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Little House: The Charlotte Years #1
Little House by Boston Bay
It's 1814 and Charlotte lives just outside the city of Boston. She always has something to look forward to—tending Mama's garden, visiting Papa's blacksmith shop, and embarking on her very own Scottish adventure!
160 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 1999
12 people are currently reading
3530 people want to read
About the author
Melissa Wiley
26books371followersMelissa Wiley is the author of The Nerviest Girl in the World, The Prairie Thief, Fox and Crow Are Not Friends, the Inch and Roly series, the Martha and Charlotte Little House books, and other books for kids. Melissa has been blogging about her family’s reading life and tidal homeschooling adventures at since 2005. She is @melissawiley on Twitter and @melissawileybooks on Instagram.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 72 reviews
March 24, 2020
I loved this. Reading any of the Little House books has such nostalgia for me, and I’m glad people have expanded it to include the women that came before Laura Ingalls. Though much of this had to be pieced together through research and it doesn’t accurately reflect who Charlotte may have been as a person, it’s interesting to see how someone might have lived in the early 1800s in Boston. I especially liked how it isn’t sugarcoated to be without conflict; the War of 1812 is a hot topic with Charlotte’s family and is actively talked about.
Overall, I found this book to be a nice, quick read that was in keeping with the other Little House books. Charlotte has such a curious and adventurous spirit � she’s a joy to read about, and I’m sure that children will appreciate her imagination (I certainly would have devoured this book as a child!). The incorporation of little history facts is also well done; the book details how to make certain foods and how a brick oven was used at this time. I love when good stories can also be educational. Anyone with an interest in history will find this story fascinating for that reason.
Definitely pick this up if you have a little one around in need of a good book! Laura Ingalls and historical fiction fans will especially enjoy this one.
Also posted on .
Overall, I found this book to be a nice, quick read that was in keeping with the other Little House books. Charlotte has such a curious and adventurous spirit � she’s a joy to read about, and I’m sure that children will appreciate her imagination (I certainly would have devoured this book as a child!). The incorporation of little history facts is also well done; the book details how to make certain foods and how a brick oven was used at this time. I love when good stories can also be educational. Anyone with an interest in history will find this story fascinating for that reason.
Definitely pick this up if you have a little one around in need of a good book! Laura Ingalls and historical fiction fans will especially enjoy this one.
Also posted on .
April 12, 2011
I didn't like this one as much as I've been liking the Martha books set in Scotland, but I think that's just because I love Scotland so much. This book is really well structured, and I love how she takes little things, like a molasses jug, and uses it to link both the beginning and end of the story, and also to show how the little girl's life has changed in the meantime. Well and subtly done. I was also fascinated by how brick ovens were actually used--all the details of period life are, as usual, well done and interesting. I could have done with a bit more about the school and Charlotte's lessons and activities there, but there's a limit to what you can fit in a book for elementary school kids if you want to cover six whole months!
October 26, 2011
Little House by Boston Bay
Author Maria D Wilkes
By Michelle King p2 English
The book I read is called little house by Boston Bay, the content in this book is it’s about a pioneer family living in Boston close to wartime. Some ideas in this book are how they deal with the British dealing with Boston; the time is this book is not in the Revolutionary war. It’s in the time around the war of 1812.
The book was organized very well. The author of this book didn’t make any mistakes with the organization and that was really nice. I also like how it didn’t have any random parts to it.
The person who wrote this book experienced all this, but when she wrote this book. She wrote it as like felt a little bit like a secondary source. Of course thought, it is not. I enjoy how the book is about a person experiencing the whole thing. It really made the book better, and it gave you details on how a pioneer life was like.
The word choice in the book was very good cause it described the timing very well with the word choice. It was very proper with a little bit of western. For example, I saw the word lass. You don’t hear that word a lot anymore. It was nice how it made the book really unique in a special way.
The fluency in this book, just like how all the other little house books are. It’s very simple with a little touch of western. That is mainly how they talked in those times.
The conventions in this book are very simple. It is a lot different that what we do today. They grew their own food, and they didn’t have any heater or air conditioning. I am happy I read this book and it was really fun to read.
