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West from Home: Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder, San Francisco, 1915
In 1915, Laura Ingalls Wilder traveled by train from her home in Missouri to San Francisco. Laura's westward journey to visit her daughter, Rose Wilder Lane, coincided with a spectacular event taking place in that city-the Panama Pacific International Exposition.
This was a great world's fair celebrating the completion of the Panama Canal, and Laura was amazed by the attractions that had been gathered there.
Her husband, Almanzo, was unable to leave their Missouri farm, and it was Laura's letters that gave him the chance to see what she saw during her visit to California.
These letters, gathered together here, allow the reader to experience Laura's adventures and her intimate thoughts as she shared with her husband the events of her exciting sojourn.
This was a great world's fair celebrating the completion of the Panama Canal, and Laura was amazed by the attractions that had been gathered there.
Her husband, Almanzo, was unable to leave their Missouri farm, and it was Laura's letters that gave him the chance to see what she saw during her visit to California.
These letters, gathered together here, allow the reader to experience Laura's adventures and her intimate thoughts as she shared with her husband the events of her exciting sojourn.
124 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1974
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4264 people want to read
About the author
Laura Ingalls Wilder
422 books5,394 followersIngalls wrote a series of historical fiction books for children based on her childhood growing up in a pioneer family. She also wrote a regular newspaper column and kept a diary as an adult moving from South Dakota to Missouri, the latter of which has been published as a book.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 218 reviews
May 2, 2021
A shorter but very similar book to A Little House Traveller. A lot of the same pictures as well, though some new ones were included.
July 29, 2014
I love the "Little House" books. And I'm fascinated with 1910s San Francisco and its Panama-Pacific International Exposition of 1915 (world's fair). What a happy discovery, indeed, when I realized that Laura herself visited the PPIE when she visited her daughter in SF *and* wrote about her experience to her husband, Manly, who stayed home in Mansfield to oversee the farm. This is the collection of those letters and it proves a quick, delightful read for fans of Laura, San Francisco, worlds fairs, or travelogues from times gone by.
Though you need not have read the Little House books to enjoy this book, it certainly enhances the enjoyment.
Spoilers below for those who haven't read the Little House Books:
Though perhaps some of the descriptions of her train ride west could have been more descriptive, I really loved the letters from San Francisco. As a child, Laura described things for her blind sister Mary and now she described her experiences for Almanzo back home (she also asked him to keep the letters in case she wanted to use any descriptions from them in future writings--she was a columnist at this time, and "West From Home" even includes one of the pieces she wrote about the culinary delights of the Exposition, recipes and all!). Manly, and now we, feel Laura's delight in seeing the ocean for the first time, in the beautiful lights display that played over the Exposition each night, in the whirl of a busy city complete with automobiles and cable cars, and all the delights of the Exposition from the kangaroos of Australia to the heavenly scones from Scotland. How amazing to think that the little girl who grew up on the prairie, seeing nary a soul outside her own family, a stick of candy for Christmas being a treat beyond measure, would grow up and mingle with a crowd of thousands from around the world, sip pineapple juice from Hawaii and wade in the Pacific Ocean (the same ocean that touches the shores of Japan and China, she marvels). The Laura fans will also appreciate that Laura's sense of fun and adventure still shines through (she loves to stand at the very front of the boats and feel the rocking of the waves and the salt spray on her face) and will enjoy seeing evidence of a happy marriage with Almanzo (she notes often how much she misses him and they seem quite equals as she discusses business and politics with him, and he consults her about the purchase of a new horse). She also speaks of getting help with her writing from daughter Rose (already a very successful journalist) and speaks of wanting a "big project" one day (perhaps the Little House books already on her mind?) In any case, I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of her letters and walking beside her for a few hours through a glorious city and festival of festivals that I can otherwise only dream of.
Though you need not have read the Little House books to enjoy this book, it certainly enhances the enjoyment.
Spoilers below for those who haven't read the Little House Books:
Though perhaps some of the descriptions of her train ride west could have been more descriptive, I really loved the letters from San Francisco. As a child, Laura described things for her blind sister Mary and now she described her experiences for Almanzo back home (she also asked him to keep the letters in case she wanted to use any descriptions from them in future writings--she was a columnist at this time, and "West From Home" even includes one of the pieces she wrote about the culinary delights of the Exposition, recipes and all!). Manly, and now we, feel Laura's delight in seeing the ocean for the first time, in the beautiful lights display that played over the Exposition each night, in the whirl of a busy city complete with automobiles and cable cars, and all the delights of the Exposition from the kangaroos of Australia to the heavenly scones from Scotland. How amazing to think that the little girl who grew up on the prairie, seeing nary a soul outside her own family, a stick of candy for Christmas being a treat beyond measure, would grow up and mingle with a crowd of thousands from around the world, sip pineapple juice from Hawaii and wade in the Pacific Ocean (the same ocean that touches the shores of Japan and China, she marvels). The Laura fans will also appreciate that Laura's sense of fun and adventure still shines through (she loves to stand at the very front of the boats and feel the rocking of the waves and the salt spray on her face) and will enjoy seeing evidence of a happy marriage with Almanzo (she notes often how much she misses him and they seem quite equals as she discusses business and politics with him, and he consults her about the purchase of a new horse). She also speaks of getting help with her writing from daughter Rose (already a very successful journalist) and speaks of wanting a "big project" one day (perhaps the Little House books already on her mind?) In any case, I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of her letters and walking beside her for a few hours through a glorious city and festival of festivals that I can otherwise only dream of.
March 12, 2017
I am not a huge fan of Laura Ingalls Wilder *cringes and hides from the fans* and this book was rather boring, but I gave it 2 stars for interesting historical details.
February 4, 2021
These are the letters Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote to her husband Almanzo when she took a trip to San Francisco to see the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in 1915. The exposition was to celebrate the completion of the Panama Canal. These letters are as they were found by Roger Lea MacBride and little notes have been made to explain certain things Laura mentions.
I’d never heard of this event until I saw this book at the library. Laura’s letters offer us readers a glimpse into her later years, the life of her daughter Rose Wilder Lane, San Francisco, California in 1915, and above all, the great World’s Fair. Her letters cover the long train trip to San Francisco and her time in the city before heading home again.
This book takes place before Laura writes her famous Little House books. She makes a few references to her childhood that many of us know so well. This is near the beginning of her writing career as a columnist for newspapers such as the Missouri Ruralist. She mentions getting help from Rose with her writings so we know she’s beginning to take more interest, that will soon lead her to writing her life story.
Laura has always had a gift for describing things so one can ‘see’ them clearly in one’s mind. She does for Almanzo what she did for her blind sister Mary through her childhood. She is Almanzo’s - and therefore our - eyes at this great fair. I felt like I was there with her, dipping my toes into the ocean for the first time and listening in complete awe to Fritz Kreisler’s concert in the Greek Theatre. Those two parts were my favourite and in my opinion, the best described of them all.
Speaking of Fritz Kreisler the Austrian violinist, he has an incredible story that Laura shares a bit of with us. I was so intrigued that I looked him up and he is considered one of the greatest violinists of all time! And Laura and Rose got to hear him preform live! Incredible. The story she tells us, I could find little proof of. He did serve in WW1, was wounded and discharged but I couldn’t find anything about the orphans he and his wife supposedly saved. A guess that is a lost piece of history. :(
Laura does a great job describing the fair too and gathered many interesting recipes that she kept and are now included in this book. I think my favourite part was when Laura first dips her toes in the pacific. This woman saw a lot of incredible things in her lifetime, travelled far across the American prairies and has captured the pioneer history of America forever. She appreciates experiences like her San Francisco trip and it’s a joy to see her reactions to people and places that most of us have heard about but will never see or know for ourselves.
I will share my favourite quote with you all. I thought it was a really cool way to think about it and connect to people on the other side of the world. We are far apart yet still connected. As Laura points out, the same water that touches their shores touch the shores of other places.
The salt water tingled my feet and made them feel so good all the rest of the day, and just to think, the same water that bathes the shores of China and Japan came clear across the ocean and bathed my feet. In other words, I have washed my feet in the Pacific Ocean.”
I will think about Laura and her way of seeing this someday if I ever get to wash my own feet in the Pacific Ocean.
I’d never heard of this event until I saw this book at the library. Laura’s letters offer us readers a glimpse into her later years, the life of her daughter Rose Wilder Lane, San Francisco, California in 1915, and above all, the great World’s Fair. Her letters cover the long train trip to San Francisco and her time in the city before heading home again.
This book takes place before Laura writes her famous Little House books. She makes a few references to her childhood that many of us know so well. This is near the beginning of her writing career as a columnist for newspapers such as the Missouri Ruralist. She mentions getting help from Rose with her writings so we know she’s beginning to take more interest, that will soon lead her to writing her life story.
Laura has always had a gift for describing things so one can ‘see’ them clearly in one’s mind. She does for Almanzo what she did for her blind sister Mary through her childhood. She is Almanzo’s - and therefore our - eyes at this great fair. I felt like I was there with her, dipping my toes into the ocean for the first time and listening in complete awe to Fritz Kreisler’s concert in the Greek Theatre. Those two parts were my favourite and in my opinion, the best described of them all.
