Meet Caroline Quiner, the little girl who would grow up to be Laura Ingall's mother.
It's 1845 in the bustling frontier town of Brookfield, Wisconsin. Five-year-old Caroline lives in a frame house at the edge of town with her mother, her grandmother, and her five brothers and sisters. Caroline's father was lost at sea the year before, and the close-knit family is struggling to cope without him. Each day brings Caroline new responsibilities and new adventures as she strives to help Mother all she can. And though this first year on their own also brings Caroline and her family great hardship, they survive with courage and love.

None of the other "Little House Years" books are as good as the ones about Laura but other then the Laura books I prefer the Martha and Charlotte books. I don't enjoy the Caroline books as much because they are a bit uneven for me with some in the series being really good and others lacking. ( )

One of my favorite childhood books ( )

Hm. I've been reading from a box of donations* several books about Laura's ancestors. Again, it's fascinating to learn the history, especially the strategies for housekeeping.

I was disturbed in this one that, when rich girls saw Martha's bare feet at church they taunted her for being 'a poor country girl' and Caroline defended her, saying 'She's just as good as you!' Um - being judged for how well you can afford to dress? Yuck.

This one did seem to be more about Martha than about Caroline - but then she is older and has a more vibrant personality. I'm actually glad the donations included the next two Caroline books and look forward to actually learning more about M & C.

*donations to my OBCZ, my 'Official BookCrossing Zone' which is a bookshelf at a smoothie shop where I put out, to share, books that have been registered at www.bookcrossing.com. It's a free, fun hobby that helps me pass on the books I'm done reading to get them off my shelves. ( )

love this series!!!!! ( )