Wednesday, June 15, 2011

The Long Winter - Laura Ingalls Wilder

The Little House series of books by this author were some of my favorites growing up. I loved to read about what daily life was like in the late 19th century, and try to imagine what my life would be like if I had lived back then. Since becoming as adult I have occasionally checked these books out of the library now and then when I wanted a quick, calm read; I guess it's the literary equivalent of comfort food. So I was psyched when I finally found this book, Little Town on the Prairie, and These Happy Golden Years at the Library Sale for 50 cents each, and I eagerly snatched them up.

Post-Harry Potter binge I needed a quick read to clear my head for the rest of the month's reading and grabbed this book. I can honestly say that I have never appreciated living in the early 21st century as much as I did while reading this book by electric light in the comfort of my climate-controlled home, with a refrigerator and cupboards full of food, indoor plumbing, running water, more diversions and sources of entertainment than any one person should probably have, and best of all - no corsets! I would love to go back in time and visit this period of time, but I can honestly say that as a product of the late 20th century now living in the early 21st, I could not stand to live in a time with so much casual racism, sexism, homophobia, animal cruelty, etc. But it's still fun to read about sunbonnets and shoes that had to be buttoned with a buttonhook.

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