Challenge 6: A Book By An Author That You've Never Read Before

Donna's Book: "A Wilder Rose" by Susan Wittig Albert (Persevero Press, 2013)

I grew up reading Laura Ingalls Wilder's series of "Little House" books, and then relived all of them through the TV series.  I'm proud to say that I read the books first though.  So, when I came across this book, it had to go on my reading list.  It's a fictionalised account of the relationship between Laura Ingalls Wilder and her daughter, Rose, as they worked to publish the Little House books against the backdrop of the Great Depression.  Although Susan Albert declares it to be a work of fiction, it's based upon letters and private papers and so will also be biographical.  I'm hoping that this will make them very similar to the Little House series and will continue Laura's story told in her original series.

Comments:

I really loved this!  Although it's hard to always remember that this is a work of fiction, that may be because I wanted so much for it to be true.  The characters seem so real, with Albert bringing the letters and documents upon which this book is based truly to life.  What was so great is that the Laura in this book came across as a real human being, with all the flaws and frailties that humans have, rather than as a fictionalised heroine.  I think that, in reading this, I finally found the real Laura; the Laura that I was hoping to find.

The main storyline addressed the debate that has arisen in recent years over who was the true author of the Little House books -- whether it was Laura, or whether it was Rose.  Not having read anything on that subject, it's easy to be convinced by Albert's argument.  However, I'm not sure that it really matters to me who actually wrote the books.  They were written; that's enough for me.  What I found much more interesting was the way that this book delved into the relationship between a mother and her only child; how Rose clearly adored her mother and the conflict she felt between wanting to do everything that she could for her mother while at the same time living her own life.  If Rose sacrificed to write the Little House books, as Albert seemed to imply, then I got the impression that it was a sacrifice that Rose never, ever regretted.  To me, a greater understanding of that mother/daughter relationship is the real gem of this book.