Author Maria D Wilkes
By Michelle King p2 English
The book I read is called little house by Boston Bay, the content in this book is it’s about a pioneer family living in Boston close to wartime. Some ideas in this book are how they deal with the British dealing with Boston; the time is this book is not in the Revolutionary war. It’s in the time around the war of 1812.
The book was organized very well. The author of this book didn’t make any mistakes with the organization and that was really nice. I also like how it didn’t have any random parts to it.
The person who wrote this book experienced all this, but when she wrote this book. She wrote it as like felt a little bit like a secondary source. Of course thought, it is not. I enjoy how the book is about a person experiencing the whole thing. It really made the book better, and it gave you details on how a pioneer life was like.
The word choice in the book was very good cause it described the timing very well with the word choice. It was very proper with a little bit of western. For example, I saw the word lass. You don’t hear that word a lot anymore. It was nice how it made the book really unique in a special way.
The fluency in this book, just like how all the other little house books are. It’s very simple with a little touch of western. That is mainly how they talked in those times.
The conventions in this book are very simple. It is a lot different that what we do today. They grew their own food, and they didn’t have any heater or air conditioning. I am happy I read this book and it was really fun to read.
January 30, 2018
My favorite part was when Charlotte made friends with Susan, and actually started to enjoy school. My least favorite part was when Charlotte tried to walk all the way to Scotland and back again before night.
August 23, 2021
I think probably both the Martha series (when I get to it) and the Charlotte series are going to be solid three stars, since I can't quite get passed that fact that we have basically no information about what life was like for either of these two ladies. Wiley does bring a charm similar to Laura's to the story, though.
February 23, 2008
Laura's grandmother came from Boston. Quite the proper young lady, but still a child to get into scrapes from her adventures.
July 31, 2017
If I was younger, I'd give this 5 stars, but the simplistic language distracted me.
Still, the chapters are long and rich. And, this book holds one of my favourite chapters in the entire LH series.
Roxbury, a suburb outside of Boston, 1814
The United States is still young and the children of immigrants are first generation Americans - not so far off from their second gen friends.
There is history that I've forgotten about and typically don't care for, but Little House books always whet my appetite in that regard. It's tough for me to imagine some things though, given the time. I keep seeing movie images, which may not be realistic.
Charlotte Tucker is about 5 years old at this time, and she certainly has a child's imagination. The molasses jug, cider vinegar cruet, and butter dish are her Saturday family (respectively the father, mother, and baby).
Her age makes her thoughts and errors more adorable and "forgivable" (for lack of a better word).
If a Little House reader didn't already know, this shows that Martha did marry Lewis Tucker. They moved to the U.S. 15 years prior (so 1799). As a person living in 2017, even knowing that this really wasn't all that long ago, the fact that we're now in a 3rd century following the year is a bit mind boggling.
Charlotte has two older brothers (Lewis & Tom), an older sister (Lydia), and a baby sister (Mary). At this time, the family is experiencing first-hand the issues of war as there is a British blockade preventing "everyday" things like molasses from coming into the States. Although she is young, Charlotte realizes for the first time the enormity of the world and how strangers' decisions affect her life.
The reader gets a good sense of what life was like living in a large town outside of a larger city (Charlotte thinks of Boston as a 'grown up Roxbury').
- Lew continues blacksmithing in Roxbury and the Tuckers have a weekday boarder named Will.
- I find it a little odd that although they attend a church service each Sunday, they call it "meeting." I forgot that church pews used to be purchased by families!
- As an adult, I recognize that Charlotte and her siblings have immigrant parents, yet they're one couple of many who have come over to this new country. Compared to now, I wonder how difficult that truly was, and how they were really treated. Also, did they REALLY speak English? If not, how did that affect everything? It does say that Lew was speaking Gaelic, but that doesn't mean he didn't know English.
- Having a garden, even while not living on a farm, was extremely important.
- Students in schools had different books and the teacher taught from each one's book to whoever had it. Charlotte thinks that one book is likely not as good as hers; I'm wont to agree that some books would be a lot worse than others.
The accuracy of almanacs always awes me, especially because predictions are made a year in advance. It's no wonder people relied so heavily on them - and it makes me wonder why we're so wrong in such predictions these days.
I feel so bad for the teacher who had to deal with a two-year-old simply because the mother didn't want him (or her I'm sure in other cases) to be underfoot.
