Inspired by Little House on the Prairie
Background
The Little House series of books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, published between 1932 and 1943, told the story of Laura’s childhood in the American Midwest between 1870 and 1894.
The series of nine books were based on the idealised adventures of the Ingalls family, however Laura also wrote about the Wilder family and her later marriage to Almanzo Wilder.
The books inspired a series of children’s novels based on Laura’s great-grandmother, grandmother and mother. There have also been books written for adults based on the beloved author or her characters.
ADULT books
A WILDER ROSE
SUSAN WITTIG ALBERT
A Wilder Rose is a fictional account of the mother-daughter relationship between Rose Wilder Lane and Laura Ingalls Wilder.
The book is controversial as it supports the theory Rose was the real writer behind the Little House series and maintains Rose’s involvement was a long held secret.
CAROLINE
SARAH MILLER
Caroline: Little House Revisited retells the Little House story from the point of view of Caroline Ingalls as the family moves away from the their little house in the Big Woods for a new life in Kansas.
The journey is an emotional one for Caroline as she is pregnant with her third child and full of worries about what the future holds but she is determined to meet it with her usual strength.
CHILDREN & young adult books
THE MARTHA YEARS
MELISSA WILEY
The Martha Years are based on the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s maternal great-grandmother, Martha Morse, who was born in Scotland and emigrated to the United States. She would marry Lewis Tucker in Boston on 1 January 1799.
There are four books in the series:
THE CHARLOTTE YEARS
MELISSA WILEY
The Charlotte Years are based on the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s grandmother, Charlotte Tucker, the daughter of Martha and Lewis. Charlotte would marry Henry Quiner and become the mother of Caroline, Laura’s mother.
There are four books in the series:
THE CAROLINE YEARS
MARIA D WILKES & CELIA WILKINS
The Caroline Years are based on the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s mother, Caroline Quiner, before her marriage to Charles Ingalls.
There are seven books in the series:
THE ROSE YEARS
Roger lea MacBride
The Rose Years are based on the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s daughter, Rose Wilder Lane. The books were written by Roger MacBride, an American lawyer and writer, who Rose Wilder Lane named as her heir which meant he also inherited the literary legacy of Laura Ingalls Wilder.
There are eight books in the series:
OLD TOWN IN THE GREEN GROVES
CYNTHIA RYLANT
Old Town in the Green Groves is based on a series of notes left by Laura Ingalls Wilder about her life between On The Banks of Plum Creek and By The Shores of Silver Lake.
The book is controversial as it concentrates on the time period where the Ingalls family endured particular hardship in Walnut Grove and decided to move to Iowa where Pa has a job in a hotel.
En route to Iowa, they stop in Minnesota to visit relatives and endure the painful death of Laura’s younger brother, Charles Jr, who was nine months old.
The book was not well received by fans of the series as they felt the author was exploiting a particularly traumatic episode in Laura’s life which she herself chose to leave out of her own books.
NELLIE OLESON MEETS LAURA INGALLS
HEATHER WILLIAMS
Nellie Oleson Meets Laura Ingalls retells the story of Laura’s arrival at Plum Creek from the perspective of Nellie Oleson.
When Laura arrives for her first day at school, everyone wants to be her friend which sparks jealousy in Nellie and she wants nothing more than to be rid of Laura.
Nellie Oleson was based on three different girls Laura knew in her childhood but she was primarily based on Nellie Owens, the daughter of the owner of the mercantile in Walnut Grove.
The Nellie portrayed in this book has more in common with the character in the 1970s television show.
MARY INGALLS ON HER OWN
ELIZABETH CODY KIMMEL
Mary Ingalls On Her Own focuses on Laura’s older sister, Mary, who is sent to the Iowa College for the Blind to learn how to regain her independence.
While Mary relishes the opportunity to learn new things, she hates leaving her family behind. Since losing her sight, Mary has become increasingly dependent on her sister Laura but now she must learn to cope on her own.
FARMER BOY GOES WEST
HEATHER WILLIAMS
Farmer Boy Goes West is a sequel to Farmer Boy where Laura Ingalls Wilder told the story of her husband Almanzo.
In this book, the Wilder family leave their farm in New York to live in Spring Valley, Minnesota, but their new life gets off to a bad start when they have to share a cramped house with Aunt Martha who is cold and unfeeling.
As Almanzo helps his father build their new family house on a nearby plot of land, he continues to pine for the farm they had back in New York and the horse he had to leave behind.
