Little House in Brookfield [Paperback]

Maria D. Wilkes (Author), Dan Andreasen (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: Little House

Spirit of the Western Frontier

Meet Caroline Quiner, the little girl who would grow up to be Laura Ingalls Wilder's mother.

It's 1845 in the bustling frontier town of Brookfield, Wisconsin. Five-year-old Caroline lives in a frame house at the edge of town. Caroline's father was lost at sea the year before, and her close-knit family is struggling to cope without him. Each day brings Caroline new responsibilities and new adventures as she strives to help Mother all she can.

Little House in Brookfield is the first book in The Caroline Years, an ongoing series about another spirited girl from America's most beloved pioneer family.

She’s known best as Caroline Ingalls, Laura’s Ma, in the classic Little House books. Now travel back in time to the 1840’s to the bustling pioneer town of Brookfield, Wisconsin. Caroline, who is just five, lives in a comfortable frame house with her mother, her grandmother, and her five brothers and sisters. Her father was lost at sea the year before, and the family is learning to adjust to life on their own. Caroline knows she must do everything she can to help the little family through this trying time.

Little House in Brookfield marks the launch of an on-going series about the adventures of Caroline Quiner, who would grow up to be Ma Ingalls in the Little House books. Written in the classic tradition of the Little House and the Rocky Ridge books, and based on diaries, letters, and other historical papers, these books offer a glimpse into America's adventurous past, as seen through the eyes of another girl from America's beloved frontier family.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-6?Set in the 1840s, when Brookfield, WI, was a frontier town rapidly increasing in population, this story is the first in yet another series of "Little House" books. It focuses on Caroline Quiner (mother of Laura Ingalls Wilder) as a six-year-old in a family of six children recently left fatherless. Their loving mother brings the grieving family through a difficult winter and into a springtime of hope and anticipation as they work together to cope with the great emptiness left by their father's death. The youngsters experience apprehension concerning the first day of school and the embarrassment of wearing worn clothing and shoes with holes. No matter what the difficulty, Mother and Grandmother kindly and firmly guide the children to accept and make the very best of their situation. They relish the special Christmas bread that Mother bakes and appreciate the kindness of helpful neighbors. As the family survives the hardships of rural-frontier life, they grow in strength, experience, and love for one another. The story works well as historical fiction, giving great attention to interesting details of daily events. Black-and-white drawings provide a clear extension of the text. This warm family story follows nicely in the style of the "Little House" books.?Toni Dean, Patchogue-Medford Library, NY
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Back Cover

Caroline Quiner lives in the bustling frontier town of Brookfield, Wisconsin. It’s been one whole year since Caroline’s father was lost at sea, and every member of her family must now pitch in to help with the farm chores. Between trips to town, getting through the first frost, and starting school, Caroline is busy discovering new things every day! --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: HarperTrophy; 8th Printing edition (May 31, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0064406105
• ISBN-13: 978-0064406109
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,371,162 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love all the Little House books, August 8, 2003

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Little House in Brookfield (Paperback)

This is a wonderful story about Caroline Quiner--Laura's ma. Starting in her young childhood, it offers an absorbing and substantial but child's-eye view of what being poor and without your father is like: lonliness, fear, patched clothing, cornmeal pudding for breakfast, penny-pinching. But there is also joy and hope, and the close-knit family laughs and loves as they raise crops and take care of their hens and hogs. I loved it!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Laura Ingalls Wilder's Mother, November 5, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Little House in Brookfield (Paperback)

Imagine getting up every morning at the crack of dawn to a day full of chores and work. This is the life that Caroline Quiner knows. She is in charge of checking to see if the corn is ripe, feeding the chickens, collecting eggs, working on her sampler, and many other jobs. Although her life is full of hard work, she and her siblings Martha, Henry, Joseph, and Eliza still manage to have fun. They love playing games outside, especialy fox and geese, which they play in the snow.
Snow, however, is just the thing the Quiners are dreading. Many of their vetables were killed by an early frost, and their isn't much flour left in the house.The Quiners are determined to survive the winter though, and nothing is going to get them down!
I enjoyed reading this book because it was realistic and the description was great. It was interesting to read about Laura Ingalls Wilder's mother. If I could change one thing from the book, it would be to make it longer!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic!, March 28, 2000

By 

A 10-year old reader (Ipswich) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Little House in Brookfield (Paperback)

I really think that this book was great. You can get deeply into it, and it is intersting. It is also fun to read. Caroline Quiner, the main character in this book, struggles to help her mother all that she can. Her older sister, Martha, is a tomboy, and all the time wants to be with Caroline's older brothers, Joseph and Henry. Caroline has a younger sister and a younger brother, Eliza and Thomas. This book is absalutly excellent.