Welcome to Litsy!

Great story about building a life and overcoming challenges

“The real things haven‘t changed. It is still best to be honest and truthful; to make the most of what we have; to be happy with simple pleasures, and have courage when things go wrong.”

This is the second book in the “Little House” series that follows the Ingalls family as they move west to the Kansas prairie. This book follows the adventures of building a new life on the prairie.

“One day in the very last of the winter Pa said to Ma, “Seeing you don't object, I've decided to go see the West. I've had an offer for this place, and we can sell it now for as much as we're ever likely to get.“

For this fun assignment, students will create their own “prairie journals,“ just like Laura Ingalls might have kept. They can write or draw about a day in the life of a pioneer child, imagining what it would be like to live in a little house on the prairie.

The Little House on the Prairie introduces us to Laura Ingalls, the young girl who would grow up to write the beloved Little House books. When Pa decides to sell their log cabin, the Ingalls family sets off for Indian Territory, traveling from Wisconsin to Kansas. There, Pa builds their new home on the prairie. Though farm life can be hard and even dangerous, Laura and her family stay busy and hopeful as they embrace their new life.

This Little Free Library went away for a while but it has come back all jazzed up. It‘s one I usually visit on my way to ballet.

Currently reading through my daughter‘s LHOTP series. I never read any as a child so I decided to use our summer break to read some treasures I never read in school or at home as my parents never encouraged us to read or buy us books. On book #3…

#prairie #storysettings @Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

#Prairie 🌾 #StorySettings 🐝🌷🎣🏕️🌳

#BookNerd 🤓📚💙

I know the Little House books are controversial today but as a child in the 80's I really enjoyed reading them. I've read every one of them, and I know I read at least some of them multiple times. Otherwise, I can't say I've ever re-read any books. There's so much to read, I like to pick up new-to-me books! #TLT #ThreeListThursday @dabbe

#SeriesLove23 Wrap Up

-Continued- Little House was a reread, I completed Cassidy Blake, Hunger Games, Small Spaces and Al Capone series. Got current on the Click and New Kid series, started Nancy Drew and continuing on with Wells and Wong series. Made great progress! Thanks for hosting @TheSpineView and @Andrew65

#DecemberDreams

When I think of a #Fireplace on a winter day, it takes me back to the Laura Ingalls Wilder books. I think this iconic illustration is from the tagged book but I‘m not 100% certain. ❤️💚❤️

I listened to the audiobook of this book. It was good. This book is apart of my childhood. My grandmother would read the Litttle House books to my siblings and I when we were children. Love the storytelling in this book. I rated this book a 5 out of 5 stars. This is the ninth book completed for #RushAThon readathon hosted by @Andrew65.

This is a deeply heartfelt thank you post to @megnews for hosting the #LittleHouse buddy read.I cannot begin to tell you just how much I've loved this-so much more I noticed reading as an adult.The books are a valuable female-centric account of how the west was won.Of course there's racism,and the wilful elision of how much they were helped by government policy.

This is how we party at my house on a Friday night.

No pigeon will be allowed to disturb my reading, not on Daisy's watch. Action shot 📷

I should mention that the pigeons are less annoying than her barking at the pigeons.

Charity book shopping for my niece. But I'm going to read Little House myself first. Although after buying it I remembered it's not actually the first book in the series, but hopefully it can be read standalone.

#LittleHouse my review of this book! Hugely enjoying this read along
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5473283001

3✨ A lot happened in this book so narrowing it down is not easy. Pa decided they needed to move, so they they packed all their things up and went into “Indian territory”. They had a lot of close calls in not getting seriously hurt, and a lot of other situations were terrifying! They are definitely tougher than I am.

4⭐️ I really enjoyed it and the slower nature of reading it through a #readalong really helps to appreciate what was going at that time in American history. I have ancestors who lived in the Nebraska/Kansas area at around the same time period as the Ingalls family, but I believe they came a bit later. One of my many times great-grandma‘s was born in Nebraska. #2023 #fiction #childrenslit #middlegrade #littlehouse #bookreview #bookstagram

I wish I had read this book as a child, when it would have seemed magical. As an adult, what I mainly felt was petrified, as the Ingalls family faced one peril after another. But the story is fascinating, despite the fact that I think Ma and Pa Ingalls made some unwise decisions that imperiled their family needlessly. ⬇️
#LittleHouse @megnews

Tomorrow we begin On the Banks of Plum Creek!

We follow the Ingalls family on their way to settle on the Prairie and build their life. We encounter wolves, other settlers, the Osage nation, and disaster along the way!

It‘s been fascinating reading the #LittleHouse series for the first time. I‘ve read so much controversy about whether these beloved but problematic children‘s classics should still be read/taught, given the colonialism and racism woven throughout the story. And boy, did this feel one-sided in its characterizations of the indigenous people, as well as the settlers‘ attitude of entitlement as they settled on land that wasn‘t theirs. ⤵️

Little House on the Prairie closes with the Ingalls family loading up their wagon and leaving their new home behind. Even though the next book is Plum Creek, we know they went back to the cabin in the big woods for a period of time. My immediate family always stayed in place and I often wondered (and still do at times) what it‘s like to strike out for parts unknown. Perhaps subconsciously this was part of my draw to these adventures.

And so the Ingalls finally learn that Washington is not yet going to order the Natives off the land and they will be required to leave. Pa chooses to leave on his own rather than be forced out by soldiers. Ma laments the wasted year. But Pa brushes it off. Would you feel more like Ma or Pa?

Laura finally sees a papoose. She had a lot of big feelings about it.
I‘m curious where the Natives were headed. I‘m imagining changing camps for the season.

