This famous series is based partly on the real-life recollections of the author, Laura Ingalls Wilder. Laura herself is the main character of the series, and she tells stories about her family and their friends and their lives on the American frontier during the 1800s.

Throughout the course of the series, the family moves from one territory to another, setting up homesteads, battling illnesses, and searching for a place that will become a permanent home.

By the end of the series, there are four daughters in the family:

Mary – the eldest, who later becomes blind after suffering from scarlet fever

Laura – the narrator of the series

Carrie – short for Caroline, named after her mother

Grace – the youngest, born during the course of the series

There was a long-running television series based on the books.

Although these books are considered children’s classics and can be enjoyable reads, parents should be aware of some of the racial language used in the books.  The language used can be a window into the minds of the people in these stories and in this period of time, but parents and teachers should have a discussion with child readers about the characters’ attitudes.

Books in the Series:

Little House in the Big Woods (1932)

Charles and Caroline Ingalls live with their three daughters Mary, Laura, and little Carrie on a little farm in rural Wisconsin.

Farmer Boy (1933)

About the childhood of Almanzo Wilder, Laura’s future husband.

Little House on the Prairie (1935)

The Ingalls family travels by covered wagon to Kansas.

On the Banks of Plum Creek (1937)

The Ingalls family moves yet again to Minnesota. This is the book where Mary loses her sight.

By the Shores of Silver Lake (1939)

The family moves further west to the Dakota Territory (present day South Dakota). There, Laura helps Mary to cope with her new blindness and makes friends with her cousin Lena. The family also welcomes a new daughter, Grace.

The Long Winter (1940)

The Ingalls family moves into town during a particularly harsh winter. Food becomes scarce, and Almanzo Wilder and his friend risk their lives to bring food to the townspeople.

Little Town on the Prairie (1941)

Laura uses her sewing skills to help raise money for Mary to attend a school for blind people in Iowa and helps look after her younger sisters when it’s time for their parents to escort Mary there. Laura also continues her studies in order to pursue a teaching certificate.

These Happy Golden Years (1943)

Laura has her first teaching job. Almanzo courts her, and the two get married.

The First Four Years (1953)

Laura doesn’t really want to be a farmer’s wife, but Almanzo persuades her to try farming with him for a few years. Throughout that time, the couple experience hardships and the births of two children, one of which doesn’t survive. In the end, the couple eventually establish a successful farm and dairy in Missouri.

Supplemental Books

These are books based on the series, written by other authors.

The Little House Cookbook (1979)

This children’s cookbook is based on the foods eaten in the Little House on the Prairie series. By Barbara M. Walker, illustrated by Garth Williams.