Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie: The Oregon Trail Diary of Hattie Campbell

This book is the storie of Hattie Campbell in 1847 whose father decides that he wants to move the family to the Oregon territory. This involves traveling from Missouri to Oregon, a six-month trip by wagon through a rather wide variety of dangers.

As Hattie learns, not everyone survives the journey. Not every thing survives, either, as families often have to abandon personal possessions to lessen the weight of their wagons, trying to make the job of the oxen or donkeys easier, although even they often die during the journey.

There's also danger from plants they are not familiar with (like hemlock), from the Indians, from the weather, from crossing rivers and even from each other. The novel shows that the journey was a terrible adventure, and that the cost of starting their lives over could be quite high indeed for those who desired to journey west.

Nowadays, of course, we think nothing of getting on board a plan and travelling from one side of the country to the other, or even of taking a train or just driving a car. Such things were utterly impossible in that day, though, and you got places long distances away through a long and very difficult process of wagon travel.

As with the other books in the series there is also a historical section with some interesting photos. Another good book in the series.

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