Speaking of Fritz Kreisler the Austrian violinist, he has an incredible story that Laura shares a bit of with us. I was so intrigued that I looked him up and he is considered one of the greatest violinists of all time! And Laura and Rose got to hear him preform live! Incredible. The story she tells us, I could find little proof of. He did serve in WW1, was wounded and discharged but I couldn’t find anything about the orphans he and his wife supposedly saved. A guess that is a lost piece of history. :(
Laura does a great job describing the fair too and gathered many interesting recipes that she kept and are now included in this book. I think my favourite part was when Laura first dips her toes in the pacific. This woman saw a lot of incredible things in her lifetime, travelled far across the American prairies and has captured the pioneer history of America forever. She appreciates experiences like her San Francisco trip and it’s a joy to see her reactions to people and places that most of us have heard about but will never see or know for ourselves.
I will share my favourite quote with you all. I thought it was a really cool way to think about it and connect to people on the other side of the world. We are far apart yet still connected. As Laura points out, the same water that touches their shores touch the shores of other places.
The salt water tingled my feet and made them feel so good all the rest of the day, and just to think, the same water that bathes the shores of China and Japan came clear across the ocean and bathed my feet. In other words, I have washed my feet in the Pacific Ocean.”
I will think about Laura and her way of seeing this someday if I ever get to wash my own feet in the Pacific Ocean.
March 31, 2009
My first impression of Laura's letters to Almanzo was that they were more practical than romantic. I forgot that they were written during a time when letters were often read a loud to anyone who would listen. Eek! I wouldn’t get too lovey-dovey either. But, the affection and at time loneliness Laura felt for her husband, pet and home still manage to roost among her vivid descriptions of San Francisco. Although she never says it plainly, I got the feeling Laura wasn’t pleased with her underachieving son-in-law and I can’t help but wonder if she ever received repayment on her loan.
The added notes in the book are very helpful in explaining the historical details of Laura’s letters and the recipes are an added treat.
The added notes in the book are very helpful in explaining the historical details of Laura’s letters and the recipes are an added treat.
May 31, 2020
Somehow, in my lifetime of loving the Little House books, I have never had the chance to read this one until now. Of course, it can’t be compared with the main series, written in story format and edited, but it’s a jewel in itself. Laura’s solo train trip from Missouri to California sparks wonder as we read her perspective, the sights she saw, the marvels of technology and city growth she witnessed - and as we remember her childhood covered wagon journeys and isolation as a frontier girl, a pioneer, a homesteader. Her descriptions of the exposition prove that her sense of adventure was still very much alive and well, and her loving words to her husband show how happy they were together.
And besides the interesting historical details, perhaps those are the two biggest takeaways of this book for me. The main series leaves Laura newly married, and the change in tone of The First Four Years as well as the repeated hardships chronicled therein leave the reader on a rather sad note. Then we know there were health issues and she ended up going back east and settling in Missouri. To me, this feels melancholy for the girl whose spirit flew west with her big heart and sense of adventure. Why did Laura keep going west? That’s the unanswered question of the main series that this book satisfactorily answers.
Laura loved her Ozark home. That much is plainly evident. She traveled all the way to the Pacific Ocean, looked things over carefully (they were considering moving to California), but in all that distance, she saw nothing that compared to her own beautiful Ozark home. And for me as a reader, that was a relief and joy to know.
The second important takeaway was her love for Almanzo that shines out in these letters. She missed him. They worked excellently together. They had a very happy marriage.
And third, of course, Laura didn’t lose her adventurous spirit. She stands at the front of the boat because it’s more exciting. She walks and explores for miles even when she’s tired. She tackles the crowds and sights with the best of them even through injury.
And all this goes to show that Laura in her forties was indeed the same girlhood and teenage Laura that we came to love.
And besides the interesting historical details, perhaps those are the two biggest takeaways of this book for me. The main series leaves Laura newly married, and the change in tone of The First Four Years as well as the repeated hardships chronicled therein leave the reader on a rather sad note. Then we know there were health issues and she ended up going back east and settling in Missouri. To me, this feels melancholy for the girl whose spirit flew west with her big heart and sense of adventure. Why did Laura keep going west? That’s the unanswered question of the main series that this book satisfactorily answers.
Laura loved her Ozark home. That much is plainly evident. She traveled all the way to the Pacific Ocean, looked things over carefully (they were considering moving to California), but in all that distance, she saw nothing that compared to her own beautiful Ozark home. And for me as a reader, that was a relief and joy to know.
The second important takeaway was her love for Almanzo that shines out in these letters. She missed him. They worked excellently together. They had a very happy marriage.
And third, of course, Laura didn’t lose her adventurous spirit. She stands at the front of the boat because it’s more exciting. She walks and explores for miles even when she’s tired. She tackles the crowds and sights with the best of them even through injury.
And all this goes to show that Laura in her forties was indeed the same girlhood and teenage Laura that we came to love.
November 23, 2018
A lovely little addition to your Little House or Laura Ingalls Wilder collection. My review: West from Home.
March 17, 2019
In 1915, before Laura ever wrote Little Cabin in the Big Woods, she went to visit her daughter Rose in San Francisco. They experienced much of the Panama-Pacific International Exposition world's fair together, and Laura wrote home to Manly about all sorts of incredible things she was seeing each week. This book is a compilation of those sweet letters.
Such beautiful writing and vivid descriptions. I feel like my own friend experienced it all and has written me all about it. (Actual time travel, people!) Also, the book has an amazing collection of photos too. To see proof of these scenes that Laura saw helps me to better imagine everything she talks about in the letters.
A couple of fun tidbits: I love how she mentions Inky, the Wilder's dog, quite often in her letters to Manly. Aww! ... Also, I learned that a lot of the family actually called Laura "Mama Bess", due to another Laura in the family -- wow!
One of my favorite incidents included herein is when Rose writes a letter to her father to tell him the alarming news that "Mama Bess is growing fat." For me, that is the most hilarious of the bunch!
Included at the back is a newspaper article that Laura wrote about the food exhibits at the world's fair, including recipes she nabbed from vendors. I'm tempted to try one or two recipes, honestly.
If you're a fan of Little House at all, I'm sure you'd love this "bonus" from Laura. Suitable for all ages.
Such beautiful writing and vivid descriptions. I feel like my own friend experienced it all and has written me all about it. (Actual time travel, people!) Also, the book has an amazing collection of photos too. To see proof of these scenes that Laura saw helps me to better imagine everything she talks about in the letters.
A couple of fun tidbits: I love how she mentions Inky, the Wilder's dog, quite often in her letters to Manly. Aww! ... Also, I learned that a lot of the family actually called Laura "Mama Bess", due to another Laura in the family -- wow!
One of my favorite incidents included herein is when Rose writes a letter to her father to tell him the alarming news that "Mama Bess is growing fat." For me, that is the most hilarious of the bunch!
Included at the back is a newspaper article that Laura wrote about the food exhibits at the world's fair, including recipes she nabbed from vendors. I'm tempted to try one or two recipes, honestly.
If you're a fan of Little House at all, I'm sure you'd love this "bonus" from Laura. Suitable for all ages.
September 19, 2011
San Francisco 1915, Die Panama-Pacific International Exhibition feiert die Fertigstellung des Panama Kanals im neu aufgebauten San Francisco. Laura Ingalls Wilder, die spätere Autorin des „Little house Books“ besucht zu dieser Zeit ihre Tochter Rose und deren Ehemann in San Francisco. Da Lauras Ehemann Almanzo auf dem Bauernhof bleiben musste, schreibt ihm seine treue Gattin fast täglich Briefe über das was sie gesehen und erlebt hat. Wie sie als Kind für ihre blinde Schwester Mary die Augen ersetzte, ersetzt sie sie nun für den in der Ferne weilenden Almanzo und beschreibt lebhaft ihre Reise nach San Francisco und ihre Erlebnisse in der großen, fremden Stadt.
Nach dem Tode Rose Wilder Lanes, fand Roger Lea McBride diese Briefe in deren Hinterlassenschaften. Laura hatte sie gebündelt und schon damals überlegt, ob sie Teile der Briefe für Veröffentlichungen verwenden sollte. Ihre Tochter Rose brachte es nicht über das Herz die Briefe ihrer Eltern zu lesen, und auch Roger Lea McBride brauchte einige Zeit, bis er sich dazu durchrang und sie 1974 zusammenstellte und veröffentlichte.
Diese Briefe schrieb Laura lange vor den „Little House“ Büchern und man erkennt schon ihr Talent. Sie schreibt darüber, wie Rose ihr beibringt wie man schreibt, damit sie mit Artikeln für kleine Zeitungen Geld hinzuverdienen kann. Rose verschafft ihr zu dieser Zeit auch die ersten Aufträge und bringt sie mit ihrem eigenen Agenten zusammen.
Dennoch merkt man, dass es sich um persönliche Briefe handelt, denn Laura (hier Bess genannt, um nicht mit Almanzos Schwester Laura verwechselt zu werden) erkundigt sich oft nach dem Vorangehen auf dem Hof, den Hühnern und wie es Hund und Herrn geht. Einige ihrer Ansichten über Eingeborenenstämme, die auf der Messe ihre Kultur vorstellten sind extrem amerikanisch provinziell und erinnern stark an Ma Ingalls Meinung über Indianer.
