Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote nine Little House books about her childhood growing upon the western frontier. But there were two years she didn't write about, two missing years that take place between "On the Banks of Plum Creek" and "By the Shores of Silver Lake".

Now, Newbery Award-winning author Cynthia Rylant has imagined what those lost Little House years were like, based on Laura's unpublished memoirs. The result is the first Little House novel about Laura as a young girl in almost 60 years, and a wonderful addition to the classic series.

When the grasshopper plague returns to Plum Creek, Pa knows all the crops will be destroyed again. He decides to take the family east to Burr Oak, Iowa, where he has found work running a hotel. But Laura longs to return to the tall-grass prairie and the unsettled west, to a place where Pa can play his fiddle in the open air and where she can feel free again.

Cynthia Rylant totally missed the boat on this one. She added a super saccharine piety, in what I can only assume was an attempt to make the book seem old fashioned. Has she ever read Laura's work? She seemed to miss the honesty that's present in the real series, and the no-nonsense response to survival amidst trying and sometimes tragic circumstances. While none of the little house spin-offs can really hold a candle to the original series, this was the only book that I found truly awful. ( )

This is really about the Wilder family (Little House). This book was taken from 12 pages of diaries of Laura Ingalls Wilder that were found in her daughter's possession when her daughter died. The author was called upon by the trust to write this book for the 12 pages. Very interesting information that I had not read about before. ( )

Almost like meringue, though some pretty intense things happen.  It's just too concise to stick with me.  There are descriptive passages of the prairies and farmlands, etc., and we get to know some of the characters better (esp. Ma with her prissiness - remember how she ironed the laundry in the dugout on Plum Creek?), and it's great to fill in this gap in the original series... but still, it's just not substantial enough for me to whole-heartedly recommend.  I guess because it's a middle book.  No world-building, no over-arching plot, and no climax... just episodes, anecdotes.  Otoh, it is very short, so if you're interested, do go ahead and read it. ( )

This was a quick read and I wish I had read it between the "Little House" books where it's intended. I thought the author did a good job in keeping with the spirit of Laura Ingalls Wilder and the illustrator made fine but different sketches than Garth Williams. ( )