WHOA NELLY!

In Tracey’s novel, a lonely librarian finds friendship and love as she explores the world of author Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Middle-aged librarian Nelly finds escape from her solitary world in her love for (some might say obsession with) the life and work of author Laura Ingalls Wilder, who wrote the Little House on the Prairie books. Nelly’s fascination with the Little House books began early, partly as a means to escape a traumatic childhood that included a domineering mother and traumatic abuse. As the novel begins, she’s 45 and still enamored with Wilder’s literary world—so much so that after she loses her job, she retreats into Wilder’s books, chatting on fan sites and compiling a Laura Ingalls Wilder bible, an encyclopedia of everything she knows about Wilder. This leads to an impulsive, Wilder-themed pilgrimage to De Smet, South Dakota, the setting for some of the Little House books. There, with the help of a fellow Wilder aficionado named Al, Nelly begins to reckon with the loss, loneliness, and longing that have defined her life. Tracey takes readers on this journey with the help of footnotes that reveal Nelly’s innermost thoughts, including those about her scarring childhood and her burgeoning, life-changing romance with Al. Eventually, she begins coming to terms with her childhood, her mother’s role in it, and how she’s hidden her true self in Wilder’s world. The narrative is by turns laugh-out-loud funny and heartbreakingly honest, a balancing act that the author manages with aplomb. The footnotes could be gimmicky, but they work effectively here to offer clever insights into Wilder and her work—and into Nelly’s life as well. The novel boasts a distinctive voice, thanks to its first-person point of view and Tracey’s lively blend of humor, intellect, and emotional honesty. The story is full of warmth and wit that will delight readers, whether they’re fans of Wilder’s work or not.

A funny, fierce, nostalgic, and deeply tender novel.