Nicht unbedingt interessant für Fans der „Little House Bücher“, sondern eher eine interessante Lektüre vor oder nach einem San Francisco Besuch, denn einige wenige Teile der damaligen Ausstellung sind noch heute zu besichtigen.
Die Fotos im Innenteil lassen leider zu wünschen übrig, was die Qualität angeht, zum einen wohl, weil sie damals nicht digital nachbearbeitet wurden, häuptsächlich jedoch wegen der mäßigen Papierqualität des Buches.
Nach dem Tode Rose Wilder Lanes, fand Roger Lea McBride diese Briefe in deren Hinterlassenschaften. Laura hatte sie gebündelt und schon damals überlegt, ob sie Teile der Briefe für Veröffentlichungen verwenden sollte. Ihre Tochter Rose brachte es nicht über das Herz die Briefe ihrer Eltern zu lesen, und auch Roger Lea McBride brauchte einige Zeit, bis er sich dazu durchrang und sie 1974 zusammenstellte und veröffentlichte.
Diese Briefe schrieb Laura lange vor den „Little House“ Büchern und man erkennt schon ihr Talent. Sie schreibt darüber, wie Rose ihr beibringt wie man schreibt, damit sie mit Artikeln für kleine Zeitungen Geld hinzuverdienen kann. Rose verschafft ihr zu dieser Zeit auch die ersten Aufträge und bringt sie mit ihrem eigenen Agenten zusammen.
Dennoch merkt man, dass es sich um persönliche Briefe handelt, denn Laura (hier Bess genannt, um nicht mit Almanzos Schwester Laura verwechselt zu werden) erkundigt sich oft nach dem Vorangehen auf dem Hof, den Hühnern und wie es Hund und Herrn geht. Einige ihrer Ansichten über Eingeborenenstämme, die auf der Messe ihre Kultur vorstellten sind extrem amerikanisch provinziell und erinnern stark an Ma Ingalls Meinung über Indianer.
Nicht unbedingt interessant für Fans der „Little House Bücher“, sondern eher eine interessante Lektüre vor oder nach einem San Francisco Besuch, denn einige wenige Teile der damaligen Ausstellung sind noch heute zu besichtigen.
Die Fotos im Innenteil lassen leider zu wünschen übrig, was die Qualität angeht, zum einen wohl, weil sie damals nicht digital nachbearbeitet wurden, häuptsächlich jedoch wegen der mäßigen Papierqualität des Buches.
July 10, 2024
Continuing my re-read of the books associated with the Laura Ingalls Wilder Little House world, I took up this novella length epistolary account from Laura to Almanzo of her journey to and experiences in 1915 San Francisco to visit their daughter Rose and son in law Gillette during the San Francisco World's Fair.
Laura has just begun her writing career, but these letters back to Manly at Rocky Ridge Farm in the Ozarks while she is traveling and experience so much show the promise for her future works. I enjoyed the update on the Wilder family as Laura visits with Rose and her husband Gillette. Laura has a keen understanding of both personalities as Rose is already a star journalist and writer working for the San Francisco Bulletin and meeting famous people of the day to write up her books and articles. Gillette is also a news writer, but he's only getting sporadic work at the time and is also still working on real estate deals.
Laura's description of a San Francisco recently risen from the ashes of the 1908 earthquake, the surrounding Bay Area, references to WWI, and much on the Pacific Panama Exposition as the fair was known- tributing the recent opening of the Panama Canal- was superb. I loved getting this slice of history through her letters particularly since I am very familiar with the locations she was describing. So sweet that her letters are full of her longing to get back to Almanzo and their farm.
All in all, a good peek in at a middle-aged Laura and I definitely recommend it to those who want more beyond the Little House world.
Laura has just begun her writing career, but these letters back to Manly at Rocky Ridge Farm in the Ozarks while she is traveling and experience so much show the promise for her future works. I enjoyed the update on the Wilder family as Laura visits with Rose and her husband Gillette. Laura has a keen understanding of both personalities as Rose is already a star journalist and writer working for the San Francisco Bulletin and meeting famous people of the day to write up her books and articles. Gillette is also a news writer, but he's only getting sporadic work at the time and is also still working on real estate deals.
Laura's description of a San Francisco recently risen from the ashes of the 1908 earthquake, the surrounding Bay Area, references to WWI, and much on the Pacific Panama Exposition as the fair was known- tributing the recent opening of the Panama Canal- was superb. I loved getting this slice of history through her letters particularly since I am very familiar with the locations she was describing. So sweet that her letters are full of her longing to get back to Almanzo and their farm.
All in all, a good peek in at a middle-aged Laura and I definitely recommend it to those who want more beyond the Little House world.
February 15, 2019
I was surprised that Rose was a journalist in San Francisco. Laura went to visit her for 2 months.
The prologue was pretty boring to me. It had some interesting details, like the Costanoan Indians called the Pacific Ocean the Sundown Sea. And that the city had recovered from the earthquake and fire that happened recently, but Laura would walk around to see if it was prospering. Sometimes there would be vacant lots and staircases that led nowhere. It was delightful that have the End of the Trail statue mentioned because I love that one. But on the whole it didn't capture my attention because it went on and on about San Francisco the town and who spent what on what place, and about buildings and things I didn't care about.
It was charming to hear details about Laura, that she was frugal when buying stationary and used cheap paper and pencil. And that either Manly or Laura put their letters away for safekeeping.
It was so sweet that Almonzo said she could go to the World's Fair, because he was always generous and more of a farmer than a traveler. She promised to be his eyes while she was there.
It was so sweet that she asked about the dog, and said she'll be back before he learns to get on without her and told him to take care of himself and their dog. She told him about a German man who woke her up on the train to put his coat over her when it got cold.
There was a man coming over to help Almonzo and she told Almonzo to tell him to keep Almonzo and Inky cheered up.
I was surprised to learn that she didn't care for cities. I thought they'd be so exciting to her, especially since I just read The Long Winter and she had never seen the city and wondered at everything. But I guess she preferred the prairies and woods where she grew up.
It struck me as funny that she kept writing for every stage of her journey, sometimes a few times a day. She would write at every stop and leg of her trip and keep him abreast of everything she'd been through.
I thought that since she'd been writing while on the train and stations that she hadn't been able to receive any of his, but that when she reached San Francisco we would start getting the full correspondence as we could see Almonzo's letters back to her. That did not happen. They continued to be Laura's and I was so upset! It quickly became redundant to be reading a one-way dialogue without the reactions of the other person. I hate to say it, but it's a stagnant setup. It was all the more devastating when Laura would reference something he had written to her and we had no idea what she was talking about. How I wish they had saved Almonzo's with hers so we could piece it together. I would have loved to hear from him.
She told him she would look for the both of them as much as possible.
I sadly remember the bit of controversy recently surrounding Laura and her view of Native Americans, that her books were being pulled from a certain place or something. I cringed as I read that they visited the Navajo cliff dwellings and she thought they smelled like "wild beast dens." How do you know what a wild's beast den smells like? And you certainly shouldn't say someone's home smells like that. But at least she said they were friendly and good-natured.
It's so cool that she got to see the Samoans in their native dress. She described their skin being a beautiful golden color where it wasn't tattooed and they danced and sang gracefully. The men did a dance of the head hunters with long knives. It was odd that she said they seemed cold, poor things after they sang an English battle song, for which it seemed weird to her for them to do so, because I thought she liked them. Their princess brought them and their chief was with them.
She said she felt bad about her dog missing her so much, and she said she's afraid it will make him feel worse if she sends him a letter. So sweet!
I really liked the inclusion of pictures. I hadn't expected any so that was a great surprise. There was one of Laura and Rose, and I wish there had been one of Almonzo and Gillette, Rose's husband. There were so many from the town showing what it was like at that time and what Laura would have seen. It brought it all to life and helped me envision things better.
But one picture mentioned Laura falling on a streetcar, and another showed a cabinet she took home from the fair and totally gave those things away because they hadn't happened yet! I don't like when things are spoiled.
It was so amusing how as she's in San Francisco taking in all of the sights, she was writing to Almonzo about wanting to go see a chicken farmer and learn how he raises so many chickens. She even asked Almonzo if he'd set the hogs out and if they liked the orchard! A country girl at heart that's for sure.
It was amazing to hear that she was going to work on some stories with Rose one week. She had written Almonzo to tell him to please save her letters because she might want to use some of the descriptions later. She told him that she wanted to do a little writing with Rose so that she could get the hang of it so she can write something she can sell. It's crazy to think that her daughter became a writer before her and kind of taught and got her to write.
It was so funny how in one letter she started out one letter by telling him if he really wanted the horse he should go ahead and get it, and then later in the letter she told him not to buy the horse unless he was sure it's gentle because she didn't want him hurt while she was gone, "or any other time for that matter." That was so sweet.
It was cute that Laura said they can have their automobiles because she'd have a Kentucky riding horse if she could. She sure wasn't impressed!
She said she had to leave something to tell him when she got home or else he wouldn't be glad to have her.
It blew me away that Laura was doing the chores while Rose was working so when Rose came home she had time to teach Laura to write. Laura was planning on doing a piece on the Ozarks that would make more money than the farm work. And Rose had saved up money to give to her dad to make up for what he lost with Laura being gone. What a notion.
