Review for The Journey from Peter N. Jones, Bauu Institute

The Journey

I'm a big fan of stories that cover the early pioneer days of U.S. history. Growing up reading the Little House on the Prairie Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, I always pictured myself traveling west across the vast expanses of untamed wilderness, through the big woods of the Midwest and across the Plains to the Rocky Mountains. Well, I never did - simply because I live in the Rocky Mountains - but I still love stories that cover this amazing time in the history of the United States. The Journeyby Frances Bennett is the latest book I've found to cover this period - and boy am I glad that I did.


Unlike many historical fiction accounts of pioneers and early settlers, The Journey is based on the actual events and life of the author's grandmother, Rena Melana Chaney and her marriage and journey west to homestead in southern Arkansas. This gives the book a deeply personal touch to it not often encountered in historical fiction. Set in 1899 the story begins with Rena's (nicknamed Lona) marriage to Charles and their journey from North Carolina on wagon train to the untamed wilderness of southern Arkansas. Along the way they encountered terrible weather, overflowing rivers, wild animals, hunger, and much more. Really, it is one of the more incredible stories I have read - to hear first hand how these intrepid, determined, pioneering individuals crossed an unknown land and settled in an unfamiliar area and started a family is quite the tale.

Taken from early memories of nights spent with Rena as a child, the author not only tells an amazing story, but she also weaves in extensive genealogical information and local history. This is especially revealing in the letters that are contained throughout the story - letters written back and forth between Rena and her family and friends in North Carolina, as well as to other pioneers in the neighboring valleys. Rarely do you get to experience such an intimate window into what it was like to live during this time: how people survived the hot summers and cold winters; how they cultivated the land with just their bare hands; and how they built a community and a life in this previously unsettled part of America.

Arriving in Arkansas, in The Journey Rena and Charles must not only find a place to live, but they have to build that place with what little they brought on the wagon from North Carolina. Building a cabin for the growing family is only one of the concerns; learning to farm in the new environment is another. I'm always amazed when I read well-written accounts of these times - people lived in what were called soddy's (sod grass houses), had no access to a hospital, just the regional doctor who would come calling every couple weeks, or any form of communication with distant family and friends. This is the historical account of the forming of Arkansas and the lives of truly remarkable people.

One of the best ways to learn about U.S. history - and to develop a strong respect for one's parents and grandparents - is to read about how life was when they were growing up. It is hard not to be impressed when you find out just how difficult life used to be and how many hardships they went through in the name of family. The Journey delivers on all of these points. Not only is it an excellent historical fiction on early settler life in an unknown wilderness, but it also provides a rich historical picture of how life used to be. If you are looking for a good historical fiction on settler life in the early West, then I couldn't recommend another book. It is historically accurate, emotionally involving, and deeply moving.