Caroline - Historical Fiction Review

About Caroline

• Paperback: 400 pages • Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; Reprint edition (June 12, 2018) USA Today Bestseller! One of Refinery29's Best Reads of September In this novel authorized by the Little House Heritage Trust, Sarah Miller vividly recreates the beauty, hardship, and joys of the frontier in a dazzling work of historical fiction, a captivating story that illuminates one courageous, resilient, and loving pioneer woman as never before—Caroline Ingalls, "Ma" in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s beloved Little House books. In the frigid days of February, 1870, Caroline Ingalls and her family leave the familiar comforts of the Big Woods of Wisconsin and the warm bosom of her family, for a new life in Kansas Indian Territory. Packing what they can carry in their wagon, Caroline, her husband Charles, and their little girls, Mary and Laura, head west to settle in a beautiful, unpredictable land full of promise and peril. The pioneer life is a hard one, especially for a pregnant woman with no friends or kin to turn to for comfort or help. The burden of work must be shouldered alone, sickness tended without the aid of doctors, and babies birthed without the accustomed hands of mothers or sisters. But Caroline’s new world is also full of tender joys. In adapting to this strange new place and transforming a rough log house built by Charles’ hands into a home, Caroline must draw on untapped wells of strength she does not know she possesses. For more than eighty years, generations of readers have been enchanted by the adventures of the American frontier’s most famous child, Laura Ingalls Wilder, in the Little House books. Now, that familiar story is retold in this captivating tale of family, fidelity, hardship, love, and survival that vividly reimagines our past.

My Thoughts:  I loved this book.  This is a hard review to write because I loved so much about it I have a hard time limiting all I want to say to a paragraph or two!  As a child I loved the Little House on the Prairie books.  I read and reread them so many times and Alonzo Wilder was probably my first fictional crush.  But when I think back on the books Caroline kind of fades into the background.  She's kind and never cruel but she is the one who instills order in the house and reminds Laura to act like a lady.  Because of this it surprised me just how much I connected to her as I read.  She loves her family fiercely but is somewhat constrained by both the upbringing and the time she lived in.  Her relationship with her husband Charles was so realistically sweet it at times brought tears to my eyes.  He is still Laura's beloved Pa but through Caroline's eyes he's a more fully flushed out character with flaws and even greater strengths.  One thing that really shocked me was the intense vulnerability of the family both on the journey and even when they settle in Kansas.  I don't think I truly realized just how truly alone the settlers were until reading this book and my sympathy and admiration for Caroline increased tenfold. This was an emotional and interesting book that made me appreciate and have more affection for the Ingalls family.  If you are ready to see the world of Little House through adult eyes than this book is a must read.  This is one of my best reads of 2018!  Rating: Loved It!

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About Sarah Miller

Sarah Miller began writing her first novel at the age of ten, and has spent the last two decades working in libraries and bookstores. She is the author of two previous historical novels, Miss Spitfire: Reaching Helen Keller and The Lost Crown. Her nonfiction debut, The Borden Murders: Lizzie Borden and the Trial of the Century, was hailed by the New York Times as "a historical version of Law & Order." She lives in Michigan. Find out more about Sarah at her website, and connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.