Laura's Rose is a really great overview of the life of Rose Wilder Lane. Of course it is more of a booklet, so you don't get a great wealth of information, but still it brings up lots of details things that dedicated Little House fans will find interesting.

This is an indirect copy of a fictional serial Rose wrote around 1918-1920: "Diverging Roads." It was republished by Roger Lea MacBride as "Rose Wilder Lane: Her Story," back in the 1970's. Unfortunately, it WASN'T her story: after giving the book that misleading title, MacBride explains in the introduction that many details were changed from Rose's real life. I compare this pitiful effort to William Holtz's staggering portrayal of Rose, and it is obvious which of these two men had more scholarly respect for Rose Wilder Lane. Even though I do not agree with many of Mr. Holtz's conclusions about Rose and her relationship with her mother, his work is fully researched, the information sound. The same cannot possibly be said about MacBride's attempts to pass off fiction as fact.

In the serial, here's what eventually happened to Helen (Rose's character): she doesn't marry, but joins forces with other women who are writers/journalists, and realizes that she wants a life of freedom and independence. That part was never published by MacBride, and I have often wondered why that was so. I personally don't understand why the "Rocky Ridge" series ended in such an adult fashion. MacBride could have concluded with Rose traveling to Kansas City to pursue a new career; Rose ended her book "Old Home Town" that way, with her character Ernestine (a young Rose in disguise) going off to business college to learn happily ever after. But no, it is much easier to copy Rose's original text than it is to come up with your own. Yes, I realize MacBride may have already passed on by the time this volume was approached, but anyone with background information on Rose and half an imagination could have finished the series with more success. Actually, that goes for the whole set of books, not just this one.

Although I was interested to read about this part of Rose's life, this volume wasn't as well written as the rest of the series (it was published after Roger Lea McBride's death and may not have been fully completed by him). It reads a little strangely (especially because it is written at an easy-read level but covers an adult period of her life) and sadly ends fairly abruptly, too, at a major turning point for Rose.

To read more about Rose's life, try "West from Home : Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder, San Francisco 1915," which tells you what Rose was doing nine years after the end of this book and how things turned out for her.

If anyone out there has hesitated to read the Rose Wilder Lane entries into the extended Little House family as they felt as I once did they would be pale copies of the original series, please don't hesitate any longer! This series has a voice of its own, and is very, very well written. I wish it was longer. I loved this last book. Rose is very different than Laura and in fact I think most women of her day. She is very strong willed and intelligent, and determined to make her own way in the world. I was especially struck by the descriptions of the early day of her life both in Kansas City and San Francisco---just how lonely and desolate life could be for a career girl starting out in those days, and how strong she was to persevere. Her growing awareness in this book that the life she always saw for herself---as a contented wife to Paul in a small world---is not really what she wants is very well done. The message sent to girls who might read this book is powerful. I also very much liked the way this series "grew up" like the original series. This last book is quite adult, though certainly not inappropriate for those who also read the early ones.

The book On The Way Home by Laura Ingalls Wilder was in my opinion the best book I read all summer becaus it tells the story of a girl (Laura) over coming obsticals. Such as realizing and excepting that they (Laura and her husband Almanzo)could no longer live were they were.They could not grow any crops so she made the disition to go "home" so that they could make a living of what they were good at.

For the children who love Little House On the Prarie, this book is for you. On the way Home is about an 8 year girl traveling with her family towards their new home. There were many adventures that the Wilder family encountered "On the way Home." There are parts in this book that will keep you on edge. This book would appeal to children under the age of 10. Laura Ingalls Wilder has published many interesting books for children including,On the Way Home.

"On the Way Home: The Diary of a Trip from South Dakota to Mansfield, Missouri, in 1894," by Laura Ingalls Wilder, really brings to life this era in American history. The book is actually a collaboration between Laura and her daughter, writer Rose Wilder Lane; Rose's introduction and concluding chapter "sandwich" Laura's journal entries.

As the author of the "Little House" book series and as the subject of a long-running television series based on those books, Laura Ingalls Wilder is a truly beloved figure in American popular culture. "On the Way Home" offers an excellent opportunity to "hear" her speak directly from a real-life adventure. Her trek with her husband, Almanzo, and daughter Rose is a classic pioneer tale.

The book is well complemented by a wealth of black-and-white photographs of the family, as well as of the architecture, artifacts, landscapes, and animals that were part of their world. There is also a map of their route.

Laura's prose is very engaging. She writes of the natural landscape, plants, and animals they encountered along the way. She also gives a sense of the ethnic and religious diversity of that time and region. Her journal entries capture the excitement of the growing cities and towns.

This is a short book (120 pages), but it is full and fascinating. When Laura writes of such pleasures as wading in a warm river or picking wild blackberries, you can imagine yourself standing beside her. Recommended as a companion text: "O Pioneers!", by Willa Cather.

