Betsy Ward's three children are cold. It is 1803, and they have traveled by covered wagon to the dark woods of Ohio. After the family shivers through the icy first winter in a drafty log cabin, Betsy is determined to get wool to make warm clothing for the children. She seizes upon a chance to buy eight bedraggled sheep. But it's harder than she expected to raise sheep on the frontier. Will Betsy be able to keep her sheep alive? Scott Russell Sanders tells the dramatic story of a pioneer mother's struggle to provide for her family.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
In this modest tale set in 1803 Ohio, a pioneer mother has a plan to keep her children warm: it starts with sheep purchased with coins she'd been saving from her former days in Connecticut. Ages 5-10.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3-- The reality of the American pioneer experience is embodied in this simple, historically based account of Betsy Ward, who with her husband and three young children emigrated from Connecticut to the Ohio woodlands in 1803. An entry from a 19th-century record book is the impetus for the story, and Sanders fleshes out the characters and plot to create a memorable picture of a family's life in an isolated, draughty cabin with only ragged clothing to keep them from freezing. After shivering all winter long, Ward is able to buy eight sheep from a passing drover. Natural hazards decimate her little flock, but with each loss she shears the corpse, and spins and weaves the wool. Lambs are born, the flock increases, and the children are warm and comfortable at last. The patience and hard labor required of a farm family, the supreme importance of their livestock, the discomforts and disappointments they must endure, and the quiet satisfaction they achieve are clearly depicted in text and illustration. The handsome, expressive pictures are done in warm-toned watercolors and pencil and are rich in authentic detail. An unusual unity in format is achieved by a thin wash of color over the text page as well. Although the story is at times bleak, the golden tones of the illustrations impart a feeling of optimism for the future. The prose is vivid, suspenseful, precise, and well cadenced. --Patricia Pearl Dole, formerly at First Presbyterian School, Martinsville, VA
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By "thedehnes"
Format:Library Binding
This story shares a tale of many living through hard winters in log cabins packed with mud. It shares the values of life and death, protection, and espically a mothers love. My children ask to read it over and over.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Library Binding|Amazon Verified Purchase
We loved this book! Even though we don't home school we had fun doing a unit study with this book over the winter. If your looking for a unit study and recourses for this book go to: homeschoolshare.com For all ages.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By Book Addict
Format:Paperback
(Truly, the editor's synopsis of this book on amazon is wretched. Here's my own bried synposis (I hate writing these things).
Based on a historical account of a pioneer family who moves in 1803 by covered wagon from Connecticut to the dark woods of Ohio. Arriving in the bitter cold of December, the family (Mama, Papa, and three children, 8,6 and 3) live in a lean-to while they build a drafty cabin. They are nearly frozen that first winter (words and illustrations convey the depth) and Betsy continues to dream of buying sheep to make warm wool -- see, she has brought a sock of her own coins from Connecticut to buy sheep and sheep alone, her loom and her wheel. She miraculously finds sheep to buy that summer and this is the story of a mother living in the prairie and the hardships that it was. An uplifting story without being sappy and showing great perseverance. The fact that it's based on a journaled entry, is all the better.
Endearing and worth the money.
Based on a historical account of a pioneer family who moves in 1803 by covered wagon from Connecticut to the dark woods of Ohio. Arriving in the bitter cold of December, the family (Mama, Papa, and three children, 8,6 and 3) live in a lean-to while they build a drafty cabin. They are nearly frozen that first winter (words and illustrations convey the depth) and Betsy continues to dream of buying sheep to make warm wool -- see, she has brought a sock of her own coins from Connecticut to buy sheep and sheep alone, her loom and her wheel. She miraculously finds sheep to buy that summer and this is the story of a mother living in the prairie and the hardships that it was. An uplifting story without being sappy and showing great perseverance. The fact that it's based on a journaled entry, is all the better.
Endearing and worth the money.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
This book is as heart-warming as wool
This book tells the story of a pioneer family that settles in Ohio. The family is thrifty, cold, and has very little clothing (their patches have patches. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Tracee
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great
Love it. My children love it. Great service in getting this product. I recommend it to all who are thinking about getting it
Published 19 months ago by Jennifer Eggen
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