West from Home: Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder, San Francisco, 1915 [Hardcover]

Laura Ingalls Wilder (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up | Series: Little House

In 1915, Laura Ingalls Wilder traveled by train from her home in Missouri to San Francisco. Laura's westward journey to visit her daughter, Rose Wilder Lane, coincided with a spectacular event taking place in that city - the Panama-Pacific International Exposition. It was a great world's fair celebrating the completion of the Panama Canal, and Laura was amazed by the attractions that had been gathered there from all over the world. Her husband, Almanzo, was unable to leave their farm, and it was Laura's daily letters that gave him the chance to see what she saw on her magnificent visit to California. These letters allow the reader to experience Laura's adventures and her intimate thoughts as she shared with her husband the events of her exciting sojourn. It's a fascinating insight into the heart and mind of the author who would later go on to write the classic Little House books.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Laura Ingalls Wilder was born in 1867 in the log cabin described in Little House in the Big Woods. As her classic Little House books tell us, she and her family traveled by covered wagon across the Midwest. She and her husband, Almanzo Wilder, made their own covered-wagon trip with their daughter, Rose, to Mansfield, Missouri. There Laura wrote her story in the Little House books, and lived until she was ninety years old. For millions of readers, however, she lives forever as the little pioneer girl in the beloved Little House books.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1St Edition edition (November 5, 1974)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060241101
• ISBN-13: 978-0060241100
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,211,902 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sparkling recollection of San Francisco in 1915, August 31, 2001

By 

D. B. Spalding (Korova Multimedia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: West from Home: Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder, San Francisco, 1915 (Hardcover)

Thank God this is still in print. Sure, lots of fans of the "Little House"
series will find this a charming alternative. But Laura Ingalls Wilder was
already an accomplished writer by this time, and her recorded impressions
during a family visit to her daughter and son-in-law during the 1915 Pan
Pacific International Exposition was a godsend for anyone who wants to know
of San Francisco history.

The city was devastated by the 1906 earthquake and fire; the PPIE
was a chance for the city's residents to show how quickly they could
recover and rebuild, and they put their souls into it. The city fairly
sparkled for the Exposition's visitors that summer. Wilder's letters home
to her husband were an accurate and very personable observance of the city
as it was. She described the big events as well as the telling little
details that made San Francisco unique among American cities. The photos
accompanying her letters add to the authenticity.

This is book not just a "niche gem" for Wilder fans, but also for
those who love San Francisco, and those who live history. Her record of a
vacation to the coast may've seemed to her like trivial family
correspondence, but for this native son of Baghdad by the Bay, her letters
were a vivid portrait of a time that will not be seen again. This is one of
the top ten historical recollections of a major, turn of the century
American city.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Laura visits her adult daughter, July 21, 2000

By 

J. Austin "jodylync" (Dublin, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: West from Home: Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder, San Francisco, 1915 (Hardcover)

This book is actually a series of letters that Laura wrote while visiting her daughter Rose. Rose Wilder Lane is a married journalist living in San Francisco. After years of begging her parents to visit her in this exciting, bustling city, Laura finally decides to go, but Almanzo must stay home and tend their farm at Rocky Ridge. These letters are sent to Almanzo, telling him of the World's Fair, riding the streetcars, and other exciting activities in the city. This book is really enlightening and educational. We get to see early San Francisco thru the eyes of our favorite pioneer. Children may not enjoy the letter form, but adults fans of the "Little House" series will enjoy connecting with Laura again.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lively and colourful letters, March 18, 2001

By 

Kathleen Cobcroft (Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: West from Home: Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder, San Francisco, 1915 (Paperback)

This book compiles a group of wonderful letters written from Laura to Almanzo in 1915 while she was staying with her daughter Rose (now married) in Los Angeles. The letters are long and detailed, since she rather missed him and was also trying to give him the full experience as much as possible. As a result, this book is a feast for both fans of LIW's work and people with an interest in the culture of the period.

At this time, Laura is in her forties and has begun writing freelance for at least one magazine, but has not started on her famous Little House books yet. Her daughter is working entirely as a writer, particularly of serialised stories/biographies.

Warning: Anyone reading the Rose series by Roger Lea MacBride should leave this book until after they finish, as there are spoilers.