Name: Trials of the Earth
Rating: 3 (3 reviews)

Mary Hamilton

The author shares her memories of pioneer life along the Mississippi Delta

The Autobiography of Mary Hamilton

Trials of the Earth

Mary Mann Hamilton

The astonishing first-person account of Mississippi pioneer woman struggling to survive, protect her family and make a home in the early American South Near the end of her life, Mary Mann Hamilton (1866 - c.1936) began recording her experiences in the backwoods of the Mississippi Delta. The result is this astonishing first-person account of a pioneer woman who braved grueling work, profound tragedy, and a pitiless wilderness (she and her family faced floods, tornadoes, fires, bears, panthers, and snakes) to protect her home in the early American South. An early draft of Trials of the Earth was submitted to a writers' competition sponsored by Little, Brown in 1933. It didn't win, and we almost lost the chance to bring this raw, vivid narrative to readers. Eighty-three years later, in partnership with Mary Mann Hamilton's descendants, we're proud to share this irreplaceable piece of American history. Written in spare, rich prose, Trials of the Earth is a precious record of one woman's extraordinary endurance and courage that will resonate with readers of history and fiction alike.

The True Story of a Pioneer Woman

Lindy

I received a softcover copy of Trials of the Earth from Little, Brown and Company via Goodreads Giveaways.
Mary Mann Hamilton's Trials of the Earth is consistent with other memoirs of the period in style and content. There's a lot of death and severe weather and strange-seeming ideas about childhood and sentences the author doesn't elaborate on but would be easy to spin a whole miniseries episode around. I have a better time with these types of books if I'm reading "for" something besides entertainment.

 Here's the first paragraph: 
In the early 1880s my father brought his family from Missouri down into the wild country of Arkansas that was just beginning to settle up. The Kansas City and Memphis [Railway] was just being graded though, and trains were running only as far as the little sawmill town of Sedgwick, so there we stopped to wait until the road was completed into the prairie country near Jonesboro, where my father expected to buy a home. Within a week he took pneumonia and three days later died, leaving my mother and six children stranded and helpless in a strange country.

I would recommend this book if you have a strong interest in women's memoirs, history of the Mississippi Delta, pioneer narratives, etc. If it doesn't seem like something you'd usually read, though, you probably won't find it particularly compelling.

Raw, vivid, and emotional--the 19th century first-person account of one woman's struggles and triumphs taming the Mississippi Delta. Near the end of her life, Mary Mann Hamilton (1866-c.1936) was encouraged to record her experience as a female pioneer. The result is the only known first-hand account of a woman thrust into the center of taming the American South--surviving floods, tornadoes, and fires; facing bears, panthers, and snakes; all while caring for her children, several of whom didn't survive despite her efforts. The extreme hard work and tragedy she faced are eclipsed only by her strength and faith in her husband, a mysterious Englishman, and by her sense of adventure. Written in frank and expressive prose, and withheld for almost a lifetime, Trials of the Earth speaks to the heart of our ability to endure and will resonate with readers of history and fiction alike.

Amanda Valentin

The astonishing first-person account of Mississippi pioneer woman struggling to survive, protect her family, and make a home in the early American South. Near the end of her life, Mary Mann Hamilton (1866 - c.1936) began recording her experiences in the backwoods of the Mississippi Delta. The result is this astonishing first-person account of a pioneer woman who braved grueling work, profound tragedy, and a pitiless wilderness (she and her family faced floods, tornadoes, fires, bears, panthers, and snakes) to protect her home in the early American South. An early draft of Trials of the Earth was submitted to a writers' competition sponsored by Little, Brown in 1933. It didn't win, and we almost lost the chance to bring this raw, vivid narrative to readers. Eighty-three years later, in partnership with Mary Mann Hamilton's descendants, we're proud to share this irreplaceable piece of American history. Written in spare, rich prose, Trials of the Earth is a precious record of one woman's extraordinary endurance and courage that will resonate with readers of history and fiction alike.

Trials of the Earth The Autobiography of Mary Hamilton

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