Gertrude E. Finney (1892–1977)
Autore di The Plums Hang High
Sull'Autore
Opere di Gertrude E. Finney
Yes, a homestead 2 copie
Stormy Winter 1 copia
One Woman's Land 1 copia
To survive we must be clever, 1 copia
Life is a journey 1 copia
Etichette
Informazioni generali
- Data di nascita
- 1892-05-13
- Data di morte
- 1977-05
- Sesso
- female
- Nazionalità
- USA
- Luogo di nascita
- Morocco, Indiana, USA
- Luogo di morte
- Spokane, Washington, USA
- Luogo di residenza
- Spokane, Washington, USA
- Istruzione
- State College of Washington
- Attività lavorative
- historical novelist
young adult writer - Organizzazioni
- Amethyst Club
Authors Guild
Eastern Washington Historical Society
Spokane Writers
Women in Communications - Breve biografia
- Gertrude E. Finney, née Bridgeman, was born in Morocco, Indiana. Her father George Bridgeman, a hardware merchant, drew a homestead lot on the Coeur d’Alene Indian Reservation and moved the family to northwest Idaho. After his death when Gertrude was 18, she went to work in a general store in Harrison, Idaho. In 1912, she married Dr. John M. Finney, a prominent physician and surgeon in Spokane, Washington, with whom she had four children. She became a well-known author of meticulously-researched historical novels for young people beginning with Sleeping Mines, published in 1951. Her other nine books included The Plums Hang High, To Survive We Must Be Clever, Stormy Winter, and Life is a Journey. She was a member of the Authors Guild, Eastern Washington Historical Society, and Spokane Writers.
Utenti
Recensioni
Selection of this book was based on nostalgia and to determine if my memory of reading this book more than 45 years ago was correct. I do not recall what made me think of this title, but I do remember that it was probably the first book that I ever bought. It was in elementary school, from one of the Scholastic flyers or some early 1960's equivalent of that. It probably cost 25 cents, maybe less. I thought that this was where I learned what Clydesdale horses were, how horses are measured by "hands," and where I first read about alkaline soil. I also thought I remembered a scene where a pioneer family used a bit of donated flour to make a large pancake to lay on the chest of a severely ill baby in an attempt to save her life. When the mother went outside, the older siblings, who were themselves cold and near starvation, took and ate the pancake. It left such an impression on me - perhaps because I could not comprehend such poverty at that time in my life. Two other memories: a farmer judging the productivity of a dormant piece of farm land by noting how battered the corn crib was - it must have held lots of corn - and a final memory of the guilt that a young girl felt after thinking she lost the family's sourdough starter. Without that, they would be doomed to a poor quality flat bread until someone might pass their isolated farm with enough sourdough to share.
So with these memories in mind, I got the book from the library. My memory is intact! My only false memory is the sourdough starter. That was not in the book, so if anyone remembers that scene from some childhood book, let me know! The three star rating is purely nostalgia; the book is sort of a typical American dream, anyone can overcome adversity and succeed with hard work and faith in the land of opportunity of the American West in the 1800's.
Interesting, but not unexpected since this book was written in 1955 - only five other people on Goodreads have read this book!
… (altro)
So with these memories in mind, I got the book from the library. My memory is intact! My only false memory is the sourdough starter. That was not in the book, so if anyone remembers that scene from some childhood book, let me know! The three star rating is purely nostalgia; the book is sort of a typical American dream, anyone can overcome adversity and succeed with hard work and faith in the land of opportunity of the American West in the 1800's.
Interesting, but not unexpected since this book was written in 1955 - only five other people on Goodreads have read this book!
… (altro)
Haiku Review:
What is a
Chickahominy?
Read the book.
SMD
9.16.2010
What is a
Chickahominy?
Read the book.
SMD
9.16.2010
This is the story of a couple and their baby from an upper-class British family who emigrate to America to find their fortune farming. They expect their way to be eased by the presence of the bride's brother, who eloped to American with a servant.
The culture shock is enormous. The bride is stunned to find that servants are quite rare, and that without them, housekeeping is very physically demanding. They go through some very difficult times: "the plums hang high", but eventualy prosper and become part of their new country.
I've read this several times.… (altro)
The culture shock is enormous. The bride is stunned to find that servants are quite rare, and that without them, housekeeping is very physically demanding. They go through some very difficult times: "the plums hang high", but eventualy prosper and become part of their new country.
I've read this several times.… (altro)
1 
PuddinTame | 2 altre recensioni | Jul 10, 2007 |
PuddinTame | 2 altre recensioni | Jul 10, 2007 | Statistiche
- Opere
- 9
- Utenti
- 43
- Popolarità
- #352,016
- Voto
- 3.9
- Recensioni
- 4
- ISBN
- 1
After stumbling upon and enjoying this book back in my adolescence and being deeply affected by an unexpected scene, I've wanted to revisit the book for years. But it was a long shot that I'd ever find a copy of it.
• Was it a novel, a biography, or a biographical novel?
• I couldn't remember the title.
• I couldn't remember the author's name.
• I couldn't remember the names of anyone in the book.
• I remembered only one second of that one unexpected scene with clarity and...
• maybe a redheaded woman on a blue cover with a barn or something?
It took a lot of digging through pictures of old Scholastic books on the internet, hoping to run into a book cover that would match the vague red and blue image in my head, before I came across this book. I was still rather unsure because there wasn't any barn or house on the cover and the title still didn't ring a bell.
Nonetheless, I was hopeful.
And maybe halfway or so through the book, I started to remember bits of what I was reading, making me more confident before I finally reached that one scene that's stuck with me all these years—
The "long shot" hope I'd had all this time was a reality.
How appropriate, considering this is the story of a family living and loving through ups and downs and persevering through setbacks and long odds. Aside from one line that rubbed me the wrong way this time around (Hannah Maria thinking she's living part of her life like "a common gypsy"), I found about as much pleasure and inspiration reading this old-fashioned book as I did decades ago.
No, this isn't my normal kind of book review, if it's a review at all. But because, in a nutshell, reading is all about hope and inspiration for me, it's well worth it to record such a hopeful and inspiring bookish journey.… (altro)