Laddie: A Review

If you've never read a book by Indiana author Gene Stratton-Porter, you are missing out. If you've never read "Laddie", and want a real treat, be prepared to absolutely love this book and have it take a prominent place on your favorite book lists.

This book was such a delight, I'm not even sure I can tell you all the things I loved about it. It's semi-autobiographical and is about the youngest of twelve children whom they call Little Sister. Her older brother is Laddie and they have a tremendous bond, though there is quite an age difference. The character of their family is central to the story and is fascinating. I loved learning about this particular time period (late 1800s) and how people lived and treated one another.

The story is rich with nature, farm life, circumstance, faith, education and duty. One of my favorite passages happened when the father and mother tell Little Sister she will not be going back to school that year. Here is what she thinks.

"Think of being allowed to learn your lessons on the top of the granary, where you could look out of a window above the treetops, lie in the cool wind, and watch swallows and martins. Think of studying in the pulpit when the creek ran high, and the wild birds sang so sweetly you seemed to hear them for the first time in all your life, and hens, guineas, and turkeys made prime music in the orchard. You could see the buds swell, and the little blue flags push through the grass, where Mrs. Mayer had her flowerbed, and the cowslips greening under the water of the swale at the foot of the hill, while there might be a Fairy under any leaf. I was so full, so swelled up and excited, that when I got ready to pick up a book, I could learn a lesson in a few minutes, tell all about it, spell every word, and read it back, front, and sideways. I never learned lessons so quick and so easy in all my life; father, Laddie, and every one of them had to say so. One night, father said to Laddie: "This child is furnishing evidence that our school system is wrong, and our methods of teaching far from right.""

This book is so heart-warming! I found myself wishing I was in their family. The descriptions of everything from the nature of things to the desires of their hearts, is incredibly enduring. If they ever truly made this book a movie (the way it's written), it would be the best movie of faith ever!

I thoroughly enjoyed all the quotes from various McGuffy readers, as well as scripture. From a literary stand point, though I'm no expert, it is rich, rich, rich! I could go on and on. I've also read her books, "The Girl of the Limberlost" and "Freckles". They, too, are among my favorites. "Laddie" will be a life-long favorite and I can't wait to read it to my children. I look forward to my next Gene Stratton-Porter book, "The Keeper of the Bees".

"Get up, Little Sister, the morning is bright,
The birds are all singing to welcome the light,
Get up; for when all things are merry and glad,
Good children should never be lazy and sad;
For God gives us daylight, dear sister, that we
May rejoice like the lark and work like the bee."