A lantern in her hand summary

Chapters 1-5 Summary

The Mackenzie kinfolk was speedily wealthy, mete out in brilliance in Scotland. However, vessel in representation wrong special has leftist them povertystricken immigrants cage America. Theologist Mackenzie has passed difference of opinion, leaving his wife Maggie with septet children stop working raise. Maggie is like a statue the family tree to Ioway from their home take back Illinois attach importance to order enter upon be nigher to an alternative eldest girl who has married a young chap with a farm increase twofold Blackhawk County, Iowa.

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I have read most of Bess Streeter Aldrich’s novels:  it started with a sale, when many of her books appeared on the 1920s-1930s table for $1.   Her underground classic, A Lantern in Her Hand, bored me when I was a kid, but I decided to give it a second chance.  Imagine how thrilled I was when, 30 uneven pages into it, it manifested itself as one of the best-researched, well-written pioneer novels I’ve read.  It’s # 2 in my estimation after Willa Cather’s My Antonia.  Now I don’t mean this is a hip underground novel. We’re not talking Paul Bowles or William Burroughs.  Judging from the online reviews, it’s a favorite with homeschooling moms.  But even for those of us who never reproduced, it’s still a stunning novel, smart, touching, and entertaining. And it was the selection in 2009 for One Book One Nebraska. (I’m not a Nebraskan, but I was there just yesterday.) 🙂  

Although her mother, a pioneer herself in Cedar Falls, Iowa, told her family stories, Aldrich also interviewed early settlers in Nebraska and studied historical documents and letters before she began to write this superb novel. Her heroine, Abbie Mackenzie Deal, follows her husband, Will, a Civil War veteran, from Iowa

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Summary and Study Guide

Overview

A Lantern in Her Hand is a historical novel for children written by Bess Streeter Aldrich and published in 1928. The novel follows the life of a pioneer woman named Abbie as she navigates the trials and tribulations of life in the wild, motherhood, loss, and joy. Prominent themes include The Importance of Family, The Pioneer Spirit, and The Power of Art.The novel is based on Aldrich’s own experiences moving from Iowa to Nebraska in the 19th century. Aldrich is the author of 200 short stories and 13 novels. She died in 1954 and was added to the Nebraska Hall of Fame in 1971.

This guide is based on the Tingle Books 2022 e-book edition.

The novel opens with a family moving to a new town in Iowa. The family is comprised of a few siblings and a mother, the father having died a few years before. They travel together through rough terrain, eager to make it safely to their new home. In this family is Abbie, a young girl with a singing talent. When she and her family settle in Iowa, Abbie commits herself to her singing. She grows up and is courted by two young men, Will Deal and Ed Matthews. Ed is wealthy and openly adores Abbie. She is tempted by his offer to move to a city and invest in her singing career, but she worries about E