11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Relief, September 15, 2001
The town of De Smet is filled with relief! The long horrible winter is finally over. Everyone is so happy to be able to have fun outside and to eat real meals again!
The Ingalls family is back out on the claim and Laura is thrilled! She loves to run through the grass and help Pa with the chores.
The book starts with Laura accepting a job in town. She is uncertain about how she will handle being cooped up inside all day, but she is eager to earn money for Mary's schooling.
Fourth of July comes and Pa takes Laura and Carrie into town for the celebration. The town is bursting with activity. The girls are nervous about being in such a crowd, but they are excited to drink fresh cool lemonade and to watch the horse races.
All too soon it is time for Mary to attend college. They all know how wonderful it will be for her and how happy she will be to be learning and growing in a world that teaches her how to live blind. All of these good things do not diminish the aches in their hearts as they bid sweet, gentle, thoughtful Mary good-bye.
When Laura and Carrie start school again, they are dismayed to see Nellie Olson appear! They do not want to have to deal with her again. True to form, Nellie causes trouble, which makes this section of the book very entertaining. Laura is such a spitfire that it is fun to read of her adventures.
This winter in town is a far cry from their last winter. This winter brings laughter and gaiety in the form of name cards, literaries, a birthday party and rides with Almonzo with his beautiful Morgan horses.
'Little Town on the Prairie' is a delightful book. It is interesting, entertaining and often funny. You will enjoy it! I enthusiastically recommend you add it to your collection!
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
My favorite of the series!, November 30, 1999
This (and Happy Golden Years) is my favorite book of the Little House series. The Ingalls family is doing well; the town has recovered from the Hard Winter; and Laura is changing from a girl into a woman. The descriptions of the characters and the surroundings are vivid and real. I don't care if Rose Wilder Lane wrote most of the books or not - the Little House series is a gift to all readers, not just young readers! I'm in my 30's and I still love to read them periodically, but this is one of my very favorites.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Still a thing of wonder and beauty years later, September 4, 2008
This review is from: Little Town on the Prairie (Little House) (Paperback)
Twenty four years ago, I was a ten year old girl who saved every last penny to save $35.00 to buy the Little House on The Prairie boxed set by Laura Ingalls Wilder. It was my love of the TV show that started the savings venture...I heard it was based on a true story and I needed to know all the details. What happened when I received those books, and read them one after another that year changed me into a fan of the show, into a full fledge Laura Ingalls Wilder enthusiast. Why? Because of the simple beauty of the pioneer tales within. Stories that show that even when things are worse than you or I can imagine, family and faith still bring hope and contentment. Little Town on the Prairie is one of my two favorite stories. Even as a ten year old I loved watching Laura turn into a lady in this story. Its been several years since I read this one, and taking a break from my regular readings seemed a good idea. I noticed that I picked up new little things this time around. I can read different things into that meeting with Almonzo where he and Laura change cards, I can feel the shame and tension in the school house scene where Laura defends Carrie to Ms. Wilder (I think I felt this horror anew from a parents perspective) and I also noticed Ma's prejudices against the Indians more keenly as well. There was a scene I even felt uncomfortable with. In a social gathering at the school, some of the town's men dressed in black paint and acted like "darkies" to the amusement of the audience. I think Laura herself, would flinch from that in this day and age. But again, it only emphasizes the times the Ingalls family were living in, and how far this country has come. The country has made mistakes along the way (slavery and the Trail of Tears, for example). But where we are now is in no little part, due to the efforts of the brave pioneers like the Ingalls family. This is a historical, christian, pre-romance, and tale of growing from child to woman all in one and there is no doubt in my mind, why this remains a beloved story to children and adults everywhere today.
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