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jwilding's review
5.0
Reading a few pages in this book every night for the last two months has been my happiest time each day. The Little House series meant so much to me as a child and it's been amazing to read the inspiration for the books, as well as see more pictures. I especially enjoyed all the genealogical work the compiler did on every single character Laura mentions throughout her stories. The real Ma, along with Pa, Carrie, a little brother never mentioned in the series, etc—it was fascinating to see the differences between the way things really happened and the way people really were, as opposed to how she chose to portray them for kids books.
Again, this book is already so precious to me. I loved every minute of it.
Again, this book is already so precious to me. I loved every minute of it.
erinricks's review
5.0
I loved Laura Ingalls Wilder when I was younger, and still love reading her books today.
bargainsleuth's review
3.0
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When I was growing up, I watched Little House on the Prairie on TV, and read the books and role-played with my friends. We'd walk along the creek between our two homes and be Mary and Laura heading to town, or going berry picking. I loved Laura Ingalls as much as I loved Nancy Drew.
So when Pioneer Girl: The Annotated Autobiography came out, I had to check it out.
Too much of a good thing. The notes often overtook the story and continued for several pages when the text did not. This was definitely over-annotated. If Laura mentioned garter snakes, there was a long paragraph about what garter snakes are (including their Latin name, of course), The mention of roses blooming brought another long paragraph describing prairie roses common in South Dakota. Any person that was mentioned was given a biographical sketch and often a picture, including their life and death, regardless of how significant they were to Wilder's life. There is even corroboration of weather events. Nothing was left out and that is what bogged down the notes for me.
Laura's actual story was familiar in some ways and revealing in others. You could tell that the work was a rough draft, though, as the story did not always flow the way her children's stories do.
When I was growing up, I watched Little House on the Prairie on TV, and read the books and role-played with my friends. We'd walk along the creek between our two homes and be Mary and Laura heading to town, or going berry picking. I loved Laura Ingalls as much as I loved Nancy Drew.
So when Pioneer Girl: The Annotated Autobiography came out, I had to check it out.
Too much of a good thing. The notes often overtook the story and continued for several pages when the text did not. This was definitely over-annotated. If Laura mentioned garter snakes, there was a long paragraph about what garter snakes are (including their Latin name, of course), The mention of roses blooming brought another long paragraph describing prairie roses common in South Dakota. Any person that was mentioned was given a biographical sketch and often a picture, including their life and death, regardless of how significant they were to Wilder's life. There is even corroboration of weather events. Nothing was left out and that is what bogged down the notes for me.
Laura's actual story was familiar in some ways and revealing in others. You could tell that the work was a rough draft, though, as the story did not always flow the way her children's stories do.
roseleaf24's review
4.0
Like most readers of this book, as one who grew up loving the Little House books, it was fascinating to read this memoir that was refined into the children's literature I know so well, and to read all the research and insight that places the memoir into historical context. I found the reviews complaining about the notes on the page instead of in the back confusing, as I read the first chapter initially without reading the notes and would have found flipping back all the time to read the notes much more distracting. I will say that the introduction was excessive, and the first chapter notes seemed repetitive, as the memory from childhood and the novel and the historical record were so disparate. After the first section, though, reading the book was an engaging and informative experience. I will treasure this beautiful volume.
rchluther's review
4.0
It's very hard to explain to someone what to expect when reading this book. Wilder's early drafts of her life, which later became the basis of the Little House books, is very interesting. It's full of stories that made it into the books, as well as many stories she eventually cut out. Lots of neat tidbits and extra tales. But it is definitely not a finished, publish-ready book. Parts even come across as stream-of-conscience and there are plenty of asides to her daughter.
On the flip side is the annotations. I love annotated books, and this is no exception. Pictures, pieces of letters and articles, notes from census records... also even simple things like explaining what the types of flora and fauna were or what was going on around the Ingalls family. Hill's writing style is not my cup of tea (and this is not her only work I have read), so sometimes her choice of what to annotate and how was a little annoying, but it was worth it to finally own a nice copy of this manuscript.
Edited to add: This same book comes up whether I look for the Annotated Autobiography or the Path into Fiction. Not sure what's going on the site. I read PGAA in 2016 and Path in 2023.
On the flip side is the annotations. I love annotated books, and this is no exception. Pictures, pieces of letters and articles, notes from census records... also even simple things like explaining what the types of flora and fauna were or what was going on around the Ingalls family. Hill's writing style is not my cup of tea (and this is not her only work I have read), so sometimes her choice of what to annotate and how was a little annoying, but it was worth it to finally own a nice copy of this manuscript.
Edited to add: This same book comes up whether I look for the Annotated Autobiography or the Path into Fiction. Not sure what's going on the site. I read PGAA in 2016 and Path in 2023.
akublik's review
4.0
The annotations, which provide historical context and information about Wilder's writing process, made this book for me. It was interesting to see how Wilder adapted her family's story to fit the myth of the American pioneering family.
alboyer6's review
2.0
couldn't get into the book and really didn't expect to. I read the introduction and started to flip through the text but the shear amount and length of the footnotes is off putting. I checked it out more to flip through than anything else.