LIW and see how much her world blended into her fictional self.
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Terrific collection of letters that Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote to family, friends and fans.
Up until a very advanced age, she was trying to answer all her mail which often ran topieces a day and it was not unusual for her to get hundreds of Christmas cards each year.
The bulk of the letters are to her daughter Rose, who was already a published author and who apparently had quite a bit of input as to how Laura told the stories of her childhood, though there is a large group of letters she wrote to her husband Almanzo when she went to visit Rose in San Francisco in.
Many are to her editor once she started writing and publishing the "Little House" books at the beginning of thes and it was particularly fun to read the letters she wrote many fans, including lots of school classes who were reading one of the books together.
Since I've had the "Little House" collection for decades, the references were familiar, I enjoyed it a whole lot, What a wonderful collection of letters spanning the life of beloved author Laura Ingalls Wilder, From early letters when Laura is corresponding with her publisher, to letters between Laura and daughter Rose, to many letters to and from children regarding her Little House books.
If you're a fan of LIW, I highly recommend this book,
Read via audiobook I found this book to be very endearing, most written in Laura's own words/letters, It shows us a personal picture of her adult life, after she and her family left De Smet, for Missouri.
You see a principled woman, wife, mother and author, I enjoyed this book much more than Pioneer Girl, which left me feeling a bit cynical, telling stories behind the books and writings that I thought were too much information.
I love the Little House books beyond telling and they were a huge part of my childhood, I played Little House so much that my dad and Grandpa built us a life sized covered wagon that we could camp in and could be towed behind a car.
This was a fitting to the Laura Ingalls Wilder books for me, as an adult, I ended up reading the whole thing over the course of about three days, It was fascinating and encouraging and wonderful,
It was fascinating because of how well I feel like I got to know the woman behind the books I've loved basically all my life.
These letters start inand go, and they are staggeringly varied, Some are to friends, some to her husband Almanzo, some to her daughter Rose, some to perfect strangers who sent her fan mail.
The ones I liked best were the ones to children who wrote her about her books,
It was encouraging because she struggled so hard with writing By the Shores of Silver Lake, which is my favorite of her books.
I'm struggling with the book I'm writing right now, and knowing that I'm not the first writer to struggle with a book that's a ways into a series is a comfort.
It was wonderful because Laura Ingalls Wilder was such a sweet, tart, friendly, shy, intelligent, obstinate, REAL person, and you get that sense of her from these letters.
I'm so happy I read this book, I might have to get a copy of my own, A sweet collection of letters to and from our beloved Laura Ingalls Wilder, Though her books were mostly for children this collection would probably be better enjoyed by adults, I went in expecting to love this book, I was pushing myself partway through, I was crying as I finished the last page,
The Little House stories are a deep well for me, As a girl, I loved the adventures, My copy of “Little House in the Big Woods” is one of the earliest proofs that I have always filled the margins of books.
Reading them again to my son and then daughter, I loved them on a whole new level, for their glimpse of a moment in history, their portraits of family and community, their themes of joy and persistence.
My first experience with Lauras personal voice vs, her author voice was West From Home, letters she wrote to Almanzo while visiting their daughter, Rose, in San Francisco.
I loved the Laura I found there and I came to this book expecting the same rush of warmth, While it wasnt there the whole time, its definitely my primary impression at the end,
Selected Letters is an extensive collection and that does slow it down at times, especially early on, There is a lot of regular life in Lauras letters and while I enjoyed her voice, some of the daily accounts lean toward mundane after a while.
And I know this sounds petty, but Andersons choice to title every single letter drove me crazy quickly, I did appreciate his narrative introductions and explanations,
Toward the end, as the volume of fan mail explodes, theres a lot repetition everyone wants answers to the same questions: What about Jack, and Mr.
and Mrs. Boast, and Cap Garland
But that also gets at the heart of why I loved reading all of it: This is the woman who made us care about it all so deeply, who made them real to us.