Rose Wilder Lane was a famous journalist then novelist long before her mother, Laura Ingalls Wilder, ever started the Little House books. She was Laura's inspiration, writing coach and editor. Meanwhile Rose conducted her own research and wrote Free Land during this time. It's about the period in the 1880's when there was a homesteading rush in the plains. This book tells the story of one unnamed community in Dakota Territory and its settlers. If I had never read the Little House books and didn't know very much about Laura Ingalls' family-I might have really, really enjoyed this story. It's compelling, not overly dramatic or romanticized and historically accurate. The "heroes" of the story, the Beatons and the Peters, are ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. Without giving away spoilers, the only technical problem I had with reading is the anti-climatic ending. On the other hand, I have read the Little House series plus documented speeches given by Laura. Rose's novel is a complete retelling of Laura's Dakota stories (plus others)-with some fictional embellishments. Some of the names are the same, some are altered slightly-and a couple of relationships are switched around. But it's Laura's story alright. She even inserted stories that Laura was prohibited from doing (to keep her books appropriate for children). So, while I already felt for the characters while reading. I couldn't help but feel that Rose cheated her mom. The writing styles are definitely different. I can say that I "enjoyed" Laura's style much more. She has a flair for detail, which makes the mundane very exciting-and tangilble. Whereas Rose skips a lot of detail to tell more story, to give more meat to the plot.

Free Land reminds me of the stories my parents would tell me about their lives when they were getting on their feet. Ostensibly, the intent of the story is to entertain. But there is also an underlying lesson about the virtue of hard work and determination.

Lane keeps the action moving, her characters come alive, and the story is compelling. I especially loved the incidental tid-bits about what daily life was like in the late 1800's. I look forward to buying more of her books.

I have to disagree with the reviewer who said Rose was not capable of writing longer fiction -- that basically she should have stuck with short stories! This is a fine novel. Taking some of Laura Ingalls Wilder's memories and making a novel out of them does not make Rose Wilder Lane a lesser writer; it makes her imaginative and creative! (Don't many writers take stories from their family's past & create fiction?) I have read this novel and "Let the Hurricane Roar" and both are excellent, hard-to-put-down novels...as worthy to be on the same shelf as any of Laura's. You can't compare the two writers (although everyone always does). They both have distinct styles. I recommend Free Land very highly & hope others will explore Rose Wilder Lane's work. It's very good & MEMORABLE.

Lucky to have found this one in a "salvage store" that was copyright was 1953. Contains so much information amd simplified that its hard to put down. Enjoyed Mr.Weaver's prospective and I am curious to know more about the author...

At a time when fundamental economic understanding appears lacking, this book (though simplified) makes basic economic principles easy to understand. It is written in a simple format easily understood by all age groups, young folks (junior high school) as well as adults.
I have introduced all of my children to this book and they all agree that it enabled them to have a much better grasp on the realities of economics. If you find Econ 101 boring, read this book. It will provide ample incentive to "dig into" the subject. A "must read."

This book can create a general framwork around human history like not too many books that I have read. Expressed in clear language and organized in short, thought provoking sections.

A brief and concise eye opener of the history of Islamic expansion, influence and its relationship to the recent times. A very good book for policy makers, televangelists, ordinary people with extraordinary hatred for Islam and Moslems. The book also helps the new and young generation of Americans who have been under the influences of the biassed media.

This book really filled a void; Rose Wilder Lane was the unseen, unheralded hand behind the "Little House" phenomenon. Here, in an accessible format, is the best synopsis so far concerning Rose's part in the editing of the "Little House" books for her mother, Laura Ingalls Wilder. While many pages have been devoted to Laura, information is lacking on Rose. While portions of this biography are a little slow (especially her trips overseas), the complex story of Rose as a writer and a woman is very compelling. I can only hope her own writing will eventually come back into favor . . . as they say, the apple didn't fall far from the tree.

Many earlier reviewers of "A Ghost in the Little House" complained that this portrait of mother and daughter was unflattering, and biased. They missed the point entirely. This is not a book about Laura, it is a book about Rose. And Rose, whether justified or not, was often angry and unhappy with her mother.

William Holtz is a scholar who painstakingly reviewed thousands of pages of personal letters, memoirs and books, gathered over Rose Wilder Lane's life, to compile a portrait of a complex and intellegent woman years ahead of her time. Readers looking for entertainment and a light read, or insight into the fictional character Laura, were doomed to be disapointed. Those interested in a creative, volatile and sometimes manic depressive woman, who's ideas still impact today's society, won't be. In fact, Rose's ideas on freedom and human rights were very advanced and her writings are still a key part of the Libertarian party platform.

Frankly, any serious writer who has been edited can see and appreciate Rose's hand in her mother's work. The Little House books were written for children, with an amazing time twist that increases the complexity of the plot and writing so that the reader grows up with the character. Still, these stories cannot logically be compared to Rose's own work which was meant for adults. Further, Rose's books are very much written to sell, and have a decided flavor of the times in which they were published.

A great fan of the Little House books, I recently renewed my love for them by reading them to my daughter. I also renewed my curiosity about what happened "happily ever after." As I read "A Little House Sampler", I immediately suspected that Rose, a skilled writer, had a hand in the Little House Books, but I pictured a loving collaberation between mother and daughter. And it left me with only more questions about Rose: Why did her marriage end? Did she have children? Did she write the great American novel? William Holtz' biography "A Ghost in Little House" answers all these questions and more. It is an in depth and living portrait of Rose's life as she encounters excitement and adversity. It seems that Mama Bess and Manly are not exactly Laura and Almanzo. All are flawed in some way, but I find that I can still love the Little House books and the true story. Of course, to my daughter, I repeat Rose and Mama Bess's assertions that every word of Little House is true American history.