Never too Late to Read Classics discussion

Hamlin Garland was born in Wisconsin in a log cabin in September 1860 on a farm his father bought a year earlier. He is best known for his fiction involving hard-working Midwestern farmers. In 1922 he won the Pulitzer Prize for A Daughter of the Middle Border which is part of a series.

The Eagle's Heart written in 1900 is a coming of age story for Harold. All he ever wanted was to be out in the plains, living the free life of a cowboy as long as that life took him far away from people. He wanted to live the life he had read so much about and dreamed of living in since he was little.

Harold had one friend. He had a temper. He could train a horse better than anyone. Does he have a meaningful life? Let us find out. Who plans to read this one over the next three months? (304 paperback pages)

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/21255

I'll be joining in on this one.

Welcome Kathy, since finding it on Gutenberg I thought I might also!

Kathy wrote: "I'll be joining in on this one."

I change my mind and found a hardcover and ordered it. It said 5 to 10 days. I will let you know when I get it. Not sure if I can fit it in this month.

Anyone else thinking about this one?

I'll be ready to start this soon.

I’ll be reading this one with the group. I’ve been digging into westerns and I absolutely love them.

Great to have several reading this one!

I’ll try to start in February.

Annette that is probably when I will be able to as well!

I've started this and like how Garland tells the story. Harold and his father both have terrible tempers.

I was telling Larron about Hamlin Garland yesterday when I got the book in the mail. I have never heard of him before and he is and American Author.

He is from Wisconsin Kathy!

Lesle wrote: "I was telling Larron about Hamlin Garland yesterday when I got the book in the mail. I have never heard of him before and he is and American Author.

He is from Wisconsin Kathy!"

Yes, he is! I read a book by Garland years ago. Maybe in college? I remember liking it, but haven't read any books by him since.

I finally got to start this today.
Howard is a teenager with the mindset of wanting to be out in the country on his own like the Indians are. He talks the opposite of what he really wants.
He is in trouble at the moment and has lost his girl to another.

I am at about the same point Lesle. But I am also reading The Emigrant so I won’t be keep a fast pace.

That will probably be me in about 7 days. I thought I had ordered the Emigrants but somehow messed up and ordered the 2nd book in the series.

So reading this one for now.

Still reading. The writing style is more tell than show.

Yes, Yes!

filled with exaltation by every familiar thing--by the flights of ground sparrows, by the patches of green grass, by the smell of the wind, by the infrequent boom of the prairie chickens.

Can just picture their trip out.

There are very vivid descriptions. I can picture it all too, Lesle.

I've finally gotten back to this one and am at 60%. I want to see what happens next.

I just went back to it to after reading the Reluctant Dragon.

I am enjoying this one so far.

I've finished. I liked the writing style of Garland; he created vivid pictures of the West.

I am glad this one was suggested. I am really enjoying the style and story.

Harold has met up with the Pratts, Mose and Jennie. I noticed when the Dad talks to Jennie it is spelled Jinnie.

The descriptions of the trip itself and surrounding area are quite picture building in my mind and beautiful now they are coming upon more wildflowers.

The prairie was gone. The tiger lily, the sweet Williams, the pinks, together with the luxuriant meadows and the bobolinks, were left behind. In their stead, a limitless, upward shelving plain outspread, covered with a short, surly, hairlike grass and certain sturdy, resinous plants supporting flowers of an unpleasant odor, sticky and weedy. Bristling cacti bulged from the sod; small Quaker-gray sparrows and larks were the only birds. In the swales blue joint grew rank. The only trees were cottonwoods and cutleaf willow, scattered scantily along the elbows in the river.

Lesle wrote: "The prairie was gone. The tiger lily, the sweet Williams, the pinks, together with the luxuriant meadows and the bobolinks, were left behind. In their stead, a limitless, upward shelving plain outs..."

Very descriptive.

I really enjoy his writing. He really makes a great image in my mind of the area they are traveling through.

Harold having to hide out and become Mose (as I lift my brows and smirk).
He goes back after 4 years to find Mary and hopefully she has waited on him. He realizes that maybe she is better off without him.
What will he do now?

I finished a couple of days ago. I find it interesting that the weather extremes of the area he is in are not mentioned more. I live in the general area of the story -- we have snow and drought; we have over 100 degree Fahrenheit temperatures and monsoon-like rains..

It was a very beautiful hour of the day. The west was filled with cool, purple-gray clouds, and a fresh wind had swept away all memory of the heat of the day. Old people sat reading or listlessly talking beside their cottage doors. A few carriages were astir. It was a day of rest and peace and love-making to this busy little community. The mills were still and even the water seemed to run less swiftly, only the fishes below the dam had cause to regret the day's release from toil, for on every rock a fisherman was poised.

Can you just not picture this?

Yes, very much so!

Kathy I am really enjoying his descriptive passages!

Mose seems to be very busy being Deputy Marshall and cleaning up the area of ilk.

Well I finally finished! Had the house to myself this weekend and took full advantage of it after all my cleaning chores were done.

I truly enjoyed the coming of age tale, the descriptions of the westward travel, the romance part with Mary and the friendship with Jack.

How he went from Harold a Pastor's son and turned into Mose a well known man for his skills. How he took his learning of being a man seriously. How he broke horses differently, shows you what type of person he was. How he earned his way and how is love endured all the years that went by. It actually ended totally different than I thought it would about midway through.

As I have already stated Garland's writing styling is very vivid and detailed that you have no problem following the trail west with Mose. Most enjoyable and different than what I had expected.

It ended differently than I thought it would, too, Lesle.

I just had a gap in my Kindle reading schedule until May so decided to fill it with The Eagle's Heart.

Hope you find it a good read Brian!

I finished. I enjoyed it but not as much as others on here.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... where, like Lesle, I refer to it being written 2 years before the Virginian. I finished my review before reading Lesle's so I wouldn't be influenced to plagiarize and then I do anyway. Oh well I guess it's not really plagiarism in this instance.

I found your review well written Brian including the "hokey" part.

I had not heard of him before and found it interesting that it was written before the Virginian. I will have to think about purchasing the Middle Border books.

Lesle wrote: "I had not heard of him before and found it interesting that it was written before the Virginian. I will have to think about purchasing the Middle Border books."

I purchased both the Son and Daughter middle border books as Kindles from Amazon. I should say obtained rather than purchased as they were freebies, making the purchasing decision an easy one. And they're guaranteed to be worth every penny.