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Library | Call Number | Status |
|---|---|---|
Searching... Lake Elmo Library | J 921 WILDER | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
The pioneer spirit lives on... Readers around the world know and love Laura, the little girl born in the Big Woods of Wisconsin and raised in covered wagons and on wide open prairies. Now Little House fans can learn more about "Half-pint" in this, the first picture book biography book of Laura Ingalls Wilder. With a simple, glowing text by noted historian and Little House scholar William Anderson, and glorious paintings by Dan Andreasen, Pioneer Girl is a very special portrait of a writer whose classic books and poineer adventures have made her one of the most popular literary figures in America. This picture-book biography of Laura Ingalls Wilder tells the remarkable story of the pioneer girl who would one day immortalize her adventures in the beloved Little House books. Written in simple, glowing text by noted Little House scholar William Anderson, and illustrated with glorious paintings by artist Dan Andreasen, this wonderful first biography captures the very essence of the little girl called ?Half-pint,' whose classic books and pioneer adventures have made her one of the most popular literary figures in America. This picture-book biography of Laura Ingalls Wilder tells the remarkable story of the pioneer girl who would one day immortalize her adventures in the beloved Little House books. Written in simple, glowing text by noted Little House scholar William Anderson, and illustrated with glorious paintings by artist Dan Andreasen, this wonderful first biography captures the very essence of the little girl called ls"Half-pint,rs" whose classic books and pioneer adventures have made her one of the most popular literary figures in America.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-4An overview of Wilder's life accompanied by idealized illustrations that may blur the line between the facts and the fantasy presented by the TV series. Anderson touches on significant events: the places Laura settled with her family as a child and glimpses of everyday life; her marriage and adult life with Almanzo Wilder; and her work as an author. Andreasen's paintings, romantically rendered in warm tones, do provide period details, but often idealize the stark realities mentioned in the text. Readers old enough to be interested in Wilder will find this to be an adequate introduction but may find greater satisfaction in one of the numerous biographies that include some of the many photos of Laura and relics from her life, as well as a time line of her journeys. Her many fans will also appreciate Kathryn Lasky and Meribah Knight's Searching for Laura Ingalls (S & S, 1993), in which young Meribah Knight travels with her family to places featured in Wilder's books.Susan M. Moore, Louisville Free Public Library, KY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Laura Ingalls Wilder's many fans will delight in this inviting biographical overview in a picture-book format, graced by Andreasen's dreamy landscapes, glowing prairie skies and warm character portraits. In clear, workmanlike prose, Wilder historian Anderson (The Little House Guidebook) begins with Laura's birth in 1867 in a log cabin in Wisconsin and chronicles her many childhood adventures (moving with her family by covered wagon to the Kansas prairie, later to a sod dugout at Plum Creek, Minn., and on to the Dakota territory) and continues with the hardships and uncertainties of homesteading, marriage, births and deaths, and of a writing career that blossomed when Wilder was in her 60s. Anderson tells of a life that was fascinating for its sheer span (from covered wagons to automobiles) and a woman admirable for her pluck and determination. Though younger readers will have to read Wilder's novels to fill in the details of her daily life, this broad-strokes approach serves well as an introduction or reference in a pleasing visual format (including oversized type)one that early chapter-book readers will find inviting. Put this on the shelf right next to Little House in the Big Woods. Ages 7-up. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Anderson describes Wilder's life in a straightforward manner in this attractive, informative book. If they aren't put off by the picture-book format, Little House fans will recognize events from Laura's early life as depicted in her novels, as well as appreciate the picture of her later years as a farmer's wife, mother, and writer. On each double-page spread a large, stiff oil painting accompanies the lengthy, large-type text. From HORN BOOK Fall 1998, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Anderson distills his 1992 biography, Laura Ingalls Wilder, into picture-book length, choosing details that readers will encounter, either directly or indirectly, when they get to Wilder's own stories: her family's restless relocations from Wisconsin to Kansas, back to Wisconsin, on to Minnesota, then Iowa, the Dakota Territory, and finally Missouri; the plague of grasshoppers and other misfortunes; the daily round of chores; and the events surrounding her marriage and later life. Andreasen provides lovely, serene paintings; by placing dignified human figures into carefully detailed landscapes infused with a soft golden light, he pays tribute to Garth Williams's classic illustrations before finishing with creamy portraits of the silver-haired Wilder at her writing desk and mailbox. Unlike Alexandra Wallner's Laura Ingalls Wilder (p. 1396), this volume is an engrossing pioneer story on its own, and a wonderful prelude to the Little House books. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