She told him she knew it must be hard for him and she felt guilty to have come, promised to help him all she could when she got back and that he wouldn't have to cook anymore. She said she didn't expect him to write because he has so much to do, but to send word every now and then so she knows he's alright. She hated to think of him alone.
The story of Rose frantically looking for Laura was so cute. She was calling around different places and no one had seen her. Laura had happened to leave a note at the house when she went out, but then she came home and started typing and didn't pick the note up. Rose came home and saw that note and rushed over to where Laura said she's been going but the woman said Laura had left a while ago. Else went checking different places and when she came home the second time she heard the typewriter. She'd been worried Laura had been hit by a car because that happened a lot. Rose told Laura she wouldn't let her out of her sight again.
She said they saw the ugly native islanders that used to be cannibal tribes in Australia and New Zealand.
The picture section had already given away that Laura fell on a streetcar. Laura went several days without writing to Almanzo while she was in the hospital. She told Rose she didn't want anyone in Mansfield to know about it because it looked like she couldn't take care of herself in the city.
She said bland Chinese girl and swarthy, black-eyed Mexican.
It’s sweet that she told him to whisper to their dog that she’d be home soon. She said she loved San Francisco but she wouldn’t trade a single Ozark hill for the rest of the state of California. She also bragged that Missouri had shown the others up at the Exposition, had taken more prizes than all the other states beside California, and had beaten California in one area. It was clear she was proud of her state.
I was so disappointed that the end was from her article and not a letter. She spoke about food at the Exposition and the process of cleaning raisins and it was all I could do to pay attention. Then it launched into types of bread and recipes she got from different cultures. I didn't like that it ended like that and I didn't really care to read the article because I'd read so much from her already about the fair. At least there was a section about the author at the end, where she was born, and she started teaching at 15 and married Almanzo 3 years later, that she wrote the books 40 years after Rose was born.
We didn’t get to know if Rose stayed until the middle of November or cut her trip short and went back to Almanzo early. I really wanted to know that.
It was so special getting to read Laura’s thoughts from her real life, to be inside her head as she was experiencing things. It’s evident what a country girl she was at heart and how much she cared about animals. It was so charming that she thought about her dog in every letter and just wanted to get back to raise her chickens, had given Almanzo many instructions on what and how much to feed them. It’s clear she loved her home and didn’t want to leave it, even for California, and it’s nice to know they remained in their town and didn’t move.
The prologue was pretty boring to me. It had some interesting details, like the Costanoan Indians called the Pacific Ocean the Sundown Sea. And that the city had recovered from the earthquake and fire that happened recently, but Laura would walk around to see if it was prospering. Sometimes there would be vacant lots and staircases that led nowhere. It was delightful that have the End of the Trail statue mentioned because I love that one. But on the whole it didn't capture my attention because it went on and on about San Francisco the town and who spent what on what place, and about buildings and things I didn't care about.
It was charming to hear details about Laura, that she was frugal when buying stationary and used cheap paper and pencil. And that either Manly or Laura put their letters away for safekeeping.
It was so sweet that Almonzo said she could go to the World's Fair, because he was always generous and more of a farmer than a traveler. She promised to be his eyes while she was there.
It was so sweet that she asked about the dog, and said she'll be back before he learns to get on without her and told him to take care of himself and their dog. She told him about a German man who woke her up on the train to put his coat over her when it got cold.
There was a man coming over to help Almonzo and she told Almonzo to tell him to keep Almonzo and Inky cheered up.
I was surprised to learn that she didn't care for cities. I thought they'd be so exciting to her, especially since I just read The Long Winter and she had never seen the city and wondered at everything. But I guess she preferred the prairies and woods where she grew up.
It struck me as funny that she kept writing for every stage of her journey, sometimes a few times a day. She would write at every stop and leg of her trip and keep him abreast of everything she'd been through.
I thought that since she'd been writing while on the train and stations that she hadn't been able to receive any of his, but that when she reached San Francisco we would start getting the full correspondence as we could see Almonzo's letters back to her. That did not happen. They continued to be Laura's and I was so upset! It quickly became redundant to be reading a one-way dialogue without the reactions of the other person. I hate to say it, but it's a stagnant setup. It was all the more devastating when Laura would reference something he had written to her and we had no idea what she was talking about. How I wish they had saved Almonzo's with hers so we could piece it together. I would have loved to hear from him.
She told him she would look for the both of them as much as possible.
I sadly remember the bit of controversy recently surrounding Laura and her view of Native Americans, that her books were being pulled from a certain place or something. I cringed as I read that they visited the Navajo cliff dwellings and she thought they smelled like "wild beast dens." How do you know what a wild's beast den smells like? And you certainly shouldn't say someone's home smells like that. But at least she said they were friendly and good-natured.
It's so cool that she got to see the Samoans in their native dress. She described their skin being a beautiful golden color where it wasn't tattooed and they danced and sang gracefully. The men did a dance of the head hunters with long knives. It was odd that she said they seemed cold, poor things after they sang an English battle song, for which it seemed weird to her for them to do so, because I thought she liked them. Their princess brought them and their chief was with them.
She said she felt bad about her dog missing her so much, and she said she's afraid it will make him feel worse if she sends him a letter. So sweet!
I really liked the inclusion of pictures. I hadn't expected any so that was a great surprise. There was one of Laura and Rose, and I wish there had been one of Almonzo and Gillette, Rose's husband. There were so many from the town showing what it was like at that time and what Laura would have seen. It brought it all to life and helped me envision things better.
But one picture mentioned Laura falling on a streetcar, and another showed a cabinet she took home from the fair and totally gave those things away because they hadn't happened yet! I don't like when things are spoiled.
It was so amusing how as she's in San Francisco taking in all of the sights, she was writing to Almonzo about wanting to go see a chicken farmer and learn how he raises so many chickens. She even asked Almonzo if he'd set the hogs out and if they liked the orchard! A country girl at heart that's for sure.
It was amazing to hear that she was going to work on some stories with Rose one week. She had written Almonzo to tell him to please save her letters because she might want to use some of the descriptions later. She told him that she wanted to do a little writing with Rose so that she could get the hang of it so she can write something she can sell. It's crazy to think that her daughter became a writer before her and kind of taught and got her to write.
It was so funny how in one letter she started out one letter by telling him if he really wanted the horse he should go ahead and get it, and then later in the letter she told him not to buy the horse unless he was sure it's gentle because she didn't want him hurt while she was gone, "or any other time for that matter." That was so sweet.
It was cute that Laura said they can have their automobiles because she'd have a Kentucky riding horse if she could. She sure wasn't impressed!
She said she had to leave something to tell him when she got home or else he wouldn't be glad to have her.
It blew me away that Laura was doing the chores while Rose was working so when Rose came home she had time to teach Laura to write. Laura was planning on doing a piece on the Ozarks that would make more money than the farm work. And Rose had saved up money to give to her dad to make up for what he lost with Laura being gone. What a notion.
She told him she knew it must be hard for him and she felt guilty to have come, promised to help him all she could when she got back and that he wouldn't have to cook anymore. She said she didn't expect him to write because he has so much to do, but to send word every now and then so she knows he's alright. She hated to think of him alone.
The story of Rose frantically looking for Laura was so cute. She was calling around different places and no one had seen her. Laura had happened to leave a note at the house when she went out, but then she came home and started typing and didn't pick the note up. Rose came home and saw that note and rushed over to where Laura said she's been going but the woman said Laura had left a while ago. Else went checking different places and when she came home the second time she heard the typewriter. She'd been worried Laura had been hit by a car because that happened a lot. Rose told Laura she wouldn't let her out of her sight again.
She said they saw the ugly native islanders that used to be cannibal tribes in Australia and New Zealand.
The picture section had already given away that Laura fell on a streetcar. Laura went several days without writing to Almanzo while she was in the hospital. She told Rose she didn't want anyone in Mansfield to know about it because it looked like she couldn't take care of herself in the city.
She said bland Chinese girl and swarthy, black-eyed Mexican.
It’s sweet that she told him to whisper to their dog that she’d be home soon. She said she loved San Francisco but she wouldn’t trade a single Ozark hill for the rest of the state of California. She also bragged that Missouri had shown the others up at the Exposition, had taken more prizes than all the other states beside California, and had beaten California in one area. It was clear she was proud of her state.
I was so disappointed that the end was from her article and not a letter. She spoke about food at the Exposition and the process of cleaning raisins and it was all I could do to pay attention. Then it launched into types of bread and recipes she got from different cultures. I didn't like that it ended like that and I didn't really care to read the article because I'd read so much from her already about the fair. At least there was a section about the author at the end, where she was born, and she started teaching at 15 and married Almanzo 3 years later, that she wrote the books 40 years after Rose was born.
We didn’t get to know if Rose stayed until the middle of November or cut her trip short and went back to Almanzo early. I really wanted to know that.
It was so special getting to read Laura’s thoughts from her real life, to be inside her head as she was experiencing things. It’s evident what a country girl she was at heart and how much she cared about animals. It was so charming that she thought about her dog in every letter and just wanted to get back to raise her chickens, had given Almanzo many instructions on what and how much to feed them. It’s clear she loved her home and didn’t want to leave it, even for California, and it’s nice to know they remained in their town and didn’t move.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 16, 2018
This is sort of another installment of the Little House series, as it is Laura's adventures visiting her daughter Rose as told through her letters to Almanzo during that time. I enjoyed witnessing essentially a World's Fair through her eyes, the modern wonders of the time, the beauty of early 20th Century San Francisco, and the comic way both Laura and Rose were such mother hens over everything. It must have been such a time to be alive and to see so much technological change all at once!
