Little Heathens

Book: Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression
Author: Mildred Armstrong Kalish
Like/Don't Like: Hey, we're practically in a depression now. Who wants to move to a farm with me and raise sheep?

A few weeks ago my friend Lisa asked me to watch her dog, Yard Bird, for the weekend so I went over and picked up a key. And as I was leaving she handed me a mixed CD (which was awesome) and this book. Lisa has great taste.

This book is exactly what the title says it is. Which is just so Mid-Western, right? It's about the authors experience on her families Iowa farm during the Depression. It's filled with simple, straightforward stories about life on the farm and sprinkled with home remedies, recipes and tips for taming raccoons. There's a whole section on cooking that made me gain 10 pounds just reading it. I can't wait to make her apple cream pie. Their life was filled with hard work but it just seemed so rewarding.

It was a fascinating read but I had the same problem with it that I have with most memoirs, and really most non-fiction. If there's no story to draw me in then I have a hard time going back to it. I loved it while I was reading it, her writing is sparse but just dry enough to make you know she's sassy and would slap your hand if you tried to snatch a cookie before supper, but I was never dying to pick it back up. That's just me though. I'm sure you're a much more evolved reader than I am and can handle that sort of thing.