Customer Reviews

Nelly in the Wilderness

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is a great book to read to a grade school class! Not only is the story interesting and believable, but the historical details make it even more satisfying and worthwhile. Children know when they are being "talked down to," and this book with some of the sad realism it includes does not do that - what it does do is open avenues for discussion about issues children worry about in their own lives.
I loved it!

If you love country citizens, you may find yourself in a dimly lit room reading this brilliant book, page by page. I skipped some sentences in other books, but I dare not skip a character on this book `cause if I did, I would have find myself hitting my head.

My favorite part of the story is when Nelly recives Baby, a cantamount. If you are asking what a cantamount is, It looks like a baby tiger. If you look on the cover, nelly is carrying it.

Yes, there are some sad parts, but many MANY joyful and happy emotions too.

This masterpiece made my heart do about 1,000 sumersaults and 15 butterflys floating in my stomach.

How I long to read it again!!!!

I have just finished the book. I think it is the best children's book I have read for many years. I loved it. I have already recommended it to three friends. Ms. Cullen's descriptions are so graphic and original. I think the book is one of a kind and not to be missed.

Nelly has lost her mother and now has to adjust to a step-mother. A great book for young ones trying to cope with blended families. Also addresses jealousy, pride and loyalty, in a gentle way. Good family values without being heavy-handed.

With the recent popularity of Survivor, Frontier House and Pioneer House on TV, this is a refreshing change. If you have children that complain about chores, this is a great book for them Without being preachy or overly-dramatic Cullen describes the difficulties daily life way back then.

None of the characters in this book seem to have any depth, or any personalities, except for Margery. I feel sorry for Margery, but then again she was a dimwit to marry the guy in the first place. Nelly is isolated from civilization, and she seems to despise everyone, except for critters. She's so bitter because she's never been in a different environment other than the wilderness, where the law of nature says only the strongest survive. Which results in her turning mean, selfish, and bitter, in order to scramble over and trample everyone and everything to reach the top of the doggie pile.
The end of the book didn't seem like an end, it needed at least five more chapters, or a sequel.
I found the book to be incomplete, the characters shallow and bitter and the plot to be nonexsistent. The negatives far outweigh the positives. I don't know what possessed the auther to write such a horrible book. If it was possible I would give this book 0 stars. Major yuck!!

In the spring of 1821, young Nelly Vandorn had already experienced her share of trouble on her Indiana homestead. Her Ma had recently died and immediately following that tragedy her Pa had mysteriously disappeared. However, Nelly remembered, "Ma always said that trouble comes in threes." The third trouble, in Nelly's mind, arrives one spring afternoon when her Pa returns with his new bride, Margery. Nelly and her brother Cornelius cannot imagine that Margery, who is from Pittsburgh, with her fancy clothes and big city manners will ever make it in the wilderness and are determined not to treat her like kin. Cullen has attempted to create a protagonist who is strong and determined in the face of tragedy. Unfortunately, for the majority of the book, Nelly comes off as ignorant, hateful, and cruel. She despises books, hates the local Indians, disdains a neighbor because he is different, and makes Margery's adjustment to wilderness life much more difficult than necessary. Margery, however, is clearly not suited for wilderness life. At one point she leaves a pot of honey outside because she hopes to attract a bear and admire his "very stately walk." She is oblivious to the threat such actions represent for her new family and the livestock. The other two characters, Pa and Cornelius, are fairly colorless and seem to be merely plot devices to move the story along and highlight the conflict between Nelly and Margery. Near the end of the book, Nelly finally comes to appreciate Margery's good qualities after another terrible tragedy, but it is difficult to accept the sudden transformation in Nelly's attitude and character. Despite the disappointing characters, the book explains various elements of frontier life, including the challenges of finding/growing food, the danger animals represent, and the difficulty of simple tasks such as doing the laundry. However, these details do not compensate for the book's mediocre characters and story.