Customer Reviews

Across the Puddingstone Dam (Little House)

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Warning - you will enjoy this book, and the series will not be finished according to the author herself. Why? Here's what she had to say on her website.

"The Time Has Come, the Walrus Said...
...to talk about Little House. Many of you have written to ask when my next Martha or Charlotte book will be published. Plans have been in flux for over a year now, but it's time to address your questions.
As I mentioned here recently, HarperCollins has launched new paperback editions of Laura's books which feature photographic covers and no longer contain the Garth Williams illustrations. (The Garth Williams art will remain in the hardcover editions and the colorized paperback editions.)
There are also going to be some changes in the other Little House series. The Martha, Charlotte, Caroline, and Rose books are being reissued in abridged editions. If you wish to read these books in their original, complete forms, you'll want to pick them up now before the unabridged editions go out of print. In at least one case ( On Top of Concord Hill, a Caroline book), the original is already out of print and is hard to find. (A reader recently told me copies are selling for hundreds of dollars on eBay.)
The abridged editions of my books and the Caroline and Rose books will be released with new covers this summer. They are significantly shorter; in some cases more than a hundred pages have been cut from the original edition.
In light of these changes, I have decided not to continue writing Martha and Charlotte books. Although it is indeed strange to know that I will not tell the rest of their stories (especially the story of Martha and Lew's romance, for which I have been sowing seeds since the first books), I do not think it is such a bad thing to end my part of the story with Beyond the Heather Hills and Across the Puddingstone Dam. In both of those books, I had the opportunity to say something about what is good and true and enduring in this world. Martha glimpsed it, looking into the eyes of her infant niece. Charlotte glimpsed it in the eyes of her mother, the grown-up Martha, who endured the worst kind of loss but, through faith, managed to keep hold of--and share--her joy.
It will be difficult to say goodbye to these girls who have been to me like my own children. I have loved watching them grow. I am deeply honored to have had the opportunity to, in the words of Gail Godwin, "respectfully imagine" them and chronicle their stories.
As I said, my decision to leave the series has been in the works for quite some time. Meanwhile, I've been working on new projects and am quite excited about my current novel, which is about neither a Scottish lass nor a New England villager, but something completely different. Stay tuned...

You Guys Are Great
Thank you so much for the outpouring of support and well wishes you have given in the comments from yesterday's post. You all are wonderful, and it's a blessing to have such passionate readers!
Some questions naturally arose in the comments, and I thought I'd tackle a few of them here. One important point is that HarperCollins doesn't think of the abridgements as dumbed-down. I do, and that I am strongly opposed to the dumbing-down of children's literature must be obvious from my decision to walk away from a series of books that has been my heart's work for the past decade. Although I came to the decision many months ago, the shock of it still takes my breath away sometimes. I love Martha and Charlotte, really love them. Like daughters. I have written certain scenes between Martha and Lew in my mind a hundred times. I'm sorry that I will not be sharing them with you, more sorry than I can express.
My decision to quit also had serious ramifications for my family. Had I continued with the series, we would still be living in Virginia; Scott would still be a work-at-home freelancer. So quitting was not a decision I made lightly; it had teeth.
And yet, if you read this blog then you know my stance on giving children the highest caliber of literature--not a slimmed-down version of what had been a carefully crafted novel. And so, when it became clear that my publishers were committed to their decision to abridge, I made what I believe to be the right decision--the only decision I could have made. Doing the right thing, I tell my children, is almost never the easy thing.
Certainly, this was a very hard thing to do.
But as I said, while I see the abridgement as dumbing-down, I must say in all fairness that I don't believe my publishers see it that way at all. They see this as an opportunity to bring the books to a younger audience, a way to keep the series in print. The decision was presented to me with excitement and enthusiasm; I really think they were surprised that I was dismayed by it.
I bear them no ill will; indeed, I shall be sorry not to be working with my wonderful HarperCollins editor anymore. She is a gem. I simply disagree, quite gravely, with this publishing decision. I do think children deserve the very best books we can give them. The books I wrote, the books that were carefully and lovingly edited by not one, but two top-notch editors (the great Alix Reid, who edited all eight of my novels, not to mention Newbery winner Ella Enchanted, has since left the publishing world for other pursuits), are, I truly believe, literature of high quality. And I don't think they are too hard, or too long, for young readers. I have heard from too many enthusiastic young readers to believe otherwise.
HarperCollins has made a business decision, and I disagree with it on principle, as an author, a reader, and a mother. I think chopping up the books is a mistake. But--and this is very important--publishers respond to trends in the marketplace. They make decisions based upon what sells. If you, as consumers (readers, parents, booklovers), want to influence publishing trends, you must do it (I am sorry to say) with your pocketbooks. The big publishing houses don't read our blogs; they don't know how we feel about literature versus twaddle. They only know what sells.
I see both sides of this coin, because I live on both sides. I'm a homeschooling mom with a modest household income, and frugality is a must. I'm also a writer whose livelihood depends on people spending money on books. Years ago, Scott and I made a conscious decision to strike a balance between these two competing identities: we resolved not to buy used if the book is still in print and the author is still alive. We buy new books in hardcover as often as possible, because that too sends a message to a publisher. And if we read a book at the library and truly love it, we try to buy a copy of it too.
(Now you know why I have cheap furniture and don't dress well. All the discretionary income goes to books.)
So. I'm deeply gratified that you are ordering copies of my unabridged novels while you can still get them. Deeply gratified--yesterday was a goosebumpy day as the comments and emails came pouring in. But if you really want to show your support for the principles on which I stand, go out and buy a new copy of The Penderwicks. In hardcover, if possible! "