Martha's Scottish song of Henry and Caroline made me laugh.
I'm surprised that despite the small houses and all that kids even then knew little of where baies came from.
"In the Smithy" is my favorite chapter not only of this book but likely of all the Little House books. There is information on horseshoes which is interesting, but the best thing is that it has all but the third verse (Google search tells me there are 4) of 'Defense of Fort McHenry.' I've never seen all the verses anywhere else, not even in my U.S. History course, which was around the time I first read this.
Still, the chapters are long and rich. And, this book holds one of my favourite chapters in the entire LH series.
Roxbury, a suburb outside of Boston, 1814
The United States is still young and the children of immigrants are first generation Americans - not so far off from their second gen friends.
There is history that I've forgotten about and typically don't care for, but Little House books always whet my appetite in that regard. It's tough for me to imagine some things though, given the time. I keep seeing movie images, which may not be realistic.
Charlotte Tucker is about 5 years old at this time, and she certainly has a child's imagination. The molasses jug, cider vinegar cruet, and butter dish are her Saturday family (respectively the father, mother, and baby).
Her age makes her thoughts and errors more adorable and "forgivable" (for lack of a better word).
If a Little House reader didn't already know, this shows that Martha did marry Lewis Tucker. They moved to the U.S. 15 years prior (so 1799). As a person living in 2017, even knowing that this really wasn't all that long ago, the fact that we're now in a 3rd century following the year is a bit mind boggling.
Charlotte has two older brothers (Lewis & Tom), an older sister (Lydia), and a baby sister (Mary). At this time, the family is experiencing first-hand the issues of war as there is a British blockade preventing "everyday" things like molasses from coming into the States. Although she is young, Charlotte realizes for the first time the enormity of the world and how strangers' decisions affect her life.
The reader gets a good sense of what life was like living in a large town outside of a larger city (Charlotte thinks of Boston as a 'grown up Roxbury').
- Lew continues blacksmithing in Roxbury and the Tuckers have a weekday boarder named Will.
- I find it a little odd that although they attend a church service each Sunday, they call it "meeting." I forgot that church pews used to be purchased by families!
- As an adult, I recognize that Charlotte and her siblings have immigrant parents, yet they're one couple of many who have come over to this new country. Compared to now, I wonder how difficult that truly was, and how they were really treated. Also, did they REALLY speak English? If not, how did that affect everything? It does say that Lew was speaking Gaelic, but that doesn't mean he didn't know English.
- Having a garden, even while not living on a farm, was extremely important.
- Students in schools had different books and the teacher taught from each one's book to whoever had it. Charlotte thinks that one book is likely not as good as hers; I'm wont to agree that some books would be a lot worse than others.
The accuracy of almanacs always awes me, especially because predictions are made a year in advance. It's no wonder people relied so heavily on them - and it makes me wonder why we're so wrong in such predictions these days.
I feel so bad for the teacher who had to deal with a two-year-old simply because the mother didn't want him (or her I'm sure in other cases) to be underfoot.
Martha's Scottish song of Henry and Caroline made me laugh.
I'm surprised that despite the small houses and all that kids even then knew little of where baies came from.
"In the Smithy" is my favorite chapter not only of this book but likely of all the Little House books. There is information on horseshoes which is interesting, but the best thing is that it has all but the third verse (Google search tells me there are 4) of 'Defense of Fort McHenry.' I've never seen all the verses anywhere else, not even in my U.S. History course, which was around the time I first read this.
August 3, 2023
"And Mama demanded, 'Have you ivver heard your father usin' such a word?'
A funny look came over Lewis's face. 'No, not Papa...'
Mama stared at him a moment and then burst out laughing. 'Meanin' you've heard me use it,
I suppose. Och, my mother always said a day would come when my quick tongue would get me into trouble. And here it is, my own son tellin' me I'm a bad influence'" (Wiley 8).
