A Settler's Year is Kathleen's second work of non-fiction, and her thirty-second published book. This page provides a rich mix of background information about the book and its roots at Old World Wisconsin.

Story Description

A Settler's Year: Pioneer Life Through The Seasons provides a rare glimpse into the lives of early immigrants to the Midwest. Evocative photographs taken at Old World Wisconsin, the country’s largest outdoor museum of rural life, lushly illustrate stories woven by historian, novelist, and poet Kathleen Ernst and compelling firsthand accounts left by the settlers.

Here we discover the challenges and triumphs found in the seasonal rhythms of rural life in the 19th and early 20th centuries. As we turn the pages— traveling from sprawling farm to tidy crossroads village and from cramped and smoky cabins to gracious, well-furnished homes— we experience the back-straining chores, cherished folk traditions, annual celebrations, and indomitable spirit that comprised pioneer life.

At its heart A Settler’s Year is about people dreaming of, searching for, and creating a new home in a new land. This moving book transports us back to the pioneer era and inspires us to explore the stories found on our own family trees.

This book features the beautiful photographs of Loyd Heath, and is available in hardcover and e-book versions. Use the FIND THE BOOK link below to see a list of booksellers that it can be ordered from.

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What Others Are Saying

	52 Great Reads Library of Congress Center for the Book Named to the 2015 list of 52 books "representing the literary heritage of the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands."
	Noon Lecture Series Selection US National Archives in Washington DC This twenty year series features books that reflect the holdings of the National Archives, which include the Wisconsin land applications submitted by settlers under the 1862 Homestead Act.
	Jerry Apps Award-winning Author of Old Farm: A History and Whispers and Shadows: A Naturalist’s Memoir "In A Settler’s Year, featuring author Kathleen Ernst’s carefully crafted prose and Loyd Heath’s beautifully rendered photographs, we relive the early settler’s experience in the wilds of Wisconsin. We learn of the challenges of each season of the year, from ‘when spring softens the landscape’ to the long days of winter—the quiet season. And we come to understand what these early arrivals endured as they struggled to make a living in a new land. This is a book with great meaning for those of us who grew up on farms, and a book to be shared with young people eager to know more about pioneer life.”
	Jim Higgins Books and Performing Arts Reviewer Milwaukee Journal Sentinel "...when the word immigrant is flung about in political discourse like a swear word, "A Settler's Year" is a gentle, visually engaging reminder that just a few generations ago, nearly all the people living in Wisconsin came from somewhere else — and made a new life here through hard work and the support of their neighbors."
	US History Book Award Finalist 2015 USA National Best Books Awards
	Award Finalist Midwest Independent Publishers Association Melds "exemplary text, design, and artwork."

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About the Author

Bestselling author Kathleen Ernst writes award-winning mysteries as well as historical fiction and nonfiction for adults and young readers. Her work has earned numerous honors, including an Emmy, a LOVEY, and nominations for an Edgar and multiple Agatha mystery awards.

To date readers have purchased over 1.7M printed, ebook, and audio copies of Kathleen's thirty-five published books. more>>

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Related Blog Posts

Enjoy the author's insights about the story, characters, and settings. Note: additional blog posts will be added during the fall of 2015.

	Why A Settler's Year? "I’ve been thinking about the journey I’ve taken with this book. Why did I spend two years living with this project, and why was I confident that readers..." more>>
	Old World Wisconsin: A Photographer's Paradise "Most of the photographs in Kathleen Ernst’s latest book A Settler’s Year: Pioneer Life Through the Seasons were taken by me..." more>>
	Immigrant Children "Immigrating as an adult in the 19th century would have been challenging enough. Can you imagine what the trip might have been like for a young child? more>>
	The Ones Left Behind "Scott and I recently spent two weeks in Norway (lucky us!) and I thought a lot about the conditions that prompted so many people to leave..." more>>
	Immigrant Trunks "Artistry aside, any immigrant trunk is valuable because it represents the people who struggled to fit their old lives within its confines." more>>
	Precious Papers "...these papers might include a “passport” giving a traveler permission to leave, a statement from the local church attesting to his or her..." more>>
	Immigrants And The Erie Canal "When thinking about the journey undertaken by 19th-century European immigrants, my mind instinctively conjures pictures of..." more>>

	CONTACT KATHLEEN
	JOIN KATHLEEN'S EMAIL LIST
	VISIT KATHLEEN'S FACEBOOK PAGE