Pretty sad. Don't say you weren't warned. You will want to know how Martha ends up and none of us will ever find out.

UPDATE: Still no hope, Melissa Wiley now says in her blog that even the dumbed down versions of the books have been discontinued. The people in the suits need to use common sense - why shorten an already short book? And copyright law means no one else is allowed to write the sequels, not even the author herself. Talk about 'dumbed' down.

if you are a fan of all of the little house books you will not be disapointed with this one. There is enough to keep your intrest going as well as some good storylines that teach children valuable lessons in life.

Laura Ingalls Wilder fans are likely to be skeptical when first they encounter prequels written by modern authors. Melissa Wiley puts to rest all doubts of even the staunchest Wilder loyalists.

This is a beautifully crafted book. Written in prose that is almost lyrical, the story is expertly woven. With Charlotte, the little girl who will become Laura's grandmother, readers young and old learn lessons of life, love, and loss.

There is a dearth of wholesome, meaningful books for today's young readers. This book fills that void to overflowing.I highly recommend all of Melissa Wiley's Little House books. Parents should read them aloud to their children--they're too good for adults to miss!

Book arrived quickly and in shape described. I am very satisfied with the seller. Thanks.

Across the Puddingstone Dam is a wonderful book about how Charlotte Tucker, future mother of Caroline Quiner, who is the future mother of Laura Ingalls, grows up in her rapidly expanding town in the East. It is full of wonderful descriptions, that Little House readers have come to love, and seems to be fairly historically kosher. It is refreshing to get the history that precedes Little House...Charlotte is a feisty and smart little girl, and has many realistic interactions with her brothers, sisters and neighbors...this book will not disappoint! I highly recommend all of these books to the Little House lover.

A great book about Charlotte Tucker , who is Laura Ingalls Grandmother and her life as a eleven year old. Also a sad book as well but you have to find out why it is sad.
All of the Charlotte years books are great and tell about Laura's Grandmother's journey with her parents as a little girl and the hardships she had to face during her life.
Also Charlotte's mom gets a big suprise visit from someone in her life that she hasn't seen in years. -- Charlotte is shocked by this visit because she doesn't know who the person is. -- Read this book to find out who the mystery guest is. Overall if you love reading about the Little house Series , you will love this book . Happy Reading everyone.

it was a great book.it was also in good conditions. Charlotte is a very spirited girl, and that's why i love little house so much. it is about real people, and sometimes you find yourself stuck in the same situation as them. in this book, charlotte is 11 years old, and there is a new dam bieng built, and tide mill lane is turning into a very noisy, dusty, and messy place.Charlotte's parents are trying to determine wether to stay...or leave.

The book "Across the Puddingstone Dam" is about Charlotte Tucker, who is one of the many children that Lewis and Martha Tucker from Scotland have. Charlotte Tucker has the following brothers and sisters Lewis, Lydia, Mary and George. They continue on with the Scottish tradition that has been Martha's and Lewis's type of life for many years since their childhood. The kids would look forward to having stories about Scottish History and when their parents were young. Charlotte and Lydia were interested in about a school that has just opened up. If you would like to discover more of the scottish stories, and more of the adventures that Charlotte and her family went through, pick up a copy of this book to read.