Right away at the start of this book, you can tell Martha, Charlotte's mother, still has the same spirit and fun even though now she is an adult. If you have not already, I highly recommend reading the entire Little House series with all five generations starting with Martha, Laura's great grandmother. You will be able to appreciate this series more. For example, Charlotte notices how Martha often sings while doing chores, even unpleasant ones. Well, if you read the Martha series, she learns as a kid to do chores with a good attitude by singing, and this will make them go faster. We even get to see a piece of Charlotte's doll's dress come from one of Martha's old plaid dresses she wore as a girl in Scotland (which is on the cover of the first Martha book). I think it was very smart of Melissa Wiley to write both the Martha and Charlotte series as we can see the stories weave together with effortless continuity (even though I know this actually took Wiley careful thought).
In this book, we get introduced to Laura's grandmother, Charlotte, after Lewis and Martha Tucker travel from Scotland to America and have a family. Charlotte's a young five year old girl who enjoys simple pastimes such as helping her mother around the house and playing with her new school friend Susan. At first, I didn't know if I would like this series as much as the Martha books because it starts off with Charlotte describing kitchen canisters and ingredients as the "Saturday family." She calls the molasses jug the dad, the vinegar cruet the mom, and the butter dish the baby. I read these first few pages and thought, "Okay this is silly and not very realistic." But by the end of the book, I was reminded of how innocent a child's imagination is and Melissa Wiley reminded me of the simple joys of childhood (that we as adults might look back on and think are weird). Charlotte's naivety is also captured when she tries to walk to Scotland not realizing the length of the ocean. We do get to learn it took her dad, Lewis, three months to reach America, and her mom, Martha, almost six months to cross the sea. Finally I realized Charlotte was a girl after my own heart when she ran outside to the barn after she heard bad news. As a country girl myself, I did this countless times. While I'm sure this book is mostly fictional as there are few known facts, I feel this book does capture Charlotte's true personality.
Additionally, I would recommend this book for fans of historical fiction and not just Little House since the War of 1812 is the main conflict in this story. Charlotte grows to understand how war can affect families and their daily lives. I was also reminded of the origins of President's Day starting way back on George Washington's birthday and how the Star Spangled Banner was written by Francis Key, a seemingly ordinary man, who witnessed the bombing of Fort McHenry. This book could be used as a refresher for these important historical events. All in all, I found this a satisfying read and am looking forward to seeing what comes next for Charlotte and her family especially with the War of 1812 still ongoing.
A funny look came over Lewis's face. 'No, not Papa...'
Mama stared at him a moment and then burst out laughing. 'Meanin' you've heard me use it,
I suppose. Och, my mother always said a day would come when my quick tongue would get me into trouble. And here it is, my own son tellin' me I'm a bad influence'" (Wiley 8).
Right away at the start of this book, you can tell Martha, Charlotte's mother, still has the same spirit and fun even though now she is an adult. If you have not already, I highly recommend reading the entire Little House series with all five generations starting with Martha, Laura's great grandmother. You will be able to appreciate this series more. For example, Charlotte notices how Martha often sings while doing chores, even unpleasant ones. Well, if you read the Martha series, she learns as a kid to do chores with a good attitude by singing, and this will make them go faster. We even get to see a piece of Charlotte's doll's dress come from one of Martha's old plaid dresses she wore as a girl in Scotland (which is on the cover of the first Martha book). I think it was very smart of Melissa Wiley to write both the Martha and Charlotte series as we can see the stories weave together with effortless continuity (even though I know this actually took Wiley careful thought).
In this book, we get introduced to Laura's grandmother, Charlotte, after Lewis and Martha Tucker travel from Scotland to America and have a family. Charlotte's a young five year old girl who enjoys simple pastimes such as helping her mother around the house and playing with her new school friend Susan. At first, I didn't know if I would like this series as much as the Martha books because it starts off with Charlotte describing kitchen canisters and ingredients as the "Saturday family." She calls the molasses jug the dad, the vinegar cruet the mom, and the butter dish the baby. I read these first few pages and thought, "Okay this is silly and not very realistic." But by the end of the book, I was reminded of how innocent a child's imagination is and Melissa Wiley reminded me of the simple joys of childhood (that we as adults might look back on and think are weird). Charlotte's naivety is also captured when she tries to walk to Scotland not realizing the length of the ocean. We do get to learn it took her dad, Lewis, three months to reach America, and her mom, Martha, almost six months to cross the sea. Finally I realized Charlotte was a girl after my own heart when she ran outside to the barn after she heard bad news. As a country girl myself, I did this countless times. While I'm sure this book is mostly fictional as there are few known facts, I feel this book does capture Charlotte's true personality.
