West

West / Carys Davies, read by Robert Fass, 149 pgs.

Mule breeder John Cyrus Bellman is itching to find the large animals he has read about.  Bones have been found.  Bellman is a widower and single father of Bess, a 10 year old girl.  She can not join the adventure so is left with Bellman's sister.  Bellman takes out west in a quest that covers uncharted territory and Bess stays home to her own adventure...that of becoming a woman.  The story goes back and forth between the two main characters.  As things go along, we see Bellman as a bit foolish and Bess rightfully wary, but then it all comes together boldly.  I enjoyed the audio book but much is made of Bellman's English origin, I'm not sure this reader captured his essence. 

Pioneer girl: the annotated autobiography

Pioneer girl: the annotated autobiography / Laura Ingalls Wilder 469 pgs.

I give lots of credit to the "Little House" books for making me a reader so was very excited about this adult autobiography of Laura Ingalls Wilder.  It met all my expectations and even exceeded some.  There is so much to learn about Laura and the annotations are wonderful.  In the introduction, we get a taste of the relationship between Laura and her daughter Rose Wilder Lane.  Rose was sort of disgusted with her mother during the depression when money was tight, Laura suggested they have the electricity shut off to save money.  Rose could not fathom but Laura grew up without it and didn't see any reason not to do it again.

I will be going back to re-read the juvenile series and need to plan a trip to Mansfield!

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The Water Seeker

The Water Seeker by Kimberly Willis Holt  305 pp.

This well written historical novel is the story of a boy growing to manhood in the early 1800s with a touch of magical realism thrown in. Amos Kincaid had a rough start in life. His mother died when he was born and his father was a trapper who was away most of the time. He was taken in by an relatives and neighbors only to lose them to illness. His father, Jake and his grandfather before him were born with the gift of dowsing, finding underground water using a forked tree branch. His father, however, sees the gift as a curse that would only tie him down and only uses his gift when absolutely necessary to make money. Because of his father's feelings about it, Amos hides the knowledge that he too has inherited the gift. After Jake returns from trapping with a new wife, a Shoshone woman named Blue Owl, he decides to take a job as a scout for a wagon train headed to Oregon. On the trip Amos matures in many ways, growing into a fine man who eventually finds his calling and the love of his life.