Elinore says that she is uneducated, never having finished school. What also stood out to me was how the concept of education has changed. She seemed well able to occupy her time, though. In reality, though, her letters are written months apart, and I'm sure that much of the time, she and her family were pretty isolated. She makes it seem as though she lived in a bustling town, full of daily visits from friends and all sorts of interesting trips to keep her occupied. So yes, Elinore is a very independent woman, and it's so fun to go on adventures with her. I get stressed out if I can't find a subway station. And then, after finding each other once, managing to do it again without any roads or distance markers or ways to call for directions or anything. I am continuously amazed by how these isolated homesteaders found each other, out there in the forests and mountains. I can't imagine just getting up and doing that, mostly because I have no sense of direction. They just saddled up their horse, took a gun and a pan, and then set out into the wilderness for a few days, living on the land.
Very early on in the book, she describes taking her daughter Jerrine (an unfortunate name, to be sure) out in the morning because she just wanted to take a trip. She grew a garden, she milked cows, made preserves, raised three children, took unplanned trips, helped deliver a baby and shot and skinned her own dinner.
I think her personality shines through in the letters and she is just so fun and bright and optimistic that it was a delight to spend time with her and her family and get to know her better.Īlmost every time I read a book set at the start of the 20th century, I am amazed at how much has changed so quickly. She is one of those people who writes her letters with a very distinct and fun tone, making you feel like she is right there with you telling the story. Elinore (I should probably refer to her as Stewart, but I felt such a connection with her that I'm sure she wouldn't mind me using her first name) has such an engaging way with words. This book was fantastic! It's similar to the Little House series of books, except for adults. These two criteria combined in fortuitous circumstances recently, making me aware of the book Letters of a Woman Homesteader, a collection (available for free online!) of letters written by Elinore Pruitt Stewart about her first several years homesteading in Wyoming at the turn of the 20th century. I also have been downloading a bunch of free books to my Amazon Kindle because I don't have any physical books with me in New York. I have been inspired this year to read many books on the women's experience.
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