Hi y’all!

I hope you are enjoying your summer. We have had such a busy June with so many fun and exciting things happening. And we’ve loved celebrating birthdays and enjoying friendships.

I am excited to share my review of My Antonia by Willa Cather today. I read this as part of my latest Classics Club list.

What a beautifully written novel about pioneer life in the Midwest! I have had this book recommended several times and was glad to experience it for myself. It felt like a more mature, complex Little House on the Prairie. I felt transported back to that time in American history but with an added depth and complexity.

Book Summary: “Through Jim Burden’s endearing, smitten voice, we revisit the remarkable vicissitudes of immigrant life in the Nebraska heartland, with all its insistent bonds. Guiding the way are some of literature’s most beguiling characters: the Russian brothers plagued by memories of a fateful sleigh ride, Antonia’s desperately homesick father and self-indulgent mother, and the coy Lena Lingard. Holding the pastoral society’s heart, of course, is the bewitching, free-spirited Antonia.”

The writing is absolutely beautiful in this novel. Descriptions of people, farm life, and Jim’s experiences were all incredible. The details that Cather uses are so vibrant. You can see the settings so clearly through her words. And it feels like you are there experiencing the dance tent, the funeral of Antonia’s father, sleeping in the loft, riding a pony in the fields and more. The words create vibrant settings that come alive for readers. I felt like I was living in the farm country of the Nebraska countryside. Over and over, I was mesmerized by the ways the words create beauty. The writing makes this book a classic.

The characters are also so well developed and vibrant. We get to know these characters over many years. We see them change from children to teenagers and then to adults. I felt like I was a part of the community, like I would recognize these characters on the street. The ways she describes Antonia were very clear and clever. She stands out from all other characters with her zest for life, her determination, her hard work, and her love of country life. I enjoyed seeing Jim grow up first on the farm then in town. The people that he interacts with and the way they stay in touch over the years. A compelling cast of characters.

This book focuses on writing and setting more than plot and action. It is not in a hurry to tell a story or get to the next set of action packed scenes. At times, that was a bit of a hindrance. The middle got a little slow for me. Perhaps it just felt like it meandered a lot and didn’t have the focus on the beginning and end. I was surprised that Antonia and Jim don’t end up together. But the ending is very satisfying and brings closer and completion to their story. The context with Jim himself giving Willa Cather the manuscript for this story was also fun. I want to look up and see if that’s true or simply something that she created.

I’m glad to have read this classic! The writing is beautiful, the characters are compelling and you are transported to life on the plains. Well worth the read!

What are some of your favorite classics?
Any Willa Cather fans out there? Which of her books are your favorites?

This is my 5th classic finished on my 2nd list for The Classics Club!
Check out my full list here. To see my completed first list, click here. For more info on the club, click here.