Old Town in the Green Groves
Reviewed by Elaine Williams
If you were (or are still) a fan of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House on the Prairie series, you will be interested in a new book called Old Town in the Green Groves. It covers a period that Mrs. Wilder never wrote about in the original series, and falls chronologically between On the Banks of Plum Creek (the fourth book in the series) and By The Shores of Silver Lake (the fifth book).
My husband and I were both interested in the Little House books and grew up watching the popular TV series that was based on the books. I wanted to know what Laura and her family had really looked like, so I did a little research at the library.
I came across a book called Laura's Album, a nonfiction scrapbook of photos, personal papers, and other items from Laura Ingalls Wilder's collection. While reading this book, I was amazed to discover that
Charles and Caroline Ingalls had had a son who died. He was named Charles Frederick, after his father. This child was born between Carrie and Grace in the family birth order. I couldn't believe that Mrs. Wilder had left this little brother completely out of the Little House series, especially since he had lived for almost a. year. Old Town in the Green Groves by Newbery Award-winning author Cynthia Rylant is the story of those lost years between the winter of 1875 and the fall of 1877 during which Laura's little brother both lived and died.
Written in the same style as the original series, which was first published in the 1930s and 1940s. Old Town in The Green Groves begins when Laura is eight years old and before Mary becomes blind. The family leaves Plum Creek. Minn., and stays a summer with Laura's uncle and aunt. Peter and Eliza Ingalls before progressing on to Burr Oak. Iowa, where Pa has found work in a hotel. Rylant based this story on the few unpublished pages Laura Ingalls Wilder left behind regarding this period in her life.
There is no word as to why the incidents recorded in this book were left out of the original series. Perhaps Mrs. Wilder felt that the subject matter was too negative for a children's book. Rylant handles the narrative well. describing baby Freddie's recurring illnesses and failure to thrive in a plain, straightforward manner. She also describes the sadness the family felt when they had to leave Freddie's grave behind in order to complete their journey to Burr Oak. Sadness does not pervade the entire book however.
Laura also had a special teacher in Burr Oak who inspired in her the love of words, and .she is quoted in Rylant's introduction as remembering many good things that happened to her in that old town. All in all, Rylant has done a good job in keeping with the spirit of the Little House series and Jim LaMarche's illustrations have kept the spirit of Garth Williams’ illustrations as well. Mrs. Wilder's generations or fans will not be disappointed.
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