Adventures in the West: Stories for Young Readers » (New Edition)

Susanne George Bloomfield is Distinguished Martin Professor of English at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. Eric Melvin Reed is a graduate assistant in English at the University of Nebraska at Kearney.

Before MP3 players, DVDs, and video games, before even TV and radio, American children entertained themselves by reading. Often what they read were popular magazines aimed at the whole family; a weekly newspaper such as The Youth’s Companion or a monthly magazine like St. Nicholas were about all a turn-of-the-century family could afford. But what these publications afforded was invaluable, and it is this education in imagination and American life that Adventures in the West revisits.

Adventures in the West brings together twenty-six stories from The Youth’s Companion and St. Nicholas to offer a unique perspective on the values of the time. The stories also reveal the common myths, attitudes, and prejudices of life on the western frontier, reflected in the lessons these publications imparted to a young audience. To enhance the reader’s understanding, the editors have added historical and cultural background for each story. Some of the best writers of the time, including L. Frank Baum, Hamlin Garland, and Mary Austin, write of a West that mirrors American history and the values the authors sought to promote. Filled with the exploits of cowpunchers, pioneers, courageous Indians, and plucky animals, these riveting stories also embody the beliefs and experiences of an era and tell more than one story of their day.

Omaha World-Herald

"The stories do more than relate interesting tales. They are windows to the world west of the Mississippi as it transformed from wilderness to a land of farms and cities, from the preserve of Indians to a land claimed mostly by white settlers. . . . [Readers] will appreciate these stories for their adventures, pioneer spirit and colorful characters."

— Carol Bicak, Omaha World-Herald