Finished early. Classic children‘s literature that, despite its flaws, can still be used today to teach children history. #LittleHouse

What were your thoughts on today‘s chapter?

Me, looking around to see if the Ingalls have survived their latest catastrophe. Nature is amazing, how all the animals ran to the water. I appreciated Pa speaking up for the Indians after Mr Scott‘s harsh words.

#SeriesLove2023

Once again I couldn‘t help myself and read through to the end early. I love it just as much now as I did then. Yes, there are some problems with racism but they are teachable moments to do and be better.

While I do love the Ingalls, I‘d be lying to say I don‘t feel a bit of a vindicated thrill for the Native Americans that the squatters are hearing they won‘t be able to stay. The joy is short lived knowing this is still yet another treaty that will be broken.

I remembered the panther story but not how it started and I thought this was going to be like a Banshee. A panther! More danger! I loved how the Indian found a way to communicate with Pa to keep both their families safe.
Side note: I‘ve only ever heard that song as Peas Porridge Hot, not beans. What about you?

BEST. CHAPTER. EVER. Laura and Mary‘s anxiety about the many things keeping Santa from coming is such a reminder of Christmas Eves past. What an incredible neighbor Mr Edwards is!

Like the Ingalls family we‘ve had a winter filled with brown grass and cold rain. We finally got a bit of snow today, and we got to the Christmas chapter in the Little House chapter a day. I‘m feeling cozy!

While there were parts of this chapter I didn‘t care for, such as Ma‘s attitude toward the Native Americans, I appreciated Pa‘s interaction with the Native who came into their cabin, his attitude about the trail, and the discussion he and Laura had at the end of the chapter. I think this is the closest Wilder has gotten to questioning the history and imagine it was fairly progressive at the time she wrote the book.

A lot happened in this chapter but not the disaster we‘ve come to expect with Pa gone. Jack was so protective. That wind was crazy. I can‘t imagine what Pa went through to get home. Again, I would have been ready to give up. I could have done without Mrs Scott‘s racist comments. This is definitely another opportunity to discuss racism with young readers and also the govt‘s continual broken treaties with Native tribes.

As @Bookwormjillk commented on the last chapter, it‘s just one disaster after another. Today the chimney catches on fire and Laura saves the day. I was a little surprised Ma didn‘t make Mary and Carrie come out of the house. At this point I‘d be telling Pa I‘m ready to head back to civilization. Then, as a reminder of just how far away they are Ma wants to write a letter to family and says “If you mail a letter now, they can write this winter,👇🏻

My apologies for late post from yesterday.
I honestly didn‘t recall this chapter. Despite knowing the outcome, I was truly terrified for the entire Ingalls family. I was worried sick for Mary when Laura was crawling to bring her water. Another stark reminder how isolated they were. How lucky the doctor and Mrs Scott happened along.

Yes there are other things we can discuss in this chapter, but can we pause for a minute to discuss Mary. Is she really this good hearted or is she being a goody two shoes? Baby Carrie doesn‘t even know what the beads are. Why does Ma frequently make them give up what little they have to share with Carrie and end up with nothing? And by today‘s standards can we say “choking hazard?!” I feel bad for saying it but I‘d want to slap Mary too.

Though there were probably many days that were the same one after another in the long stretch of prairie, this chapter is a reminder that on any given day adventure could happen. I‘d forgotten this chapter & find it interesting. Pa is always finding some different way to be resourceful. You have to wonder how much of this he actually knew anything about & how much he just winged it. He believed he could so he did. He really had to for his family.

Another scary chapter that could have turned out quite badly. A reminder how so many things they had to accomplish were risky. I was glad to see Ma finally stand up & tell Pa not to take the risk. Though I understand why he felt compelled to help I was left wondering again what on Earth Ma & the girls would do if it went bad. I continue to wonder if they had discussed this & had a plan or ignored the danger in hopes nothing bad would befall them.

The Native people the Ingalls encountered in today‘s chapter were the Osage. Ballerina Maria Tallchief was Osage (video: https://youtu.be/0y_tWR07F7Y). A brief intro on the Osage for kids: https://www.ducksters.com/history/native_americans/osage_nation.php. Pictured is current Osage Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear (https://www.osagenation-nsn.gov/who-we-are/biographies/executive/principal-chief-geoffrey-standing-bear).

“It would never do to lose or waste a nail.”
I don‘t know about you, but it seems every time we do a home project we pick up little items like this without even checking to see we already have tons at home. This reminded me in an even deeper way how different things are now. I‘m also curious everyone‘s opinion on why Laura would like to see a Native American baby so much.

I skipped yesterday‘s post as the chapter was just an explanation about building the door. All we can say about that is thank heavens! Even though todays chapter is about building the fireplace I chose this picture because I think it‘s the epitome of differences between Laura and Mary. What were your thoughts as you read yesterday and today?

This chapter was terrifying. It could have gone so badly. What would Ma and the girls have done? Has Pa talked to her about what to do? What would they do without their horses if something happened? This shows me how much braver Ma and Pa were than me. I would be too afraid to make this journey without a group.

#currentread #doublebookspin @TheAromaofBooks

A couple things that stood out to me in this chapter. First, how long it would take for family to hear news of you. I always thought the same thing about immigrants from Europe in the old days and admired the willingness to strike out on your own knowing how cut off you‘d be from family. Second, I find Pa‘s proclamation that he‘ll always be content there a bit laughable. He seems like such a restless soul who will always want to be on the go.

All I can say for this chapter is: I CANNOT IMAGINE BUILDING MY OWN HOUSE!