June 14, 2015
A somewhat interesting collection of letters written by Laura ingalls wilder to her husband ( stuck back on the farm ) when she visited her daughter rose in San Francisco in 1915. Some good descriptions of what San Francisco looked like and felt at the time. Lots of description of the worlds fair that was happening at the time in celebration of the opening of the Panama Canal.
December 2, 2018
If you read Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder then be sure to read some of the actual letters from Laura to Manly written during her visit to Rose in California.
February 7, 2024
Sweet little book with some beautiful descriptions of San Francisco and the Panama-Pacific International Exhibition of 1915. It was fun to read her thoughts on a place so far outside of the Little House on the Prairie landscapes.
October 11, 2021
A short but packed collection of letters Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote home to her husband Almanzo in 1915, West From Home details her train ride from Missouri to San Francisco, the stay with her professional writer daughter, Rose, and their frequent visits to the Panama-Pacific International Exposition.
This book, also containing relevant photographs from the era, will appeal to those interested in San Francisco history, those interested in the 1915 world's fair, and those interested in the further adventures of Laura. Her descriptions of the fair and beyond are captivating, and they're mixed
(never intending to be published) with recommendations to Almanzo about the upkeep of their farm, her descriptions of Rose's working life, and an under-the-surface concern that Rose and her partially out of work husband may not be able to pay back a major loan to Almanzo.
West From Home compels me to want to read more of Laura's writing, more of Rose's work (she hobnobbed with violinist Fritz Kreisler, Henry Ford and other famous artists and celebrities) and biographies of both. The family's upward mobility, from Laura and her family barely surviving the deadly 1880 "Long Winter" to Rose being a successful author in one generation is astonishing. In 1915, the "Little House" books were in both author's futures and it will be fascinating to learn more about the collaborative process that enabled them to be written and published.
This book, also containing relevant photographs from the era, will appeal to those interested in San Francisco history, those interested in the 1915 world's fair, and those interested in the further adventures of Laura. Her descriptions of the fair and beyond are captivating, and they're mixed
(never intending to be published) with recommendations to Almanzo about the upkeep of their farm, her descriptions of Rose's working life, and an under-the-surface concern that Rose and her partially out of work husband may not be able to pay back a major loan to Almanzo.
West From Home compels me to want to read more of Laura's writing, more of Rose's work (she hobnobbed with violinist Fritz Kreisler, Henry Ford and other famous artists and celebrities) and biographies of both. The family's upward mobility, from Laura and her family barely surviving the deadly 1880 "Long Winter" to Rose being a successful author in one generation is astonishing. In 1915, the "Little House" books were in both author's futures and it will be fascinating to learn more about the collaborative process that enabled them to be written and published.
December 31, 2024
This was a really cool book. Laura, thanks to a natural talent honed by describing the world to her blind sister, wrote so vividly and descriptively. She could not have known what a huge historical insight her books would have to future generations. This book was much different from her others, as it wasn't a book she wrote. It is a compilation of letters she was sending to her husband that were compiled at a later date. It was expected for letters to be read aloud back then, but I did feel funny reading the ones marked "private." Still, all very interesting and a great addition to the Little House books.
August 24, 2020
This is the last of my Laura Ingalls Wilder books to read "in tempore pestilencia AD 2020". I've gone through her Little House books, read books about Rose Wilder Lane her daughter, and read some books about how Rose helped her mother write.
I'm glad I finished on this one, as it is clearly and unmistakably in Laura's own voice. I enjoyed her letters home to Almanzo as she spent 2 months in San Francisco with Rose and her husband Gillette. She really can make you "see" in her writing. Makes me want to read up more about the World's Fair held in San Francisco in 1915.
I'm glad I finished on this one, as it is clearly and unmistakably in Laura's own voice. I enjoyed her letters home to Almanzo as she spent 2 months in San Francisco with Rose and her husband Gillette. She really can make you "see" in her writing. Makes me want to read up more about the World's Fair held in San Francisco in 1915.
May 2, 2020
It was interesting to read about Laura's trip to San Francisco especially as many things were changing during this time, that you would see first in cities. It was interesting, but a lot was left out of the letters as she wanted she didn't want to write it down and those things would have been interesting to read. It was still entertaining.
January 25, 2021
I liked the Little House books as a child but had not heard of this book until recently. I was particularly interested in it because my family has deep roots in San Francisco. It was very interesting to see 1915 San Francisco (and the cross-country trip before it) through Laura's eyes.
2021 Popsugar Reading Challenge: A book that has fewer than 1000 reviews on Amazon or Goodreads
2021 Popsugar Reading Challenge: A book that has fewer than 1000 reviews on Amazon or Goodreads
March 14, 2021
I love anything written by or about Laura Ingalls Wilder and am a huge fan of the Little House series. This was a very interesting read. I not only learned about Laura, but about the bay area as well. There are also two recipes at the end that I want to try now.
July 1, 2017
Though maybe not part of the Little House canon, it documents the obvious affection the family of three had for one another.
January 5, 2021
This is a fun little book! I love that it ends with Laura’s article about the fair for the Missouri Ruralist paper. This is Laura before the Little House books, so we get a tantalizing peek into her start as a writer and the collaboration between Laura and Rose.
October 10, 2017
เล่มนี้ยิ่งไม่เกี่ยวเข้าไปใหญ่เลย
ถ้าไม่ใช่แฟนพันธุ์แท้ลอร่าขนาดนั้น คงไม่อยากรู้
เป็นเพียงจดหมายบอกเล่าการเดินทางไปเที่ยว (ไปเยี่ยมลูกสาว)
ซึ่งทำงานอยู่ที่ซานฟรานซิสโก
และในช่วงนั้นที่นั่นกำลังจัดงานเทศกาลใหญ่โต
มันเปลี่ยนอารมณ์ไปเลย
ไม่ได้ตั้งใจว่าจะอ่านเรื่องแบบนี้
(แนวสารคดีท่องเที่ยวอ่ะ)
เลยออกจะผิดหวังไปหน่อย
ถ้าไม่ใช่แฟนพันธุ์แท้ลอร่าขนาดนั้น คงไม่อยากรู้
เป็นเพียงจดหมายบอกเล่าการเดินทางไปเที่ยว (ไปเยี่ยมลูกสาว)
ซึ่งทำงานอยู่ที่ซานฟรานซิสโก
และในช่วงนั้นที่นั่นกำลังจัดงานเทศกาลใหญ่โต
มันเปลี่ยนอารมณ์ไปเลย
ไม่ได้ตั้งใจว่าจะอ่านเรื่องแบบนี้
(แนวสารคดีท่องเที่ยวอ่ะ)
เลยออกจะผิดหวังไปหน่อย
September 5, 2024
This summer I re-read the entire Little House series and then decided to branch out with some of her later works that I either hadn't heard of, or just weren't around, when I was a kid. Given that I'm also fascinated with the history of San Francisco, it was such a treat to read Ingalls Wilder's impressions of the city during the 1915 world's fair. Her description of the railroad trip there, including a moonlight ride over a railroad causeway in the middle of the Great Salt Lake, will stay with me always.
July 15, 2023
A fun peak into the relationship between Laura and Rose in San Francisco.
March 9, 2018
I saw this in the bookshop, and was pleasantly surprised to see it was letters from Laura Ingalls. The cover made it look a little boring, and old, so I passed it up, and then eventually decided to buy it because it would be nice to read about Laura Ingalls and her letters to her husband. The introduction on Laura's letters and the Panama-Pacific International Exhibition were heavy reading, and honestly boring, and I was thinking the whole book would be like that, so I had some reluctance and maybe a little dread going into this, thinking it wouldn't be good.
I liked learning more about Laura, because I grew up watching Little House on the Prairie. I think of her on the show when I think of Laura Ingalls, and don't actually know the real person, so it was hard to compare her older voice with the TV show kid version. I loved the historical terms, and learning what life was like back then.
The introduction was about San Francisco, how it was called "Everybody's Favorite City." Poet George Sterling said "at the end of her streets are stars." Very interesting that the Costanoan Indians called the Pacific Ocean Sundown Sea. In Laura's time the fourth side was mostly the Sutro Forest, which was a big stand of eucalyptus trees planted by schoolchildren.
The author, which was a friend and executor, found recipes, photographs and newspaper clippings, letters and postcards from Laura to Almanzo, which would be the find of the century.
It was funny and relatable how Laura was frugal. The paper she used was cheap and unlined, and wouldn't take ink so she used a pencil.
It's hard to believe Laura died in 1957, which wasn't so long ago, considering she was alive during the prairie days. Rose died in '68, which I also find hard to believe. And Laura married Almanzo in 1885. Laura was called Mama Bess to avoid confusion with Almanzo's sister, Laura. On the show she was Eliza Jane.
I love the line that through these letters we can go back to an era that's veiled to us. To a trans-continental train trip with the pioneer girl who first crossed the plains in a covered wagon, to see her reactions to Henry Ford and Charlie Chaplin.
I loved when she said she would be Manly's eyes like she was for her sister.