Additionally, I would recommend this book for fans of historical fiction and not just Little House since the War of 1812 is the main conflict in this story. Charlotte grows to understand how war can affect families and their daily lives. I was also reminded of the origins of President's Day starting way back on George Washington's birthday and how the Star Spangled Banner was written by Francis Key, a seemingly ordinary man, who witnessed the bombing of Fort McHenry. This book could be used as a refresher for these important historical events. All in all, I found this a satisfying read and am looking forward to seeing what comes next for Charlotte and her family especially with the War of 1812 still ongoing.
January 2, 2021
This is the first book in the Little House "Charlotte Years". It is written for an older child so if you are an adult reading you may think it's 'below' you. But I found it a nice book to read before bed to help calm my mind of my busy day. It's a pleasant read and due to it being the 'first' one the beginning of the books was a little 'slow' learning who each character was and their behaviors etc. But stay with it as it does get better. Ms Wiley wrote this book just like she did the "Martha years" incorporating in the history of what was going on during that time in Charlotte's life.
Charlotte is 5 years old and is old enough to start doing things to help her Mommma (Martha) around the house. She's old enough to also go to summer school where she meets her best friend. The war of 1812 has been going on for a couple of years and up until now it hasn't really affected Charlotte. But now her whole family has been talking of the war. Due to the blockade the store can't get items and thus Charlotte and her family goes without. They read the newspaper every day for news or her Papa brings news back from his blacksmith shop where the village 'hangs out' to talk. BUT after Washington City where Mrs. Madison saved George Washington's portrait from being burnt, they start knowing the war is HERE! A young man that the family has grown to love as part of their family that has been helping at the Blacksmith shop enlists and has to go off to war. Charlotte is super sad and doesn't know how to feel about the world around her changing.
Charlotte is 5 years old and is old enough to start doing things to help her Mommma (Martha) around the house. She's old enough to also go to summer school where she meets her best friend. The war of 1812 has been going on for a couple of years and up until now it hasn't really affected Charlotte. But now her whole family has been talking of the war. Due to the blockade the store can't get items and thus Charlotte and her family goes without. They read the newspaper every day for news or her Papa brings news back from his blacksmith shop where the village 'hangs out' to talk. BUT after Washington City where Mrs. Madison saved George Washington's portrait from being burnt, they start knowing the war is HERE! A young man that the family has grown to love as part of their family that has been helping at the Blacksmith shop enlists and has to go off to war. Charlotte is super sad and doesn't know how to feel about the world around her changing.
November 16, 2020
Little House by Boston Bay provides insight into the life of Laura’s grandmother, Charlotte Tucker. After reading about Charlotte as a mother in the Caroline Years series, it is very interesting to get a glimpse of her childhood and life during the War of 1812. As a Canadian, my knowledge of American history is poor so I have learned some interesting historical facts from reading this book Although by the same author, I find this book a little more dry than the books in the Caroline Years. I think Caroline’s family inherently had more interesting characters. I laughed quite hard at the part in which Charlotte attempted to walk to Scotland and see the fairies and when Charlotte and her new friend Susan thought that they would be able to ride in a coach when they learned their ABCs. It was also hilarious when Charlotte’s mother Martha added way too much cayenne pepper to the pounded cheese and proceeded to bury the remainder in the yard. Martha then danced a jig upon the buried pounded cheese to pack the soil on top and prevent it from spoiling the garden. The whole family danced together and sang in the darkness after, a wonderful memory for all. I very much wish to have an apple-paring party after reading of them in this book - they seem like such fun! Charlotte was deeply saddened when Will, the blacksmith apprentice of Lewis, joined the Roxbury militia to fight the British in the north.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 14, 2023
After the truncated final book of the Martha book, I fear I’m in a similar predicament with this series - once again, they will no doubt stop abruptly after book 4.
The first book of this series is now following Charlotte “Lottie� Tucker, daughter of Martha and Lewis Tucker, who we met in the earlier series. She will end up being mother to Caroline/grandmother to Laura.
