Four Years of Marriage: The Little Cabin Series 16

Author: (American) Laura Ingalls Wilder
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-01-01
Features: There is an elderly woman who began writing novels at the age of 65 and continued until she was 75, writing a total of nine books. She did not have a high academic background or rigorous writing training. These nine novels did not feature suspenseful or intricate plots, nor were they adorned with elegant prose. However, the nine books written by this elderly woman have become classic masterpieces in world children's literature. In all parts of the world, countless children have been nourished by love and gained the courage to face the future after reading this series. For many children, this series has even become an indispensable guide and encouragement during their growth process. The First Four Years of Marriage is the "Little House" series novel in your hands; this lovable elderly woman is the author of this book—Laura Ingalls Wilder (Laura Ingalls Wilder). Laura was born in the central part of Wisconsin, USA. At that time, the American Civil War had just ended, and a wave of westward expansion was sweeping across the country. Laura began migrating with her parents as early as the age of two. Before she turned thirteen, she had already traveled to the vast forests of Wisconsin, the Great Plains of Kansas, the banks of the Ma in Warner Forest, Minnesota, the town of Pepin in Iowa, and the Dakota Territory. They lived in log cabins and also in dugouts under the terraces. Laura was the second child in the family, with an older sister named Mary, and younger sisters named Laura, Grace, and a brother named Frederick. Mary lost her sight at the age of fourteen due to scarlet fever, and Frederick died at the age of nine. The misfortunes of her sister and brother, along with the hardships of settling a new home, helped Laura grow from a naive little girl into a brave and courageous young woman. At the age of sixteen, to help Mary attend the expensive school for the blind, she left home alone to teach. At the same time, she met a steady farm boy named Almanzo Wilder. At the age of eighteen, Laura married Almanzo Wilder, who was ten years older than her, and later gave birth to a daughter named Rose. Laura and Almanzo loved each other deeply, but their early married life was very difficult. They worked together and, after years of struggle, their life gradually improved. Later, they settled in Missouri and built a large house with ten rooms on their farm. By then, Laura's daughter Rose had grown up, gotten married, and become a quite outstanding journalist. Rose encouraged Laura to write about their past life of westward expansion. They read many works about westward expansion together and discussed writing techniques. Laura began writing novels at the age of sixty-five, and in ten years, she wrote nine books in the "Little House" series. These nine novels are Little House in the Big Woods, Little House on the Prairie, Farmer Boy, On the Banks of Plum Creek, By the Shores of Silver Lake, The Long Winter, Little House on the Prairie, The Happy Golden Years, and The First Four Years of Marriage. Laura's novels were very popular after they were published. By the time she was eighty-seven, the "Little House" series had been translated into multiple languages and published worldwide. In 1957, Laura died on her Rocky Mountain Farm in Missouri at the age of ninety. The "Little House" series can be said to be an autobiography of Laura's early life, with the main character Laura embodying the real Laura. Laura begins her story from her birthplace—the vast forests of Wisconsin—using Little House in the Big Woods as the prelude to the series. In this book, Laura observes the little details of life through the innocent eyes of a young girl. The moose and black bears in the big forest, the snow of winter, the green buds on the trees in spring, and the warm firelight, delicious pastries made by her mother, and her father's melodious piano music—all are Laura's sweet childhood memories. The second book, Little House on the Prairie, is the most famous and representative work in the series. It describes Laura's family leaving the vast forests of Wisconsin and migrating to the Great Plains of Kansas in a covered wagon, which is a typical portrayal of the westward settlers of that time in America. During this move, Laura's family experienced life-threatening dangers while crossing flooded rivers. After arriving in the Great Plains, they also encountered Native Americans and suffered from wolf attacks, grassland fires, and the ravages of heat exhaustion. However, in the end, they still moved into the log cabin built by her father and spent a sweet time living off the land by hunting. The third book, Farmer Boy, features Laura's husband, Almanzo Wilder. Almanzo was a farm boy from New York. In the book, Laura vividly describes Almanzo's experience of attending school in the sky and also his pride when he received a horse of his own that he had tamed. Additionally, through the account of Almanzo's growth, Laura expresses her views on the value of money—fifty cents meant working many hours in the potato field to earn it. The fourth book, On the Banks of Plum Creek, describes Laura's family leaving the Great Plains and traveling through Missouri, Iowa, and Minnesota to settle by the Ma. During their time by the Ma, Laura's family lived in a dugout, and all of her father's crops were eaten by locusts, leaving the family in dire straits. Eventually, her father had to leave for work in the East. At this point, Laura was already eight years old, so the perspective of the narrative