I think the first letter I really liked was when she was crossing Great Salt Lake. She writes in a descriptive way that really brings her writing to life, and helps you picture it in your head. I could tell a writer wrote this.
I also liked the parts about Land's End, her seeing the Pacific Ocean, Sutro Estate and its gardens, the Tower of Jewels with its light display that looked like the Northern Lights. It's crazy because it was an old light display, and there's modern ones today, but it sounded like it would be amazing to see that display with the search lights and fireworks even today. I loved hearing of all this through Laura's eyes, and I can imagine how exciting all this would have been, and how modern it was at the time. It was told in a vivid, beautiful way.
I couldn't believe all the exhibits at the Exposition, like the Forbidden Garden, a Navajo Indian Village, and a Samoan Village. There was also an Australian exhibit, the Streets of Cairo, the Palace of Fine Arts, Statue of the Pioneer Mother, and the Court of the Universe. I love the outdoor Greek theater she went to that was made in the style of an ancient Greek amphitheater, and was the only one in existence. I would absolutely love to go to something like that and see a play put on. I never would have guessed it included so many cultures. I would love to go to a fair like this today. It reminded me of a book I read where the characters went to the World's Fair.
She brought everything to life with her descriptions of everything, from the mundane to all the exciting sightseeing she did.
The pictures were a very nice surprise. I didn't expect any, and defintiely not of Rose's house, or Rose herself. I'm glad I got to see Land's End, where the beach ended, and the Cliff House at the beach. I'd love to see how they look today. Rose's house, and the light show.
I'm so glad I got to see the tower of jewels and the spot lights, even if it's black and white.
And the color illumination show and fireworks display. That sounds impressive even today. The Palace of Fine Arts. Statue of the Pioneer Mother. Court of the Universe.
It's funny she's mentioned moving there, and what they will do if they retire there. She's thinking of raising 1500 chickens and maybe they can make Almanzo comfortable in spite of the cold, or let him go south to spend the coldest weather.
Rose had a tea party with some women from work, one who was an artist who drew pictures. She became the renowned Berta Hader, author-illustrator along with her husband on children's books. I was shocked to hear that Rose seemed so well-to-do.
It's so sweet Laura and Rose were working on writing together. They were blocking out a story of the Ozarks. Laura would do the housework so Rose had time to teach her to write when she was done working.
Laura wanted to take a steamer on the way home, saying it would be her only chance to have a trip on the ocean. I bet that was really exciting.
I was hoping her parents were mentioned. At this time her dad had died and her mom was living with Mary in De Smet.
There was an Australia exhibit, with kangaroos and wallabies. She said their front parts are so much smaller than their hind parts that they look ugly and awkward as they hop around. They also had a New Zealand building, with moving pictures of surf bathing,& other things. I wonder if that's what they called surfing. I was shocked when she asked manly do you remember when we talked of going to New Zealand.
There was also a France and Belgium building, and Hawaiian Gardens in the horticultural building.
They would have Hawaiian coffee and pineapple juice and salad and other pineapple dishes and sit and listen to Hawaiian songs. There was a fountain with marble pedestals with canaries in cages and they would sing at certain places in accompaniment to the Hawaiian band.
She says she will tell Manly of the Food Products Building. At the bottom of the page, it was said what she told manly must have been similar to the article she wrote for the Missouri Ruralist which is at the back of the page. It's great she was able to write.
Oct4: u can tell she loved the boat ride, she mentioned it again in a letter. She said the ferry boats aren't as fun because the boats are larger and it rides steadier.
It was interesting she wrote 'private' on one of her letters, about how much rose was getting paid for her writing. It said Laura prob expected Almanzo would read many of her letters aloud to friends in Mansfield.
She says seeing how Rose works the more satisfied she is with raising chickens. 'I intend to try to do some writing that will count, but I would not be driven by the work as she is for anything and I do not see how she can stand it.'
Oct 6: the story was funny how Laura went to visit the artist and left a note and Rose kept calling the house and got no answer. She went home, found the note but didn't hear Laura typing on the typewriter. She runs to the neighbor and then to the grocery store and came back about to call the police. She finally hears the typewriter and finds Laura writing to Almanzo. She said she'd never let her out of her sight.
There was a thick fog for several days and they heard the foghorns calling, which sounded like a lost soul. It was funny when she said nobody ever heard a lost soul calling, but it sounded that way.
Rose did the interview with the Russian violinist. He said the papers and higher ups made up the stories of the barbarities of soldiers on one side treating the wounded on the other side to inflame popular passion and create hatred. He said Germans and Russians treated the wounded as they did their own.
In her letter from August 26, 1915, I love when she describes Great Salt Lake, how the tracks were so narrow you couldn't see them from the window, and it looked like the train was running on water. She watched the moonlight on the water from her berth, and how the lake looked endless, and fell asleep looking at it.
I also liked the description of how the Rocky Mountains looked at sunrise, and how alkali looks like snow, and that and the sand covered them and everything else.
I loved in the August 29 letter there's as astric beside 'as you of course know,'& at the bottom of the page it explains Laura doubtless telegraphed Almanzo.
She talks about Land's End, and seeing the Pacific Ocean, and Sutro Estate. She talks about statues in the forest, an observatory, benches to look over the ramparts, cannons on top, pointed at the sea.
I loved this: 'And just to think, the same water that bathes the shores of china and Japan came clear across the ocean and bathed my feet.'
They saw the coast guard, the life-saving station, and the lifeboat.
And the Gjoa, the ship made in Norway in 1878 and sailed from there to the Northwest Passage to San Francisco.
We had in common not caring for cities, but she found San Francisco beautiful.
Mentions the Tower of Jewels, and seeing search lights that looked like the northern lights.
I found it cute rose and her husband Gilette worked for rival newspapers.
At the Exposition, there was the "Forbidden Garden," which was a replica of a garden near a monastery where women were forbidden to go on pain on death.
There was a statue of the Pioneer Mother, in the Palace of Fine Arts. And also a Navajo Indian village.
There was a Samoan village, and she describes their beautiful golden skin and tattoos and how some of the men were fine-looking. They danced the dance of the headhunters. They have tattoos from their waists to their knees.
I thought it amazing that someone saved the letters, but now I know Laura asked Almonzo to save them so she could tell him more of what she wrote about, and she might use some of the descriptions later.
Sep 13: She mentions a British sailing ship sailing out, and how it might be sink by a German submarine. Because it's the freight ships they really want to get.
A hay boat, she says it looks funny to see hay floating on the water. And a ship from the Hawaiian Islands with a cargo of sugar.
A Greek ship with several strings of flags flying in the wind, which means it will leave soon.
Gillette had a friend who was a lieutenant in the navy and gave Gillette his card with a note saying to show him every courtesy when they go on the battleship. He had the world's record for marksmanship with the big guns on the battleship and was in charge of the reserves at the naval training school on Goat Island.
The Exposition had the Streets Of Cairo.
The newspaper clipping of Sailors at Sea on the Zone, wondering what exhibit they would go on. And it ended up being a boat ride.
She talked of standing with Rose on a steamboat and the mists and spray blowing into their hair and faces. How the boat followed the path of the moonlight. How the lights at the Exposition made it look like fairyland, and the lights of the city on the hills blended with the stars.
They saw the old mission which was the first of San Francisco, Mission Dolores, which was decorated by the Indians in those days.
There were bells connecting the missions and a system of ringing them which would carry the news from point to point so that it would travel all up and down the coast.
It's amazing having Laura's own opinion, how she didn't like Chinese food. And thought Charlie Chaplin was horrid at the picture show.
Almanzo was an accomplished cabinetmaker and carpenter. Some of his creations are in display today at the Wilder home in Mansfield.
It's funny she said they had watched from the 16th century (400 years ago), as if he didn't know. And mentioned beautiful fabrics from France, and after fabrics (cloth of different kinds) like he didn't know what fabrics meant.
There was a painting of the armies of France. A camp at night with a sentinel fire at one side. The rifles were stacked in a long row down the picture, growing smaller in the distance. The flag was rolled and resting across the tops of the rifles nearby and the soldiers lay in their blankets sleeping. Dawn was breaking and on the clouds rode the Phantom Armies of France, she thought all the men and horses who have ever been killed in France's wars.
She asked if Almanzo remembered when they had a notion of going to New Zealand before they went to Florida. I wouldn't have guessed they traveled like that.
She saw pictures of the ugly native islanders that used to be cannibal tribes in Australia and New Zealand.
I couldn't be more shocked that Rose wrote to Almanzo saying Bess was growing fat.
It's amazing rose wrote an article on Henry ford. He told her of a farm tractor he was building.
Laura got a job from the Ruralist to over the Missouri exhibits at the fair.
She talked of rose's interview with engineers. One fired an engine through Dakota north of them during the long winter. At the bottom it said Laura wrote The Long Winter over 20 years later, about her childhood in De Smet, Dakota Territory, which is now South Dakota.
It was cute how she said take care of yourself and inky, and whisper to him that I will be there before long. She told him she wouldn't be writing because she was busy writing for the paper.
I found it depressing that she didn't write him anymore. I wanted to hear the rest of her trip!! Then it went to her article on food. I thought we were promised more articles in the back than what were showed. That was only her article on bread and recipes. I thought we were gonna get rose's article on Henry ford. & more from Laura.