There’s no real backstory to this and we don’t find out what prompted Martha/Lewis to move to the US, we just find out how long it took them and that they travelled separately. Perhaps it will be mentioned in later books.
Charlotte is just starting school in this, so she’s 5 years old and it’s a very simplistic first book. That’s what I’ve found with these, for some reason the first books have always been abridged, so they’re considerably shorter than the remainder of the series. She’s got her brothers and sisters around her (including a sister called Lydia, obviously Martha remembering her governess). Martha in this book comes across more strict than the wild child we knew from the earlier series, even though the reader can see one of her daughters is going to be the same!
Charlotte is also being affected by the 1812 war and the British blockading Boston Bay, although she’s not aware of too much - a lack of molasses!
A good introduction to the series, I just fear more disappointment is in my future.
The first book of this series is now following Charlotte “Lottie� Tucker, daughter of Martha and Lewis Tucker, who we met in the earlier series. She will end up being mother to Caroline/grandmother to Laura.
There’s no real backstory to this and we don’t find out what prompted Martha/Lewis to move to the US, we just find out how long it took them and that they travelled separately. Perhaps it will be mentioned in later books.
Charlotte is just starting school in this, so she’s 5 years old and it’s a very simplistic first book. That’s what I’ve found with these, for some reason the first books have always been abridged, so they’re considerably shorter than the remainder of the series. She’s got her brothers and sisters around her (including a sister called Lydia, obviously Martha remembering her governess). Martha in this book comes across more strict than the wild child we knew from the earlier series, even though the reader can see one of her daughters is going to be the same!
Charlotte is also being affected by the 1812 war and the British blockading Boston Bay, although she’s not aware of too much - a lack of molasses!
A good introduction to the series, I just fear more disappointment is in my future.
June 24, 2023
I've been making my way through the Little House Legacy books and I've only got one book left to read. This last collection features Laura's grandmother Charlotte who grew up around Boston near the Revolutionary War. This ranks my least favorite in the entire series mostly because I don't feel strong connection to Charlotte. I was honestly more invested in her Scottish mother Martha from Little House in the Highlands. I'm a sucker for a Scottish brogue and I loved how it was incorporated into the dialogue. Charlotte didn't stand out too much other than being an obedient daughter and her fondness for sewing foreshadowed her future career as seamstress. I'm not looking forward to the next installment because I don't have any other books to read. These books are out of publication and difficult to source without paying some serious coinage. I'm glad I found a teacher's old collection from Goodwill so long ago and giving them the love they deserve. Little House means everything to me, from Martha Morse all the way down to Rose Wilder.
May 13, 2020
Book Review
Title: Little House by Boston Bay
Author: Melissa Wiley
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Review: We love reading these books! Reading any Little House books are full of nostalgia for me as my Grandma read and collected all things Little House for me and now I am reading them to my son. I loved hearing Charlottes perception of the war and it made me think of how my son is perceiving the world and pandemic going on now. I couldn’t help but break out a Scottish accent whenever Martha (Charlottes mom) talks which my son kept asking me why I was talking like that. Overall a great read for any read aloud family.
Synopsis: It's 1814 and Charlotte lives just outside the city of Boston. She always has something to look forward to—tending Mama's garden, visiting Papa's blacksmith shop, and embarking on her very own Scottish adventure!
This book in 3 emojis:
🏴 🇺🇸 👩🏼�
Title: Little House by Boston Bay
Author: Melissa Wiley
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Review: We love reading these books! Reading any Little House books are full of nostalgia for me as my Grandma read and collected all things Little House for me and now I am reading them to my son. I loved hearing Charlottes perception of the war and it made me think of how my son is perceiving the world and pandemic going on now. I couldn’t help but break out a Scottish accent whenever Martha (Charlottes mom) talks which my son kept asking me why I was talking like that. Overall a great read for any read aloud family.
Synopsis: It's 1814 and Charlotte lives just outside the city of Boston. She always has something to look forward to—tending Mama's garden, visiting Papa's blacksmith shop, and embarking on her very own Scottish adventure!
