New Old Book Just in Time for the Storm

The other day, I stopped into the local second-hand store and found The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder in the book section. I've been meaning to reread the Little House books for a few reasons:

• I gave Little the complete illustrated box set a few years ago for Christmas. She still hasn't read them. Every time I mention them and ask if she's read them, her face turns bright red and she says, "Not all the way," and looks SUPER guilty. I tell her it's OK, I'm just curious. Kids these days have far more exciting options than a girl in the middle of nowhere without electricity or running water. I totally get it. But if she does ever read them, I want to be able to chat about them with her.
• Kate's oldest had the first book read to him in school. He's a RABID reader, so he flew through all of the books quickly. He's also interested in history and the way things work, so he had a lot of questions about life in the time of Laura. So interesting! Because of Kate, I now know that you can visit DeSmet, South Dakota and see all kinds of Little House things, which I plan on doing one day. I love pioneer history. Seriously. Covered wagons intrigue me.
• And of course, I LOVED these books when I was little. I also loved the TV series, which was one of the few shows we got out in the country. I always though of myself as Laura, of course. I thought of my sister as Mary. And I didn't think much about the littlest one. I can't even remember her name. (Carrie) She meant nothing to me. It was me and "Mary" all the way. I mean, come on, if you knew me and my sister in Real Life, how could you NOT think of us as these girls? We even wore bonnets like theirs that Ma made for us to the church Heritage Days. Seriously. Of course, my sister never went blind, but whatevs.

Anyway, I was excited to find the book. And it was only $1.50. Score!

The ONLY thing I remember about this book is a snow storm and someone lost in the snow and a candle in the window. I clearly remember that, but that's it. It's entirely possible that storyline isn't even from this book. We'll see.

I wanted to start all over and read the whole series in order, but the thrift shop didn't have all the books. Plus, right now is the perfect time to read the winter book because roughly 6-12 inches of snow will start falling TONIGHT and I will most likely be SNOWED IN for at least a week. I've run all my errands, have food, Diet Dew, and propane.

Now all I need is the snow -- and my good book.