Towards the end, the letters weren't as good, and weren't exciting to read. Some subjects she wrote about weren't that fun to read, and some of the letters were a little long. When she spoke of money and payments, I wasn't interested in reading about it, and was maybe even a little confusing.
The book ended suddenly to me, and it was a little depressing how the letters just cut off. She was writing for the newspaper then about the fair, and told Almanzo she wouldn't be writing him for a while, but I didn't expect the book to end then. I wondered if she sent any more letters to him on the trip, and felt it could have been wrapped up somehow. I wanted to know how long she was in San Francisco, and if she took the boat trip with Rose home like she really wanted to do. She also still had the battleship to go on, and more sightseeing to do, and I really wanted to hear about it.
Some moments in Laura's letters were so sweet, and funny. Here's some quotes that stood out to me:
"Take good care of yourself and Inky and I'll come back before you get to learn how to get on without me."
August 25, 1915. "I wish you were here. Half the fun I lose because I am all the time wishing for you."
"Tell Mr. Nall I said he must keep you and Inky cheered up."
"Mrs. Cooley must have been a sight, and if you don't mind I would rather not dress that way." This sounded funny, although I have no idea what way Mrs. Cooley was dressed, because it was in Almanzo's letter to Laura.
From sep 7, 1915: 'I am so sorry about Inky missing me so much and I am afraid it will only make him feel worse if I send him a letter!'
'I do not want you hurt while I am gone or any other time for that matter.'
From Rose to her dad. 'Tell Inky not to be jealous. We did not see any dogs we liked better than him.' How cute to see that ppl talk about their dogs the same way ppl do today.
'There were some lovely Kentucky race and riding horses, and believe me, they can all have their automobiles that want them. I would have me a Kentucky riding horse if I could afford it.'
'Besides I must leave something to tell you when I come home or you will not be glad to have me.'
Sep23: 'We would have it all to learn and we are rather old dogs to learn new tricks, especially as we do not have to do so.'
I liked learning more about Laura, because I grew up watching Little House on the Prairie. I think of her on the show when I think of Laura Ingalls, and don't actually know the real person, so it was hard to compare her older voice with the TV show kid version. I loved the historical terms, and learning what life was like back then.
The introduction was about San Francisco, how it was called "Everybody's Favorite City." Poet George Sterling said "at the end of her streets are stars." Very interesting that the Costanoan Indians called the Pacific Ocean Sundown Sea. In Laura's time the fourth side was mostly the Sutro Forest, which was a big stand of eucalyptus trees planted by schoolchildren.
The author, which was a friend and executor, found recipes, photographs and newspaper clippings, letters and postcards from Laura to Almanzo, which would be the find of the century.
It was funny and relatable how Laura was frugal. The paper she used was cheap and unlined, and wouldn't take ink so she used a pencil.
It's hard to believe Laura died in 1957, which wasn't so long ago, considering she was alive during the prairie days. Rose died in '68, which I also find hard to believe. And Laura married Almanzo in 1885. Laura was called Mama Bess to avoid confusion with Almanzo's sister, Laura. On the show she was Eliza Jane.
I love the line that through these letters we can go back to an era that's veiled to us. To a trans-continental train trip with the pioneer girl who first crossed the plains in a covered wagon, to see her reactions to Henry Ford and Charlie Chaplin.
I loved when she said she would be Manly's eyes like she was for her sister.
I think the first letter I really liked was when she was crossing Great Salt Lake. She writes in a descriptive way that really brings her writing to life, and helps you picture it in your head. I could tell a writer wrote this.
I also liked the parts about Land's End, her seeing the Pacific Ocean, Sutro Estate and its gardens, the Tower of Jewels with its light display that looked like the Northern Lights. It's crazy because it was an old light display, and there's modern ones today, but it sounded like it would be amazing to see that display with the search lights and fireworks even today. I loved hearing of all this through Laura's eyes, and I can imagine how exciting all this would have been, and how modern it was at the time. It was told in a vivid, beautiful way.
I couldn't believe all the exhibits at the Exposition, like the Forbidden Garden, a Navajo Indian Village, and a Samoan Village. There was also an Australian exhibit, the Streets of Cairo, the Palace of Fine Arts, Statue of the Pioneer Mother, and the Court of the Universe. I love the outdoor Greek theater she went to that was made in the style of an ancient Greek amphitheater, and was the only one in existence. I would absolutely love to go to something like that and see a play put on. I never would have guessed it included so many cultures. I would love to go to a fair like this today. It reminded me of a book I read where the characters went to the World's Fair.
She brought everything to life with her descriptions of everything, from the mundane to all the exciting sightseeing she did.
The pictures were a very nice surprise. I didn't expect any, and defintiely not of Rose's house, or Rose herself. I'm glad I got to see Land's End, where the beach ended, and the Cliff House at the beach. I'd love to see how they look today. Rose's house, and the light show.
I'm so glad I got to see the tower of jewels and the spot lights, even if it's black and white.
And the color illumination show and fireworks display. That sounds impressive even today. The Palace of Fine Arts. Statue of the Pioneer Mother. Court of the Universe.
It's funny she's mentioned moving there, and what they will do if they retire there. She's thinking of raising 1500 chickens and maybe they can make Almanzo comfortable in spite of the cold, or let him go south to spend the coldest weather.
Rose had a tea party with some women from work, one who was an artist who drew pictures. She became the renowned Berta Hader, author-illustrator along with her husband on children's books. I was shocked to hear that Rose seemed so well-to-do.
It's so sweet Laura and Rose were working on writing together. They were blocking out a story of the Ozarks. Laura would do the housework so Rose had time to teach her to write when she was done working.
Laura wanted to take a steamer on the way home, saying it would be her only chance to have a trip on the ocean. I bet that was really exciting.
I was hoping her parents were mentioned. At this time her dad had died and her mom was living with Mary in De Smet.
There was an Australia exhibit, with kangaroos and wallabies. She said their front parts are so much smaller than their hind parts that they look ugly and awkward as they hop around. They also had a New Zealand building, with moving pictures of surf bathing,& other things. I wonder if that's what they called surfing. I was shocked when she asked manly do you remember when we talked of going to New Zealand.
There was also a France and Belgium building, and Hawaiian Gardens in the horticultural building.
They would have Hawaiian coffee and pineapple juice and salad and other pineapple dishes and sit and listen to Hawaiian songs. There was a fountain with marble pedestals with canaries in cages and they would sing at certain places in accompaniment to the Hawaiian band.
She says she will tell Manly of the Food Products Building. At the bottom of the page, it was said what she told manly must have been similar to the article she wrote for the Missouri Ruralist which is at the back of the page. It's great she was able to write.
Oct4: u can tell she loved the boat ride, she mentioned it again in a letter. She said the ferry boats aren't as fun because the boats are larger and it rides steadier.
It was interesting she wrote 'private' on one of her letters, about how much rose was getting paid for her writing. It said Laura prob expected Almanzo would read many of her letters aloud to friends in Mansfield.
She says seeing how Rose works the more satisfied she is with raising chickens. 'I intend to try to do some writing that will count, but I would not be driven by the work as she is for anything and I do not see how she can stand it.'
Oct 6: the story was funny how Laura went to visit the artist and left a note and Rose kept calling the house and got no answer. She went home, found the note but didn't hear Laura typing on the typewriter. She runs to the neighbor and then to the grocery store and came back about to call the police. She finally hears the typewriter and finds Laura writing to Almanzo. She said she'd never let her out of her sight.
There was a thick fog for several days and they heard the foghorns calling, which sounded like a lost soul. It was funny when she said nobody ever heard a lost soul calling, but it sounded that way.
Rose did the interview with the Russian violinist. He said the papers and higher ups made up the stories of the barbarities of soldiers on one side treating the wounded on the other side to inflame popular passion and create hatred. He said Germans and Russians treated the wounded as they did their own.
In her letter from August 26, 1915, I love when she describes Great Salt Lake, how the tracks were so narrow you couldn't see them from the window, and it looked like the train was running on water. She watched the moonlight on the water from her berth, and how the lake looked endless, and fell asleep looking at it.
I also liked the description of how the Rocky Mountains looked at sunrise, and how alkali looks like snow, and that and the sand covered them and everything else.
I loved in the August 29 letter there's as astric beside 'as you of course know,'& at the bottom of the page it explains Laura doubtless telegraphed Almanzo.
She talks about Land's End, and seeing the Pacific Ocean, and Sutro Estate. She talks about statues in the forest, an observatory, benches to look over the ramparts, cannons on top, pointed at the sea.
I loved this: 'And just to think, the same water that bathes the shores of china and Japan came clear across the ocean and bathed my feet.'
They saw the coast guard, the life-saving station, and the lifeboat.
And the Gjoa, the ship made in Norway in 1878 and sailed from there to the Northwest Passage to San Francisco.
We had in common not caring for cities, but she found San Francisco beautiful.
Mentions the Tower of Jewels, and seeing search lights that looked like the northern lights.
I found it cute rose and her husband Gilette worked for rival newspapers.
At the Exposition, there was the "Forbidden Garden," which was a replica of a garden near a monastery where women were forbidden to go on pain on death.
There was a statue of the Pioneer Mother, in the Palace of Fine Arts. And also a Navajo Indian village.
There was a Samoan village, and she describes their beautiful golden skin and tattoos and how some of the men were fine-looking. They danced the dance of the headhunters. They have tattoos from their waists to their knees.
