Laura Ingalls Wilder: A biography
By William Anderson
A few years ago, I read all the "Little House" books. I enjoyed them thoroughly. Just recently, I thought it would be interesting to read a biography about Laura, main character in the "Little House" books. I went online to look up the subject on the library catalog, and from all the titles that came up, I selected this one. I was amazed at the wealth of information it contained on the book character I loved so much. William Anderson really did a good job researching the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder. I was fascinated by the pictures of Laura and her family included in the book, as well as quotes and first-hand accounts from Laura herself. I was engrossed as I followed Laura's life from a little girl to a successful author. I think that Laura contributed a lot to her society and the world.
Laura Ingalls Wilder was born in 1867 as Laura Elizabeth Ingalls in a log cabin deep in the woods of Wisconsin to Charles and Caroline Ingalls. Laura spent her childhood with her parents and sisters, moving from Wisconsin to Kansas to Minnesota to Iowa and finally settling in South Dakota when she was twelve.
Laura was a keen observer, hard-worker, avid student, and a bit of a tomboy. From the age of eleven, she was trusted by neighbors to do chores, watch children, and even help care for someone's sick relative who lived far from where Laura lived with her family. Laura learned to read and write and in her teens was the top student in her school. When her sister Mary became blind, Laura longed to earn money to help send her to a college for the blind. Laura started teaching school before she was sixteen to earn the necessary money and to keep her mother's family tradition. However, when she was eighteen, she married Almanzo Wilder, putting an end to her teaching career, as only unmarried women could teach school.
The Wilders started a farm on the Dakota prairie. Their daughter Rose was born a year later, and their son three years after that. Unfortunately, their son did not live.
When farming in South Dakota prove fruitless for the Wilders, they moved to Mansfield, Missouri, where they purchased a lonely, abandoned farm in the Ozarks. They named it Rocky Ridge Farm, because of the rocky land. The Wilders settled in, planting crops and raising animals.
Rocky Ridge Farm was a great success. Laura and Almanzo won the respect of the neighbors because of their bountiful harvest.
Laura was especially known for her hens that layed eggs even in the winter time when no other hens would. She began writing articles about her country life for the local newspaper. People loved her writing.
When Laura was in her sixties, she began writing the story of her childhood. At first, no publisher would accept her first manuscript, though they all loved the story. Finally, in 1932, Harper & Brothers published the book under the title "Little House in the Big Woods". The book immediately became popular, beloved by children and their parents. Soon letters came to Laura asking for more books, which she wrote and published. By the time Laura died at the age of ninety in 1957, she had gained international attention. She was famous throughout America as well.
The amazing thing about Laura is that she outlived her parents, all three sisters, and her husband. Her long life enabled her to see many changes, including the invention of the telephone, TV, and car. She saw both World Wars, the Great Depression, and other historic events of the 19th and 20th centuries. She died a few years before the first man landed on the moon. I'm fascinated by Laura's detailed, colorful life and inspired by her positive attitude towards work. As an aspiring writer, I like hearing about how famous writers have done what they did.
The "Little House" books continue to inspire, educate, and entertain each new generation. Through her books, Laura's memory lives on.
I give this book 5 stars out of 5.