changes as Laura grows, making the challenges of life and the strength of the family more concrete in her eyes. Additionally, Laura and Mary began attending school, and their relationships expanded from the family to the outside world. The fifth book, By the Shores of Silver Lake, tells the story of Laura's family leaving the Ma and settling on the shores of Silver Lake in the Dakota Territory. From the Ma to the Dakota Territory, Laura traveled not by covered wagon but by train, which was her first time riding a train. At that time, Laura was almost thirteen years old, and due to Mary's blindness, Laura's personality had changed noticeably. She no longer had a sister to rely on and no longer had the right to be willful and unruly, so Laura gained a deeper understanding of growing up and learned to face the things she did not like but had to do. Additionally, for the whole family, life on Silver Lake brought them new hope—her father could apply for a hundred sixty-acre plot of land here. The sixth book, The Long Winter. Just after Laura's father applied for land on Silver Lake and built a log cabin, a terrible blizzard came. At that time, Laura's family lived in a small town not far from Silver Lake, and the blizzard trapped the town, cutting off all external communication for seven months. During these seven months, Laura's family had no food and could only survive on a little cornmeal porridge; they had no firewood and had to burn hay to stay warm. They struggled every day to stay alive, and her father even froze his hands while twisting hay bundles, making it impossible for him to play the violin. This time, the solution to their problems came from two boys in the town, who risked freezing to death or getting lost while riding out of town to bring back food. One of the boys was Almanzo. After The Long Winter, the hardships gradually faded, and Laura's family gradually entered a better path. As the tide of settlers surged, the small town near Silver Lake gradually prospered, forming the town of DeSmet. The life in the town is described in the seventh book, Little House on the Prairie. In Little House on the Prairie, Laura is fifteen years old, and she makes friends with boys and girls of her own age at school and begins to pay attention to her appearance. The sensitivity and rebelliousness of adolescence make her realize the importance of self-control. At the same time, her parents saved enough money to send Mary to a school for the blind. Mary's departure deepened the sisterly bond, and Laura worked hard to study and earn money to help Mary stay in school, eventually obtaining a teaching certificate. At the end of the story, Laura unexpectedly gets a teaching job and prepares to leave home. The last two books of the "Little House" series are The Happy Golden Years and The First Four Years of Marriage. The Happy Golden Years describes Laura's first experience of teaching alone outside her home. At this time, Almanzo was already pursuing Laura, and he drove a carriage to pick Laura up from school every week and take her back, gradually deepening their subtle feelings. At the end of the story, Laura and Almanzo got married, and she truly left her parents' home and entered a new stage of life with Almanzo. The First Four Years of Marriage is a manuscript discovered after Laura's death. This manuscript describes the little details of Laura and Almanzo's life in the first four years of their marriage. During these four years, Laura and Almanzo's life was very hard. They suffered the destruction of their house by fire, a drought, both falling ill, and the death of their son. The only comfort they had was the healthy growth of their daughter, Rose. However, Laura and Almanzo were not knocked down by one after another setback. They stood firm with their deep love as their support, still full of hope and courage, and faced the future together, creating a home of their own. From a pioneer girl to a world-renowned children's literature writer, Laura's life story is full of twists and turns. The "Little House" series fully embodies the spirit of perseverance in westward expansion. Laura, with her delicate and sincere writing style, vividly portrays the growth of a girl, as well as the love between parents and siblings, the subtle and enduring love between her and Almanzo, and the diligence, courage, and respect for nature of people in the pioneer era. The value of the "Little House" series lies in the fact that it not only records the history of American westward expansion but also records personal growth. In fact, it wasn't just Laura who lived through the pioneer era; our ancestors also used their hands and sweat to build a beautiful home and passed it down to our children and grandchildren. When we look back at their lives, we see how they tilled the land, hunted, sewed, built houses, and dug wells through countless life tests, which honed their wisdom and made them more appreciative and grateful. The "Little House" series does not have many plots, but it is a wonderful, enjoyable, and enduring classic in world children's literature. The text is full of wit, covering many interests of teenagers such as nature, adventure, animals, family, and growth, which can greatly interest young readers and is a valuable book that benefits their pursuit of knowledge and growth. Today, we publish the "Little House" series, hoping that readers can, through Laura's growth process, re-examine their relationship with their family and nature. We also hope that readers can draw inspiration from this difficult pioneer journey and, in this materialistic and disconnected modern society, find simplicity, courage, resilience, and love!