I loved the delightfully real person behind the character Ive always known, a woman who discusses politics, shares recipes and complains about the government.
“Have you noticed the increase in tax on gasoline Darn it all! By the time we get a car that can go, we cant afford to buy the gasoline.
”
Like everyone who has ever traveled, she sometimes longed for home and sometimes loved being away, “Rose had intended to stay two weeks but has cut the time to one week, for which I am more than glad.
I am homesick. Please dont ever tell Rose, ” A few paragraphs later, though, she urges “Manly” to take a trip of his own, “I had gotten so at home that I went through everything in a sort of daze and felt as though I was all tied up with everything.
It has done me good to break away for a little and you shall do it too, ”
My favorite letters and there were multitudes of them lifted the curtain on the writing and collaborating process between Laura and Rose.
I know only the littlest bit of the great debates that surround this partnership, Whatever the ultimate answers about authorship, its clear from these letters that drafts went between the two women frequently and that Rose, a successful writer already, had significant input in the books.
One letter begins: “To make the changes you want to make on Silver Lake, it will have to be practically rewritten.
Im afraid Im going to insist that the story starts as I started it, ”
Rose responded shortly: “Dear Mama Bess, You are one of the few writers in the country who would turn down a collaboration with RWL, but go ahead.
You certainly are handling the material much better all the time, and if you dont want this book touched, youre absolutely right not to have it touched”
Laura sent Rose a draft of Long Winter before she and Almanzo took a trip.
“I expect you will find lots of fault in it, we can argue it out later, It is good of you to tell me how to handle the business with Harpers, Sometimes I have a suspicion that you are a nice kind of person, ”
Later she wrote to an editor: “Rose writes me she thinks you did a fine job on the book which pleases me, for Rose is nothing if not critical.
”
Many letters are treasure hunts, full of references to familiar passages, And Laura takes multiple opportunities to address the question of whats real and whats not: “Like the others, this book is true to facts, with touches of fiction here and there to help the interest.
” She brainstorms with Rose about a composite character, to keep from cluttering the story with too many names, or about adding some tension to a moment at the land office, to represent some peoples experiences during that time, if not her own familys particularly.
Through it all, the letters tell the story of a motherdaughter adult relationship that seems aspirational to me.
“Every year, I think I will remember Valentines Day and be nice to people, But every year I forget until it is too late, Christmas and birthdays seem to be all I can managed, But it was delightful to have you remember us, ”
While she moved around the country, Rose stayed deeply involved in her parents lives in Missouri, One letter thanks her for a blue suit she sent, “Rose, honey, it is lovely and fits like new spring suits should fit, It feels like sugar and cream tastes, ”
This went both ways, Laura once offered to send Rose “a couple of hundred loose” to help with medical bills, “Please dont laugh. I know that is only a tiny bit to you, but it might be of use, If you want it just let me know, I feel as though something is wrong, and if there is I want to help if possible, ”
As the years progressed and the Little House books began to become the icons they are today, Lauras mail filled with letters from admirers.
She was overwhelmed with requests to speak, to autograph, to send a photo, As the parent of a kid who has written to beloved authors and then watched the mailbox fanatically, I was overwhelmed by her commitment for years! to personally answer all of them.
When the volume exceeded the strength of her aging hands, she would write to her publisher to be sure someone was handling the letters and responding to her fans.
“I am especially glad for the boys letters, Shows these are not just girls books, I had hoped they would not be, ”
But the reason I finally cried is that in among all the details, the work, the answers to adoring readers, in all the letters, I once again found the Laura I have loved since I was a little girl.
“When Almanzo and the car go anywhere, I always go along, for I love to go for a drive as well as I ever did.
We dont drive horses now, We drive a Chrysler. ”
"A tribute to the past and a hope for the future, " Page
Enjoyed the second half much more than the first, I look forward to reading Wilder's other books that aren't part of the official Little House series, This review needs to be titled: It's Not You, It's Me,
I actually only made it halfway through this book, even after renewing it once from the library, I LOVE Little House on the Prairie, and I really enjoyed reading these letters from Laura and learning more about her life after the LH days and also more about her relationship with her daughter, Rose, and Rose's influence on Laura's writing.
