Go West, Young Women! (Petticoat Party) [Paperback]

Kathleen Karr (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1997 | Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up | Series: Petticoat Party (Book 1)

Meet the first feminists of the frontier: the fearless, formidable Petticoat Party wagon train! Spunky twelve-year-old Phoebe, her sister Amelia, the alluring Kennan twins, and the rest of the ladies are ready to hit the trail and take on hardship and hunger—even lovesick Indians—with aplomb. The Wild West—not to mention the course of American history—may never be the same!

Sleeping under a wagon, eating moldy beans, and driving oxen through a dusty desert—nobody ever said the Oregon Trail was going to be like this! But just when Phoebe Brown is sure she can’t stand another day of her father and the other bossy male members of the wagon train, tragedy strikes. Suddenly, it is up to the women to decide: should they turn back to the life they left behind or push for Oregon on their own steam? For this spunky group of lady pioneers, the answer is clear. They’re going to changeManifest Destiny into Wo-manifest Destiny—no matter what it takes!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The Petticoat Party series rolls out creakily with this lumbering tale of a wagon train that leaves Independence, Mo., in the winter of 1845, bound for the Oregon Country. In one of the 12 wagons rides the Brown family, spurred on by the promise of free land and suitable husbands for daughters Amelia and Phoebe. In an often stilted narration apparently attempting to mimic the parlance of the period, 12-year-old Phoebe tells how the party's 10 menfolk all tumble off a steep bluff while hunting buffalo. Six die and four are seriously injured, including Mr. Brown, whose character is reduced to a voice growling from the back of a wagon. Addressing the other women, Phoebe's mother announces it is time to "take charge of our own destinies." And indeed they do, under the direction of a spinster schoolmarm who pulls off such unlikely feats as fetching two ludicrously vacuous twins from a Pawnee camp after they run away from the wagon party to marry two would-be braves. Unfortunately, Karr's (Oh, Those Harper Girls!) pioneers have covered but 650 miles when they arrive at Fort Laramie at the close of this episode; a long 1400 remain till they reach their destination. Ages 10-up.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6?A light, entertaining tale of adventure on the trail to Oregon in 1845, related by 12-year-old Phoebe Brown. The females of this wagon train are for the most part reluctant pioneers; their husbands and fathers are the moving force behind the journey. These men aren't terribly bright, and in their effort to save money, they commit a series of increasingly serious blunders that culminates in a buffalo stampede that leaves most of them dead. With the three survivors critically injured, the women take charge. Led by an intelligent and intrepid teacher, the wagon train continues on. This may sound rather grim, but the story is actually very amusing, if utterly predictable. Laura Ingalls Wilder is in no danger of being supplanted, but readers who like humor woven into their historical fiction are sure to enjoy it. Unfortunately, the dust jacket is unattractive.?Elizabeth Mellett, Brookline Public Library, MA
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: HarperTrophy (February 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0064404951
• ISBN-13: 978-0064404952
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,111,185 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great!, June 6, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Go West, Young Women! (Petticoat Party) (Paperback)

This first book in the Petticoat Party series was great. It is about a wagon train of strong, independent women. All the men are dead or injured so the women try to get to Oregon on their own. This book was funny, too.

3.0 out of 5 stars Go West Young Women, December 19, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: La Tarde de Los Elfos (School & Library Binding)

Go West Young Women is about a family that goes on a trip through the West and the have the same thing to eat day after day, and they are sick of it. Phoebe is starting to get sick of her dad and they keep arguing. They have to keep track of the cattle and a stampede begins and they want to keep going but don't know if they should! My opinion on this book was that it was a little boring and the writing was hard to read sometimes. I wouldn't recommend this to an eighth grader because I think it would be more of a fifth grade book. The reader that likes adventure through the country will enjoy this book.

4.0 out of 5 stars Go West, Young Women, August 4, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: La Tarde de Los Elfos (School & Library Binding)

This book is an fascinating and colorful look at crossing the plains from a girl's perspective. It is very entertaining, and Phoebe is an interesting and engaging main character. We really get to know how she feels and thinks. Boys may not find the book quite as enjoyable; there aren't any sympathetic male characters, and most of the women don't seem to fond of men in general. This is a good book to get the favor of the early westward movement.