SEARCHING FOR LAURA INGALLS - Hardcover

Grade 3-6-This photographic essay chronicles a nostalgic journey to rediscover the reality of midwestern pioneer life in the late 19th century. Meribah, daughter of the author/photographer collaborators, has been immersed in the "Little House" books for several years, and her family's summer vacation has been arranged to pursue her consuming interest. The narrative documents their experiences as they visit historical sites in South Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, trying to discover Laura Ingalls's world. The pensive eight-year-old is shown standing on a deserted street in DeSmet, South Dakota, recalling the Fourth of July festivities described in Little Town on the Prairie. Silver Lake, where Laura and Almanzo's courtship took place, has disappeared, but the young visitor does enjoy a swim in Plum Creek. Lasky reflects upon her child's impressions and feelings, recorded in italicized commentary, and fills in details of the journey. The two voices work well together. Knight's sunlit, full-page, full-color photographs are an integral part of the story, giving visual perspective to the events. Although some of them depict vast changes in the area, others have a timeless quality, bringing the past and present together. Although not a purely factual account, this book could be used to introduce the series to young readers. A solid addition where Wilder memorabilia is in demand.
Martha Rosen, Edgewood School, Scarsdale, NY
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 2-5. As she did in her earlier Dinosaur Dig (1990), Lasky recounts a personal family vacation--this time to see the childhood homes and haunts of Laura Ingalls Wilder. The author and her husband (photographer Knight), together with their son and daughter, visited the settings for most of the Little House books--Pepin, Wisconsin; Walnut Grove, Minnesota; and DeSmet, South Dakota. Lasky and daughter Meribah share the narrating duties, each providing her own personal insights into the trip. Meribah is disappointed, for example, that the replica of Little House in the Big Woods doesn't have pumpkins in the attic, but a swim in Plum Creek (complete with leeches) provides all the authenticity she can handle. What emerges is a wonderful glimpse of the sights that Wilder described, as well as a picture of this contemporary family. (Max, clearly not as enthusiastic about Wilder as his younger sister, entertains the family with excerpts from a book on road kill.) Knight's crisp color photos accurately portray the sites and local color of these areas, making this a sure hit with Wilder fans. Kay Weisman