In this “delightful mash-up of Little House on the Prairie and The Spiderwick Chronicles” (SLJ), experience life on the prairie—with one fantastical twist! Louisa Brody’s life on the Colorado prairie is not at all what she expected. Her dear Pa, accused of thievery, is locked thirty miles away in jail. She’s living with the awful Smirches, her closest neighbors and the very family that accused her Pa of the horrendous crime. And now she’s discovered one very cantankerous—and magical—secret beneath the hazel grove. With her life flipped upside-down, it’s up to Louisa, her sassy friend Jessamine, and that cranky secret to save Pa from a guilty verdict. Ten bold illustrations from Erwin Madrid accompany seasoned storyteller Melissa Wiley’s vibrant and enchanting tale of life on the prairie—with one magical twist.
Think Marie Antoinette in jeans and a cowboy hat—that is Rachel Ashwell's prairie style. Rachel Ashwell Couture Prairie takes her signature pastels, ruffles, and whimsical prettiness right to the heart of cowboy country. This is a journey in pictures and words, following Rachel through the fields of a little town called Round Top, home to one of the largest, most eclectic and vibrant antiques and flea markets in the world, and then back to Rachel’s bed-and-breakfast in Texas. Here Rachel’s inspired finds, her creative imagination, eye for detail, and her commitment to beauty, comfort, and function have finally come together in one location: The Prairie by Rachel Ashwell—an irresistible destination. This book takes Rachel in a new direction, bringing her eye for cherished patinas and pastel prettiness into the endless landscapes and diverse architectural styles of Texas. Here you will see how her style adapts to corrugated metal sheeting and weathered timbers, and how it brings new life to elegant period mansions. Chapter by chapter, the book leads you through Rachel’s little houses on the prairie, from the Ranger’s Lounge where hearty breakfasts are served, to the Pearl Barn, scene of wedding parties and celebrations, stopping off at the evocatively named guest accommodation: Blue Bonnet Barn, Cornflower Cottage, Meadow Manor, Faith Cottage, and Liliput Lodge.
Quilters can never have too many little quilts! This collection of 12 traditional patterns features a quilt as tiny as 13" square, and the largest quilt is just 34" x 42". Create these charming designs just for the joy of it, and then stack them on tabletops, tuck them into cozy vignettes, and share them with the people you love. Pump up your patchwork skills with a postage-stamp quilt. Take a twist on vintage yo-yo quilts. Create small, two-color beauties. Discover a variety of designs for different skill levels, along with tips throughout for making each quilt distinctively yours.
"This manual, by four of the most knowledgeable prairie restorationists in the Upper Midwest, brings together absolutely everything that anyone, regardless of background, needs to know for proper tallgrass prairie restoration. In addition to chapters on everything from planning to implementing to managing a prairie, chapters on native seed production and restoring prairies in public spaces and along roadsides cover all that is necessary for successful prairie restorations. This book is an absolute must for anyone in the business of prairie restoration as well as a great read for any prairie enthusiast." -- Robert H. Mohlenbrock, distinguished professor emeritus of botany, Southern Illinois University --Book Jacket.
Prairie fires have always been a spectacular and dangerous part of the Great Plains. Nineteenth-century settlers sometimes lost their lives to uncontrolled blazes, and today ranchers such as those in the Flint Hills of Kansas manage the grasslands through controlled burning. Even small fires, overlooked by history, changed lives-destroyed someone's property, threatened someone's safety, or simply made someone's breath catch because of their astounding beauty. Julie Courtwright, who was born and raised in the tallgrass prairie of Butler County, Kansas, knows prairie fires well. In this first comprehensive environmental history of her subject, Courtwright vividly recounts how fire-setting it, fighting it, watching it, fearing it-has bound Plains people to each other and to the prairies themselves for centuries. She traces the history of both natural and intentional fires from Native American practices to the current use of controlled burns as an effective land management tool, along the way sharing the personal accounts of people whose lives have been touched by fire. The book ranges from Texas to the Dakotas and from the 1500s to modern times. It tells how Native Americans learned how to replicate the effects of natural lightning fires, thus maintaining the prairie ecosystem. Native peoples fired the prairie to aid in the hunt, and also as a weapon in war. White settlers learned from them that burns renewed the grasslands for grazing; but as more towns developed, settlers began to suppress fires-now viewed as a threat to their property and safety. Fire suppression had as dramatic an environmental impact as fire application. Suppression allowed the growth of water-wasting trees and caused a thick growth of old grass to build up over time, creating a dangerous environment for accidental fires. Courtwright calls on a wide range of sources: diary entries and oral histories from survivors, colorful newspaper accounts, military weather records, and artifacts of popular culture from Gene Autry stories to country song lyrics to Little House on the Prairie. Through this multiplicity of voices, she shows us how prairie fires have always been a significant part of the Great Plains experience-and how each fire that burned across the prairies over hundreds of years is part of someone's life story. By unfolding these personal narratives while looking at the bigger environmental picture, Courtwright blends poetic prose with careful scholarship to fashion a thoughtful paean to prairie fire. It will enlighten environmental and Western historians and renew a sense of wonder in the people of the Plains.
