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8th out of 63 books
—
27 voters
Laura Ingalls Wilder
From her pioneer days on the prairie to her golden years with her husband, Almanzo, and their daughter, Rose, Laura Ingalls Wilder has become a friend to all who have read about her adventures. This behind-the-scenes account chronicles the real events in Laura's life that inspired her to write her stories and also describes her life after the last Little House book ends.
Paperback, 256 pages
Published
January 2nd 2007
by HarperCollins
(first published 1992)
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I read this book because my daughter, Emily, is doing a biography on Laura Ingalls Wilder for school (we both love Little House on the Prairie & have all nine seasons on DVD). I grew up reading all her books and watching all the shows and so I couldn't resist not reading this book when my daughter bought it home. Even though I remember all the episodes and have basically a good memory of her books, I felt this book went further into Laura's life. I didn't realize just how much they travelled...more
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I read the Little House on the Prairie books as a child and just assumed then that the people in the book were fiction and as a child I never gave one thought about the author. When I found an article about her sister Mary on the internet recently it made me pause and think about the author and her life. So I went online to find if there were any books about Laura Ingalls Wilder and found this one. The book was an easy read (I finished it in about 3 hours), almost like it was aimed for children....more
This book was fascinating to me. I learned so much more about Laura's life from this biography than what the tv show and her books cover. Laura started writing the Little House series IN HER 60'S! Amazing that she could remember so many details. Also, I was surprised to learn she only had one surviving child and from what I could discern her daughter Rose, had no living children. It saddens me that she doesn't have any descendents. Laura's life changed so much over the course of her 90+ years......more
I chose this book after reading the Stieg Larsson books because anything Little House is special to me. I needed something that wouldn't disappoint. I suppose it is unfair to rate any book after reading a series that wow'd me. But this book receives only 3 stars. It was blandly written, brief and managed to hit only the high points of Laura's books without a lot of additional details. I plowed through the book quickly and at no time did I think about putting it down and not finishing it. But as...more
This was an excellent read for someone like myself who has read the Little House books a number of times. I also recently read the autobiographies of Rose Wilder Lane, so this all seemed so familiar, filling in the gaps and expanding the story beyond what I've previously read. My heart just breaks for these families and the lost babies and difficult circumstances life threw at them, and yet I'm so amazed at the perseverance and faith that they all exemplified. Pa & Laura are definitely on my...more
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LOVED remembering her!--made me want to go back and read all the books again--I don't think I really grasped the importance of them as a historical record at the time, but she is amazing. Fun photographs, and helped clear up the journeying back and forth through all of the books. I was so shocked though, when I realized she lived into the 1950's!! I used to daydream in elementary school, of showing (my friend) Laura all of the modernizations around now, like cars and planes and computers, and lo...more
Apr 07, 2013
Kristin Burleigh
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Younger females
Recommended to Kristin by:
My mom!
I love this book. I love ALL of the books in this 'series'. I read them when I was in 6th or 7th grade and BEGGED my mom for the set for YEARS until she finally got it for me on my 15th or 16th birthday! I now have the boxed set all safe and sound on my bookshelf where I look at them lovingly every time I pass. They were my childhood, and will be passed onto my children should I ever be blessed with any.
Definitely suggest for younger readers; it's a CLASSIC!
Definitely suggest for younger readers; it's a CLASSIC!
I went on a road trip with my mom and dad and went to see Laura's houses that she lived in.... It was awsome and on the trip I bought this book and just read it and it was really good cuz you could learn more about her life with your parents and sisters and her husband Almanzo and their daughther Rose.... I would read this book over and over again and go see her houses again... I use to watch the show Little House on the Pairie when I was younger and fell in love with the story and how they live...more
This was an easy read - might be considered a YA level of biography, andyone 12 and up could read it, but the average person knows so little about Mrs. Wilder's later life. It tells a great deal about her time in the Ozarks, how she became a write late in life but didn't write the Little House series until she was in her 70's, and just how famous she and her daughter were. (Rose Wilder Lane was a bestselling author). If you've ever closed the last of the Little House books and wondered what happ...more
Picked this book up at the gift shop at Rocky Ridge Farm! It was wonderful to read about Laura's life and be able to picture her Missouri years so vividly, since I have now been there. This book is a quick, easy read that fills in a lot of the gaps from the "Little House" books— particularly the time the Ingalls family spent in Iowa. It features several black-and-white photos, which I also enjoyed.
Jul 16, 2011
Tracy
added it
I just got this book on a wim from the liabrary. I was a massive Little House fan when I was child, and still have my books now! I read this book in a day and a half, could not put it down. I know it is written for young adults but I learned allot about the woman who was my favorite author for my early years. A great book, lots of great information and pictures.
A WONDERFUL telling of the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder. It is fascinating to think about all the history she has lived--from a cabin in the Big Woods and a covered wagon to riding in a Chrysler automobile! I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves the Little House books or is interested in pioneer history.
Enjoyed the real story of Laura and look forward to reading her books with my daughter, as I mostly have the television series in my mind. I could visualize everything the author wrote and was very interested in learning about her writing career and how she treated get fans so nicely no matter the time or place.
YA biography written for about 5th grade and up. Adequate background with much about her life at Rocky Ridge Farm in MO. I was inspired to find that LIW didn't publish her first "Little House" book until she was in her 60s. She led a fascinating, active life. I'd like to re-read some of the series.
Interesting insight into the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family. I found a few things interesting- especially The Homestead Act of 1862. It's amazing how they survived in the conditions they did. Not so sure people today would be able to handle that....
This is a juvenile nonfiction level book that is adequate for middle and high school book reports. There isn't much added beyond the Little House books in the early part of the book. Still the writing wasn't annoying (unlike the current Laura bio I'm reading).
I loved reading more about my favorite author. What an inspiration she was! This is aimed at grade schoolers, but I got a lot out of it. I liked knowing the dates and facts of what happened in her life and how she became a famous author.
This book inspired me to visit Laura Ingalls Wilder's home/museum in Mansfield Missouri almost 20 years ago. It was well worth the visit, and this book is well worth a read.
A must read for the Little House on the Prairie fan. Give a deeper look at the true lives of the Ingalls and Wilder families.
A quick little read.
A quick little read.
Her Rocky Ridge farm is close to us, in Missouri. I', going over there to see it. Her bio was so interesting. She didn't even start writing until she was 44...my age!
Interesting, engagingly written. This book shows the relationship between the events in Laura Ingalls Wilder's life and the books we know so well, while also filling in the gaps.
Written for kids, this is a quick history of LIW without much in the way of critical commentary. It’s very sweet and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Apr 09, 2013
Nicole Ewert
marked it as to-read
I read the Little House books when I was younger and my mom and I have always watched the show!! Looking forward to reading this !!
Interesting-I learned some things I didn't know. We visited Burr Oak recently, and I would like to visit more of her 'homesteads'.
I love Laura, I think I have read all her childrens books a hundred times. I loved reading about her real life.
Readable and neat. Although I think by the time I read this I already knew pretty much everything in this biography...
This book gives you information that was not in the orignial Little House books, the story behind the story...
i absolutely loved this book! i am a huge little house on the prairie fan! i read this book and i loved it.
Great information about Laura, that fills in the gaps between her books, and explains about her adult life.
I had to read this for a presentation about Laura Ingalls Wilder.
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