Act 2

Act 3

One of the reasons the Little House books are so compelling is because Laura Ingalls was a real person. She lived the experiences she wrote about. These things actually happened. But also? She’s a real person, with serious flaws, problematic family members (oh hey, Pa) and traumas she simply couldn’t face in her writing. This week, we’re fact checking the books. What is actually true? What is made up? And what is left out entirely? 

This one’s for you, Jack the dog.  

Go deeper: 
Caroline Fraser’s Prairie Fires
Visit the Laura’s birthplace in Pepin, Wisconsin 
Visit the Laura Ingalls Wilder Park & Museum in Burr Oak, Iowa

Edit 7/10:Dr. Debbie Reese posted about this episode, specifically commenting on Jack the dog and the phrase "happy hunting grounds" in her blog, American Indians in Children's Literature.

Follow us for behind the scenes content! 
@WilderPodcast on TikTok
@Wilder_Podcast on Instagram

We want to hear from you! If listening to Wilder has changed your thinking on Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Little House books, send a voice memo to wilderpodcast@gmail.com. You might be featured in our final episode ;) 

One of the reasons the Little House books are so compelling is because Laura Ingalls was a real person. She lived the experiences she wrote about. These things actually happened. But also? She’s a real person, with serious flaws, problematic family members (oh hey, Pa) and traumas she simply couldn’t face in her writing. This week, we’re fact checking the books. What is actually true? What is made up? And what is left out entirely? 
This one’s for you, Jack the dog.  
Go deeper:  <a href="https://prairiefiresbook.com/">Caroline Fraser’s Prairie Fires</a> <a href="https://www.lauraingallspepin.com/">Visit the Laura’s birthplace in Pepin, Wisconsin </a> <a href="https://www.lauraingallswilder.us/">Visit the Laura Ingalls Wilder Park &amp; Museum in Burr Oak, Iowa</a>
Edit 7/10: Dr. Debbie Reese posted about this episode, specifically commenting on <a href="https://americanindiansinchildrensliterature.blogspot.com/search/label/Happy%20Hunting%20Ground">Jack the dog and the phrase "happy hunting grounds"</a> in her blog, American Indians in Children's Literature.
Follow us for behind the scenes content!  @WilderPodcast on TikTok @Wilder_Podcast on Instagram
We want to hear from you! If listening to Wilder has changed your thinking on Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Little House books, send a voice memo to <a href="mailto:wilderpodcast@gmail.com">wilderpodcast@gmail.com</a>. You might be featured in our final episode ;)

Jack Kerouac but make it a girl with braids. Carrie Bradshaw, but without the sex, and also braids. An American Icon. An American Odyssey. American propaganda. Violently so, in some cases. Laura Ingalls Wilder is evergreen. For better or worse. Since the first Little House book was published in 1932, generations of readers have flocked to Laura’s cozy stories of the Ingalls family settling the Western frontier. The series inspired a TV show, pageants, and entire fashion lines. Behind this franchise is a woman who experienced almost a full century of American history. She’d made her first trips in a covered wagon, and eventually flew on a jet plane. Laura Ingalls Wilder’s life and legacy remain as powerful, mesmerizing, controversial, and violent as the America she represents. In a country currently at odds with itself and its history could there be a better time for an exploration of this woman?

Jack Kerouac but make it a girl with braids. Carrie Bradshaw, but without the sex, and also braids. An American Icon. An American Odyssey. American propaganda. Violently so, in some cases. Laura Ingalls Wilder is evergreen. For better or worse. Since the first Little House book was published in 1932, generations of readers have flocked to Laura’s cozy stories of the Ingalls family settling the Western frontier. The series inspired a TV show, pageants, and entire fashion lines. Behind this franchise is a woman who experienced almost a full century of American history. She’d made her first trips in a covered wagon, and eventually flew on a jet plane. Laura Ingalls Wilder’s life and legacy remain as powerful, mesmerizing, controversial, and violent as the America she represents. In a country currently at odds with itself and its history could there be a better time for an exploration of this woman?

Wilder

5. This American Life

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/aa43cd9d-1337-47f4-9928-b03700367ac2/transcript

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