I hunkered down in the library, ready to view a treasury of material I’d just found: Period magazines that catered to farm women as an audience. If you’ve never had an opportunity to look through perfectly preserved period archives, I…
Tag: Amy
How Research Takes Hold of Us
I was glad to see Rebecca’s post on my new book, More than a Farmer’s Wife: Voices of American Farm Women, 1910 to 1960. I especially appreciated that it resonated so deeply with her and her experiences as a farmer’s…
Thoughts from a Farmer’s Granddaughter
I said I was going to write a review of Amy Mattson Lauters’ latest book, More Than a Farmer’s Wife. But I’m not going to do that after all. You see, the book resonated with me so much that something…
Reflections on Cheese, From a True Wisconsinite
Ah, cheese. Until those silly California cows started their “happy” dance of cheese-making, Wisconsin served as the number-one source of good cheese in the United States. But as a Wisconsin native, I can tell you without a shadow of a…
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: Amy, Caroline Quiner Ingalls (Ma), Cultural Impact, Little House in the Big Woods, LIW-Related Items
Of Remembrance…
Laura said it far better than I could, so I decided to let her words stand yesterday, for Memorial Day. But I could not help but reflect yesterday about those no longer with us. The threads of this post may…
The Nine-Patch Quilt
One of the first of the Laura crafts I tried was the nine-patch quilt. I belong to a family of quilters, so that choice may have been pre-ordained. It’s a simple pattern: nine squares of fabric stitched together in a…
There’s Gotta Be More …
I don’t remember how old I was, but I remember the heat of sun, blazing down on my young skin, soaking into me, as I frantically licked a freezer pop to keep it from melting in an icky, sticky mess…
It’s Finally Spring
When Laura comes down to breakfast on the first of May after the long, hard winter, she comes down singing, and Pa teases her: ”So you’re to be the Queen of May, are you?” Those of us who live in the…
Beans in the Bean Pot
As I savored the rich, lovely brown taste of my mother’s Boston Baked Beans at Easter this year, I had a thought: Did Ma have a bean pot? Like Ma’s family, mine has roots in New England, and one recipe…
Getting the Tingles: Reviewing Ruralist Articles
One of the perks of being a published author is the occasional treat of new materials sent right to your door, for no other reason than somebody thinks you, the author, might want them. Such was the case with the…
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: Amy, Cultural Impact, LauraPalooza 2010: Legacies, LIW-Related Items