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Nebraska reads...A Lantern In Her Hand


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http://www.bessstreeteraldrich.org/forms/UNP_Aldrich_PressKit.pdf

I thought some of you might be interested in the book selected for this year's annual Nebraska Reads. The link is a press kit with links to resources , discussion questions included for this wonderful book about surviving life in 1865 Nebraska based on the life of Aldrich's mother. It is superb and a great piece to read for the bridge between early modern and modern periods WTM style. It was my favourite as a girl of 12 and I just so pleased to see it selected for this year as a whole new generation of readers will be introduced to this book.

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Thank you, Elizabeth, for bringing this author to my attention. Given that I enjoy Willa Cather and adored Laura Ingalls Wilder when I was a girl, A Lantern in Her Hand looks appealing.

 

I checked out a copy from my library yesterday because of your post.

 

Warm regards,

Jane

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Apparently Bess Aldrich wrote a sequel as well as another poster noted to me. I have not read it and plan to while dd begins Lantern next week. As one bibliophile to another thanks for posting your intent to read Aldrich. It is so meaningful to share a love of books with others as reading is essentially a solitary activity . I hope you enjoy her writing as much as I have.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hats off to Elizabeth for introducing me to Bess Street Aldrich. A Lantern in Her Hand follows the life of a pioneer woman whose own story parallels that of the state of Nebraska. I am currently reading the sequel, A White Bird Flying.

 

Other authors have written of the hardships and simple joys shared by prairie pioneers, but what I enjoyed most about Aldrich's writing are her wry observations on how humans face their struggles and windfalls. The writing is not flowery, but the succinct descriptions pull us into the sod house where we taste the simple fare and desire to wipe the rare tear finding its way down a cheek. What a reminder of how quickly things changed from the last decades of the 19th centuary on into 20th.

 

Lantern is a lovely book to incorporate into 19th century American history studies.

 

Thanks Elizabeth!

 

Jane

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I'm glad to hear others are enjoying Bess Streeter Aldrich's work; she has long been a favorite of mine. I own most of her books ~ the Bison Book editions are lovely ~ and revisit them like old friends. I've also enjoyed a biography of her life, published by the University of Nebraska Press. I particularly want to recommend Song of Years. Set in Iowa in the 1850s, it provides an excellent look into pre-Civil War era politics.

 

As an aside, another book you might enjoy is Mildred Walker's Winter Wheat, set on a Montana wheatland ranch in the 1940s. The themes, imagery, and writing are lovely.

Edited by Colleen
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