O Pioneers!

4.5 stars. A wonderful read for Cather fans but it didn't capture me quite the way My Ántonia did.

I read the Great Plains trilogy out of order, having finished My Antonia last year not even realizing it was part of a larger work. This is the first volume.

This is a really beautiful, sad book about life on the Nebraska prairie at the turn of the 20th century. The characterization is well devleoped and it's so succinct. I have read so, so many overly long books that it's a pleasure to read something where nothing written seemed superfluous.

I will say that is has a fairly puritanical moral compass, so if that's not something you jive with, the ending of this book might give you pause. However, I think it's very in keeping with the attitudes of when this was written.

Beautiful prose, but could not develop any emotional connection whatsoever to these characters apart from Ivar. I came away wishing the bulk of the story was focused on him instead.

The beauty of the wide prairies, the simple life, the challenges and the potential that lie within the earth. Alexandra, the heroine of this Nebraskan novel is the daughter of Swedish settlers. She's level-headed and visionary, and despite being a girl, takes over the running of her father's farm, while her brothers provide the labour. She is in perfect harmony with the land around her, and Cather's writing instils the same wholesomeness and adoration for nature in the reader. Alexandra even succeeds with her farm, yet the novel is slim, so we jump over all the nitty-gritty details, which disappointed me. I expected more struggles against nature and the conventions of the time. But after the initial setup, the book seems more interested in romantic setups. 3.5, rounded down. This was entertaining, but I had too high expectations. I am mainly reminded of the superiority of [b:Kristin Lavransdatter 6217 Kristin Lavransdatter (Kristin Lavransdatter, #1-3) Sigrid Undset https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388289230l/6217.SY75.jpg 1370150].

Wow.

I read this when I was around 13 or 14, I think. I'd been looking for a good prairie tale, and thought I'm try this one out. I was a little disappointed in the characters; I don't recall simply loving any certain one, the the tale still held my interest. I may or may not get around to reading another Cather; this wasn't enough of a favorite to not get left behind in a move.I still prefer the novels of Bess Streeter Aldrich, and was delighted shortly after reading this book to find the sort of tale I sought in [b:Song of Years 151787 Song of Years Bess Streeter Aldrich https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1460378165s/151787.jpg 146507]