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  • The Way I See It

  • A Look Back at My Life on Little House
  • By: Melissa Anderson
  • Narrated by: Jane Pfitsch
  • Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
  • 3.6 out of 5 stars (549 ratings)

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The Way I See It

By: Melissa Anderson
Narrated by: Jane Pfitsch
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Editorial reviews

The coyly titled The Way I See It is the autobiography of Melissa Anderson, known to viewers all over the world as Mary, the blind Ingalls sister on the immensely popular 1970s-1980s television series Little House on the Prairie.Affectionately and engagingly performed by Jane Pfitsch, The Way I See Ittakes the listener onto the set of Little House and introduces her to some of the actors America came to love, including Melissa Gilbert and Michael Landon, or "America’s family man", as Anderson calls him. The listener then learns of Anderson’s life after Little House, include her eventual gig in Canada in the "best role of my life", happily married wife and mother of two.

Publisher's summary

When other girls her age were experiencing their first crushes, Melissa Sue Anderson was receiving handwritten marriage proposals from fans as young as, and younger than, she was. When other girls were dreaming of their first kiss, Melissa was struggling through hers in front of a camera. From age 11, in 1974, until she left the show, in 1981, Melissa Anderson literally grew up before the viewers of Little House on the Prairie.

Melissa, as Mary, is remembered by many as the blind sister - and she was the only actor in the series to be nominated for an Emmy. In The Way I See It, she takes listeners onto the set and inside the world of the iconic series created by Michael Landon, who, Melissa discovered, was not perfect, as much as he tried to be. In this memoir she also shares her memories of working with guest stars like Todd Bridges, Mariette Hartley, Sean Penn, Patricia Neal, and Johnny Cash.

In addition to stories of life on the set, Melissa offers revealing looks at her relationships off-set with her costars, including the other Melissa (Melissa Gilbert) and Alison Arngrim, who portrayed Nellie Oleson on the show. And she relates stories of her guest appearances on iconic programs such as The Love Boat and The Brady Bunch.

Filled with personal, revealing anecdotes and memorabilia from the Little House

©2010 Melissa Anderson (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about The Way I See It

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Not really a behind the scenes

I’ve listen to other books by the cast, and they always say how remote Melissa Anderson was, that is on full display here. It’s basically a telling of her favorite episodes with a few background stories - in which she weaves some anticlimactic stories about her personal life. There is one about her getting pulled over with friends when she was younger. The story is literally so inconsequential you wonder how she remembered it, let alone why she included it.

Overall, it’s an enjoyable listen, but unless you’re a diehard fan, go right to Allison Arngrim’s brilliant, revealing, and courageous book.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Good book

I love Little House, so it was great hearing some behind the scenes stories. But, I really disliked the play by play of several episodes. That was annoying. Also, the way she told some of her personal stories as if it was a script was strange too.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Enlighting behind the scenes story.

Narrator was excellent, really brought the story to life. Now I'm rewatching the series from start.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable!

I’m glad I didn’t listen to the negative reviews! I liked this story. Yes, she mentions her accomplishments, so what? The book is her story! I enjoyed her reminiscing about many individual episodes. Name dropping? Who cares? They are people she worked with! Some folks simply come across as being a little jealous. Thanks for the memories, Missy!

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Delightful

What's fun about Melissa Anderson's book is that it delivers what it promises; a look back at her years on Little House. She has wonderful insights on being a child actress, as well as her feelings toward fellow cast members. There are times the book feels like Melissa is just recapping (sometimes line for line) episodes she was in. The second half of the book has a lot of this episode re-hashing. The good chapters act more like a commentary track, giving you insight was to what was going on behind the scenes or in her life.

If you like Little House, the book is a delight.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Good material, narration...not so much

I enjoyed the material and the backstories. It’s a well written piece. I didn’t like how the narrator tries to change her voice to that of a young Melissa Gilbert, a Michael Landon, Todd Bridges and so forth. I found myself rolling my eyes at the narrator’s attempt at making this book a “one man show”. The voice changing attempts were unnecessary and distracting from the story.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

So so...

Interesting stories about her life but the book was more of an episodic summary of Little House. I wanted to know more about the author but no dice. The book was so so.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A wonderful audio book to listen to.

I’m a huge “Little House On The Prairie” fan. I’m 49 years old & I still watch it today. I had been waiting for Melissa Sue Anderson’s book to come out on audio format. Thank you, auditable books for having her book on audio format. I’m legally blind & reading printed books I can’t do anymore, so I have to listen to books. I loved listening to books, &, I love this book because actress Melissa Sue Anderson goes “behind the scenes” of the show she starred as Mary Ingalls. Thank you, I love this book. I just wished you have actress Melissa Gilberts book “Prairie Tales” available on auditable. Maybe someday. Thank you.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Loved it!

I just loved how Missy went through every season! I heard some things I never knew.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Loved

I loved Little House on the Prairie and this brought back many found memories!!! I truly enjoyed this book!!

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