I thought it amazing that someone saved the letters, but now I know Laura asked Almonzo to save them so she could tell him more of what she wrote about, and she might use some of the descriptions later.
Sep 13: She mentions a British sailing ship sailing out, and how it might be sink by a German submarine. Because it's the freight ships they really want to get.
A hay boat, she says it looks funny to see hay floating on the water. And a ship from the Hawaiian Islands with a cargo of sugar.
A Greek ship with several strings of flags flying in the wind, which means it will leave soon.
Gillette had a friend who was a lieutenant in the navy and gave Gillette his card with a note saying to show him every courtesy when they go on the battleship. He had the world's record for marksmanship with the big guns on the battleship and was in charge of the reserves at the naval training school on Goat Island.
The Exposition had the Streets Of Cairo.
The newspaper clipping of Sailors at Sea on the Zone, wondering what exhibit they would go on. And it ended up being a boat ride.
She talked of standing with Rose on a steamboat and the mists and spray blowing into their hair and faces. How the boat followed the path of the moonlight. How the lights at the Exposition made it look like fairyland, and the lights of the city on the hills blended with the stars.
They saw the old mission which was the first of San Francisco, Mission Dolores, which was decorated by the Indians in those days.
There were bells connecting the missions and a system of ringing them which would carry the news from point to point so that it would travel all up and down the coast.
It's amazing having Laura's own opinion, how she didn't like Chinese food. And thought Charlie Chaplin was horrid at the picture show.
Almanzo was an accomplished cabinetmaker and carpenter. Some of his creations are in display today at the Wilder home in Mansfield.
It's funny she said they had watched from the 16th century (400 years ago), as if he didn't know. And mentioned beautiful fabrics from France, and after fabrics (cloth of different kinds) like he didn't know what fabrics meant.
There was a painting of the armies of France. A camp at night with a sentinel fire at one side. The rifles were stacked in a long row down the picture, growing smaller in the distance. The flag was rolled and resting across the tops of the rifles nearby and the soldiers lay in their blankets sleeping. Dawn was breaking and on the clouds rode the Phantom Armies of France, she thought all the men and horses who have ever been killed in France's wars.
She asked if Almanzo remembered when they had a notion of going to New Zealand before they went to Florida. I wouldn't have guessed they traveled like that.
She saw pictures of the ugly native islanders that used to be cannibal tribes in Australia and New Zealand.
I couldn't be more shocked that Rose wrote to Almanzo saying Bess was growing fat.
It's amazing rose wrote an article on Henry ford. He told her of a farm tractor he was building.
Laura got a job from the Ruralist to over the Missouri exhibits at the fair.
She talked of rose's interview with engineers. One fired an engine through Dakota north of them during the long winter. At the bottom it said Laura wrote The Long Winter over 20 years later, about her childhood in De Smet, Dakota Territory, which is now South Dakota.
It was cute how she said take care of yourself and inky, and whisper to him that I will be there before long. She told him she wouldn't be writing because she was busy writing for the paper.
I found it depressing that she didn't write him anymore. I wanted to hear the rest of her trip!! Then it went to her article on food. I thought we were promised more articles in the back than what were showed. That was only her article on bread and recipes. I thought we were gonna get rose's article on Henry ford. & more from Laura.
Towards the end, the letters weren't as good, and weren't exciting to read. Some subjects she wrote about weren't that fun to read, and some of the letters were a little long. When she spoke of money and payments, I wasn't interested in reading about it, and was maybe even a little confusing.
The book ended suddenly to me, and it was a little depressing how the letters just cut off. She was writing for the newspaper then about the fair, and told Almanzo she wouldn't be writing him for a while, but I didn't expect the book to end then. I wondered if she sent any more letters to him on the trip, and felt it could have been wrapped up somehow. I wanted to know how long she was in San Francisco, and if she took the boat trip with Rose home like she really wanted to do. She also still had the battleship to go on, and more sightseeing to do, and I really wanted to hear about it.
Some moments in Laura's letters were so sweet, and funny. Here's some quotes that stood out to me:
"Take good care of yourself and Inky and I'll come back before you get to learn how to get on without me."
August 25, 1915. "I wish you were here. Half the fun I lose because I am all the time wishing for you."
"Tell Mr. Nall I said he must keep you and Inky cheered up."
"Mrs. Cooley must have been a sight, and if you don't mind I would rather not dress that way." This sounded funny, although I have no idea what way Mrs. Cooley was dressed, because it was in Almanzo's letter to Laura.
From sep 7, 1915: 'I am so sorry about Inky missing me so much and I am afraid it will only make him feel worse if I send him a letter!'
'I do not want you hurt while I am gone or any other time for that matter.'
From Rose to her dad. 'Tell Inky not to be jealous. We did not see any dogs we liked better than him.' How cute to see that ppl talk about their dogs the same way ppl do today.
'There were some lovely Kentucky race and riding horses, and believe me, they can all have their automobiles that want them. I would have me a Kentucky riding horse if I could afford it.'
'Besides I must leave something to tell you when I come home or you will not be glad to have me.'
Sep23: 'We would have it all to learn and we are rather old dogs to learn new tricks, especially as we do not have to do so.'
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 18, 2024
In 1915, Laura Ingalls Wilder traveled to San Francisco, California to visit her daughter, Rose, just in time for a World's fair celebrating the opening of the Panama Canal. The celebration was called the Panama-Pacific International Exposition and it was attended by people from countries all over the world. Laura got to step in the Pacific ocean, eat Chinese food, taste breads from around the world, see Kangaroos, and taste exotic foods from Hawaii.
I did not know this book existed until I was reading another book about Laura, and of course I wondered what she had to say about all of these things, and why Almanzo got left behind. This was a fast read for me; I read it in one night. It is written in an epistolary format, which is just a collection of letters. It is not a novel or fictionalized; it is just a collection of letters from Laura written to Almanzo back home in Missouri about all of the wondrous things she was seeing and experiencing for the first time. This occurred in 1915, when Laura was about 48 years old and their daughter Rose was 29. This book is an enchanting addition to the staid Little House on the Prairie books. I am giving it four stars.
I did not know this book existed until I was reading another book about Laura, and of course I wondered what she had to say about all of these things, and why Almanzo got left behind. This was a fast read for me; I read it in one night. It is written in an epistolary format, which is just a collection of letters. It is not a novel or fictionalized; it is just a collection of letters from Laura written to Almanzo back home in Missouri about all of the wondrous things she was seeing and experiencing for the first time. This occurred in 1915, when Laura was about 48 years old and their daughter Rose was 29. This book is an enchanting addition to the staid Little House on the Prairie books. I am giving it four stars.
October 24, 2009
I liked this a lot more than I was anticipating. These letters were written by Laura to her husband, well before she wrote the Little House books, during a visit she made to their daughter in San Francisco. In addition to seeing her daughter, the other point of the trip was to see the Panama-Pacific Exposition, kind of like a World's Fair thing. It's a great look at San Francisco at this time, she does a lot of sight-seeing (at the Expo and elsewhere) and describes everything with a lot of charming details -- she always said she got into this habit because she had to be so deliberate when describing things to her blind sister. Laura and her husband had a farm in Missouri, and the letters also have a good deal of information about farm things, you can tell she really paid attention to this and adds all sorts of little tidbits about what the soil is like and the prices of farm goods.
Grade: B+
Recommended: To fans of Laura Ingalls Wilder, and people who like lots of details about daily life during this time period. If you are familiar with San Francisco, it would probably be especially interesting.
Grade: B+
Recommended: To fans of Laura Ingalls Wilder, and people who like lots of details about daily life during this time period. If you are familiar with San Francisco, it would probably be especially interesting.
July 21, 2010
I thought of this book as more of a historical document, rather than a Laura Ingalls Wilder story.
"West From Home" is a series of letters that Laura wrote to her husband Almanzo in 1915 during her trip to the World's Fair in San Francisco. Her attention to detail, and descriptions of the fair and the city have now made it an important historical account.
Many of the places that Laura visited are still in San Francisco to this day. From Telegraph Hill to Fisherman's Wharf, Chinatown to Presidio Park, Sausalito to Golden Gate - Laura explores it all, and with a childlike wonder and enthusiasm that will inspire anyone. The book also features photographs from the California Historical Society that show what everything looked like while Laura was there. I also liked the footnotes and introduction that helped to set-up the story for readers.
This is a great book for those who are interested in the history of San Francisco, would like to know more about the 1915 World's Fair, or who simply love Laura Ingalls Wilder.
"West From Home" is a series of letters that Laura wrote to her husband Almanzo in 1915 during her trip to the World's Fair in San Francisco. Her attention to detail, and descriptions of the fair and the city have now made it an important historical account.
Many of the places that Laura visited are still in San Francisco to this day. From Telegraph Hill to Fisherman's Wharf, Chinatown to Presidio Park, Sausalito to Golden Gate - Laura explores it all, and with a childlike wonder and enthusiasm that will inspire anyone. The book also features photographs from the California Historical Society that show what everything looked like while Laura was there. I also liked the footnotes and introduction that helped to set-up the story for readers.
This is a great book for those who are interested in the history of San Francisco, would like to know more about the 1915 World's Fair, or who simply love Laura Ingalls Wilder.
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