Do you mean pioneers in the West, Aimee, or would that include early New England books such as The Witch of Blackbird Pond?
Hey, preaching to the choir. I thought our Lady of the Perpetual Sea Breeze was the real deal until the Divine Miss J walked right through that door and right into my ass—which is where my heart is…physiologically. I could show you an x-ray.
Lorne ,'Time Bomb'
Literary Buffistas 3: Don't Parse the Blurb, Dear.
There's more to life than watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer! No. Really, there is! Honestly! Here's a place for Buffistas to come and discuss what it is they're reading, their favorite authors and poets. "Geez. Crack a book sometime."
Ginger - Feb 22, 2008 8:10:10 am PST #5131 of 28344
"It didn't taste good. It tasted soooo horrible. It tasted like....a vodka martini." - Matilda
Aims - Feb 22, 2008 8:10:58 am PST #5132 of 28344
Shit's all sorts of different now.
Any pioneers, really. I'll add that one to the list.
Ginger - Feb 22, 2008 8:25:16 am PST #5133 of 28344
"It didn't taste good. It tasted soooo horrible. It tasted like....a vodka martini." - Matilda
Elizabeth George Speare also wrote Calico Captive, which was loosely based on a real Indian captivity story.
Sophia Brooks - Feb 22, 2008 8:28:25 am PST #5134 of 28344
Cats to become a rabbit should gather immediately now here
I read a lot of books by Lois Lenski [link]
the ones in particular that I remember are Mary Jemison, Indian Captive and Strawberry Girl, but I think there are a bunch of pioneer/farm ones in there.
Kathy A - Feb 22, 2008 8:42:11 am PST #5135 of 28344
We're very stretchy. - Connie Neil
I'm trying to remember if I read any other pioneer-type books, and nothing is coming to mind. If you're looking for surviving-in-harsh-isolation stuff, there's Island of the Blue Dolphins and My Side of the Mountain.
The thing about the past that confuses me is that it seems from boooks and such that there was no gradual change from being a child to being an adult. Just Boom! You are a lady!
One thing I love about Little Town on the Prairie is that it does a good job of showing how teen fads were rampant even in isolated frontier towns in the 19th century. Autograph books, name cards, "fringe" bangs, hoopskirts--it was all about keeping up with fashion and not being out of style, even if your town hadn't seen a copy of the latest ladies magazine from New York City in several months.
Dana - Feb 22, 2008 8:43:35 am PST #5136 of 28344
I'm terrifically busy with my ennui.
My Antonia? I'm not sure it's in the age range you're looking for, though. Or what the age range for that book would be.
Ginger - Feb 22, 2008 9:03:04 am PST #5137 of 28344
"It didn't taste good. It tasted soooo horrible. It tasted like....a vodka martini." - Matilda
There are Bess Streeter Aldrich's books about Nebraska pioneers. I loved them in high school. A Lantern in Her Hand is classified as young adult, but I'm not sure about the others.
beth b - Feb 22, 2008 9:03:07 am PST #5138 of 28344
oh joy! Oh Rapture ! I have a brain!
erikaj - Feb 22, 2008 11:58:32 am PST #5139 of 28344
Always Anti-fascist!
I liked the books at first mostly because of the show(even though the show got kind of soap-opera. Some of the early episodes kind of had the same feel, I thought. But then people kinda started flipping out.) I used to reread them, but the last time I did, my parents were getting divorced. I think that would be the memory now, not Christmas oranges.
Laga - Feb 22, 2008 1:02:39 pm PST #5140 of 28344
You should know I'm a big deal in the Resistance.
Not sure if you want to go this route but the American Girl Kirsten is a pioneer.