This book in 3 emojis:
🏴 🇺🇸 👩🏼�
January 16, 2019
I heard about this series on the Read Aloud Revival podcast. I had no idea that it existed. I really enjoyed it! It is significantly shorter than the original Little House series. It is also faster paced. That being said, the mother in the story does sometimes use words that are in a Scottish dialect that could be hard for very young readers to understand. My 11 year old finished all the Little House books years ago, and started reading this series also. She enjoyed it, and has encouraged her younger siblings to read them. I would say that these books are great to read aloud (to help with the dialect in some areas) or for strong readers aged 5 and up.
This series is about Charlotte who is Laura's grandmother. Charlotte is 5 in this book and it is during the time of the War of 1812. There is talk of the war, but it does come from a 5 year old's perspective, so it is not scary.
This series is about Charlotte who is Laura's grandmother. Charlotte is 5 in this book and it is during the time of the War of 1812. There is talk of the war, but it does come from a 5 year old's perspective, so it is not scary.
December 12, 2021
If you really think about it, the premise for the spinoff series for 'Little House on the Prarie' is so wild. A middle-grade historical fiction series whose focus is on the maternal line of Laura Ingalls Wilder is an interesting (but strange) idea. The Charlotte Years is an example of how shaky this idea can be. There isn't much plot but a series of moments as seen through the eyes of a 5-year-old Charlotte. It's cute but it feels like filler. It feels like a setup for something more interesting later in the series. But considering that this series is only four books, I highly doubt this series moves beyond cute moments and into serious character development and growth.
March 26, 2025
Starting Charlotte’s series was a little jarring with the time jump from the end of Martha’s as we miss so much information about how Martha and Lew Tucker got together and ended up in the states. Charlotte is so young in this one that she doesn’t realize Scotland is a different country, let alone have any insight into how her parents lived before she was born. It was interesting to see a 5 year old’s perspective on a blockade and a war, reminding me of how little I knew of what was actually going on with 9/11 as I was just a little older at that time. It will be fun to see how much Charlotte learns and changes across the series.
June 13, 2017
The story was cute but as an adult I enjoyed learning about the war of 1812. And colonial life during that time. We didn't learn much about that war in school and it's funny I've also recently read the Caroline American girl books and those take place during the war of 1812 as well. I also enjoyed reading about Martha as an adult too when I recently read her stories as a child.
August 20, 2019
None of the other "Little House Years" books are as good as the ones about Laura but other then the Laura books I prefer the Martha books but the Charlotte books are a close third for me. I am from the Boston area so I enjoy reading about this region of the world plus the descriptions are excellent.
January 30, 2023
A nice book with Charlotte tucker almost as spirited as Laura ingalls. I love the martha years as well. I wish someone would write about Martha and Lew tuckers romance. It would make awesome story of a nobleman's daughter and a blacksmith falling in love,the disapproval of her family , the wedding , going off to America, and Martha adjusting to the life of a middle class life style.
June 14, 2024
Its hard to believe Martha already grew up and settled down. Charlotte is so much like Martha when she was a little girl. This book was a great introduction to the "The Charlotte Years" and I can't wait to read the rest of the series. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoyed "The Martha Years" and the rest of the Little House series.
July 30, 2018
This was a great look into Laura’s family history. Although I really enjoyed it, it was quite short and I wished that the plot had a little more to offer. The characters were very likeable and the writing style transported me into the story. Great addition to the Little House series!
January 7, 2024
Apparently I read this when I was younger, but I don’t recall anything. A bit boring yet informative regarding America’s independence. I felt like the war took too much from the book, but it probably was like that back then.
May 26, 2017
My eight year old daughter and I are having a delightful time reading about Laura's ancestors. While nothing is quite like the original Little House series, these are a wonderful read.
August 9, 2017
I enjoyed this more than some of three other first books in these series. Set in Boston besser the end of the war of 1812. Excited to read the next.
January 25, 2018
I think this is the one where her brother gets his arm or his finger amputated! This book was deeply fascinating to me. That part was so exciting!
April 8, 2018
I keep coming back to these when I'm in search of some young fluff. This has some great historical details, and takes place in a place I've been to (Roxbury), which just makes it more fun.
September 2, 2018
It was nice to read of Martha’s life as a wife and mother. Charlotte reminds me a lot of Martha as a child.
March 13, 2019
Awesome
August 5, 2021
An interesting story, and I love how it involved history from the time it was written about!
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