I loved the letters where they were communicating about plot lines and things! But sadly I am just too tired to read right now, and I get aboutpages before falling asleep, so I have resigned myself to the fact that right now I just can't finish this.
I might come back to it later on! Loved this collection of letters and information about LIW, Fans of the book series, Pioneer Girl and all things "Little House" will love this, It was great seeing her intimate personal correspondences with her daughter and fans from around the world, allowing one to gain a new understanding of Laura that with the exception of journal entries and letters from the collection, "A Little House Sampler" was previously unknown.
This is a wonderful collection of personal, business and fan letters written by Laura Ingalls Wilder, Each letter is prefaced by a short, insightful editorial with some background information, Ive read everything written by Ms, Wilder and felt I knew much about her, but this book gave me an even better understanding of her life.
Included are letters to her husband, Almanzo, telling him of her travels, letters to her editors including her business dealings with them, heartfelt letters to fans and what I found to be the most interesting, letters to her daughter Rose as they collaborate on the writing of the Little House books.
Some of the letters include stories that arent included in the Little House series that Laura sent to her daughter for possible use in Roses fictional novels.
I found it fascinating to read of Lauras thoughts on what to include and how to edit the portions of the books she had sent to Rose for review.
There are even letters from Almanzo to Rose telling her some of his own stories and letters from Rose to Laura.
I hadnt realized that the Little House series was the first multivolume novel for children ever written, It has been a much loved series over the years and has entertained many children and adults, I read the whole series to my own daughter and now shes reading them to her son,
This is a comprehensive collection of letters and is very well edited, It was a pleasure to spend time with Ms, Wilder and her family once again, Highly recommended for those who love Ms, Wilders work and for any history buff,
This book was given to me by the publisher through Edelweiss in return for an honest review,
I absoloutely adored this book but I think its one for fans of Laura, The letters were great insights to a collaborative and loving relationship between Rose and her mother, It was lovely to see the regard Laura held her fans in as she tries to reply to every peice of fan mail herself.
I dont think I realised quite the level of input Rose had in contributing to the books but it was great to read the conversations and discussions between them.
Having read the Little House series over and over as a child and Pioneer Girl I found this another interesting look into Laura's life.
I greatly enjoyed the letters to Alamanzo and Rose, It was fascinating to read the letters that she wrote to Rose while editing her books, It's a shame all of her letters to Rose from thes were destroyed, None of the information in this book is in any way new, but it does paint a clearer picture of the type of person Laura was and how everyday life changed so drastically throughout her lifespan.
Available for the first time and collected in one volume, the letters of one of America's most beloved authors, Laura Ingalls Wildera treasure trove that offers new and unexpected understanding of her life and work.
The Selected Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder is a vibrant, deeply personal portrait of this revered American author, illuminating her thoughts, travels, philosophies, writing career, and dealings with family, friends, and fans as never before.
This is a fresh look at the adult life of the author in her own words, Gathered from museums and archives and personal collections, the letters span over sixty years of Wilder's life, fromand shed new light on Wilder's daytoday life.
Here we see her as a businesswoman and authorincluding her beloved Little House books, her legendary editor, Ursula Nordstrom, and her readersas a wife, and as a friend.
In her letters, Wilder shares her philosophies, political opinions, and reminiscences of life as a frontier child, Also included are letters to her daughter, writer Rose Wilder Lane, who filled a silent role as editor and collaborator while the famous Little House books were being written.
Wilder biographer William Anderson collected and researched references throughout these letters and the result is an invaluable historical collection, tracing Wilder's life through the final days of covered wagon travel, her life as a farm woman, a country journalist,
Depressionera author, and years of fame as the writer of the Little House books.
This collection is a sequel to her beloved books, and a snapshot into twentiethcentury living, .