Dear Beyond Little House:
I was wondering whether you would be able to help me. I have been looking around for a biography about Laura Ingalls Wilder, but there seem to be so many. I was wondering if you would be able to recommend one (or two) that I should definitely read?
Also, I have read here and there that Laura wrote an autobiography that was rejected by publishers. Do you know if there are any plans to publish this now, as this is something I would dearly love to read?
Many thanks for your help.
Kind regards,
Estelle
Dear Estelle,
Many biographical accounts of Laura’s life have been written, from booklet to book form. Gift shops at Laura’s homesites sell various William Anderson-penned booklets relating to different aspects of Laura’s life, among them “The Story of the Ingalls” and “Laura Wilder of Mansfield.”
The first book-length biography was Donald Zochert’s Laura: The Life of Laura Ingalls Wilder, published in the early 1970s. It contains a lot of previously unknown details about her life behind what she revealed in the Little House series and is heavily based on the “Pioneer Girl” manuscript.
Becoming Laura Ingalls Wilder: The Woman Behind the Legend, by John Miller (who will be speaking at 2010′s LauraPalooza), investigates Laura’s emergence as a writer in Mansfield, Missouri, where she lived from age 27 until her death.
Laura Ingalls Wilder: A Writer’s Life by Pamela Smith Hill (also a keynote speaker at this year’s LauraPalooza) is the most recent biography published about Laura. It takes a literary standpoint, exploring the writer-editor relationship between Laura and her journalist daughter, Rose Wilder Lane, as Laura began to make a name for herself in children’s fiction.
Although somewhat dense and academic, William Holtz’s The Ghost in the Little House, a biography of Rose, is exhaustively researched and contains quite a bit of information about Laura that hadn’t been previously published.
“Pioneer Girl” is the unpublished manuscript you’ve heard about that was rejected by publishers (though at one point The Saturday Evening Post considered publishing it in serial form). A version of it is available for research and study purposes at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum in West Branch, Iowa. You can go to the Hoover’s research center yourself to read it (and reams of other Wilder/Lane documents housed there) or you can contact them and they can copy it and mail it to you. This is not cheap: the copy fees alone will run you over a hundred dollars.
Given the expense, you may want to wait. We’ve recently learned of definite plans for an official publication of “Pioneer Girl” at last. We’ll keep you posted as we learn more
As for which published biography is better than the others, I think it’s best to leave it to the readers.
LIW fans, let’s help Estelle out. What’s your opinion on Laura’s biographies? When you really feel like sitting down and reading about Laura, which one do you pick up? Make sure to tell us why.
Personally, I got more real, true factual information, when I first read Don Zochert’s LAURA, that he wrote way back when, as he covered alot of historical ground not only relating to Laura, but her family as well. I love detail. I love real, true factual history, and genealogy…and Don’s book has it covered. But for a more modern book, I really enjoyed the way Pam Smith Hill covers the “little House” books in detail, from factual information to a fictionalized story. She did a great job! All of Bill’s booklets are “first-hand” information, where he wrote them from actually interviewing and speaking to alot of the relatives of Laura’s family, so they are pretty solid. John Miller’s books are others that are pretty good. Alot of the other smaller books and bios are just written in a fashion that are pretty much the same-o, same-o info that everyone else’s books has, pertaining to Laura and her family. Some are very boring, and some are wrong.
Those that leave out the real, true historical timeline of the family and certain details (like travels) are ALL wrong, because they only relate to what Laura actually wrote, than doing their own research, as I have for over 20 years. If you truely love Laura, and Little House, just buy every single book and booklet that you can…you won’t be dissapointed!
P.S. The more you read of all these works out there, the better picture you can paint, and the clearer you can see “LAURA” and “LITTLE HOUSE” in your own way!
I’d start with Zochert’s book for a good general book. Next, I’d go to John Miller or Pam Smith Hill for a more detailed look. The William Anderson books are great – if for no other reason than supporting the home sites. I have a bad habit of picking up the kids’ biographies and then getting annoyed when it’s obvious they haven’t done a lot of research.
Yes, Lauri! Exactly! That’s what I was saying too! So…see…we are all pretty much floating around in the same boat when it comes to Laura…and Rose! — I have been working on my book series, for years! And still nothing printed yet, except for that trial run back in 1997 of Book #1, which was sorta thrown together. I am trying to make this collection, the ULTIMATE, so we’ll see what happens in the future. I hope it’s very bright!
I am partial to Anderson’s work. I think his “Laura Ingalls Wilder: A Biography” and his “Laura’s Album” make a good pair. The facts in the former and the documents and pictures in the latter give a nice clear picture of her life. Anderson’s first hand research is evident in his work. He started like many of us, just a fan wanting to know more and 40 some odd years later he still tells her story, not for the money or the glory, but because fans want to know the rest of the story. Just my thoughts…whatever you read, I am sure you will enjoy. Let us know what you think!
John, is your Book #1 available for purchase?
I’m sure the first Laura books that I read were the Anderson booklets. It was a good way to start. I still like to go back and re-read them. I was able to go hear him speak back in 1987. It was my first “Laura event” and I was thrilled!
I vote for Pamela Smith Hill’s book. I’ve read all of the Bio’s about Laura and felt that this one was one of the best. It gave a very clear portrait of the relationship Laura and Rose had while writing the books. It pointed out very clearly that even if Rose had some participation with editing/story development, the stories were Laura’s. Smith points out that Rose’s experience with writing fiction was limited, that she wrote for magazines and was not generally considered a fiction writer. Only short stories.
Hi all. Many thanks for all of your replies
Does anyone have any more specifics on the rumored “Pioneer Girl” book? Any idea who is publishing it?
Thanks
I read Anderson’s book and enjoyed it. I also read “Ghost in the Little House” and it portrayed a negative perspective on Laura and Rose’s relationship. It was based a great deal on diaries left by Rose. It is Rose’s private thoughts and I wonder if she really wanted it published. It touched on the fact that Laura sent manuscripts to Rose to “fix up” and the color in the novels was Rose’s doing, not Laura’s.
I have not read Zochert’s book but plan on picking it up.
Anyone who reads Ghost in the Little House by William Holtz, should also read Becoming Laura Ingalls Wilder by John E. Miller to come to a more balanced view.
Sarah Uthoff
Sarah, I agree wholeheartedly with your recommendation. John Miller’s work is thorough, balanced, and allows the reader to draw their own conclusions. All of his books are superb. And, while I do love his BECOMING LAURA INGALLS WILDER, and consider it to be the most comprehensive of the Laura biographies out there, my personal favorite of Dr. Miller’s work is his LAURA INGALLS WILDER’S LITTLE TOWN. (Laura played hooky to go roller skating? Who knew?!?)