The Able McLaughlins by Margaret Wilson Podcast By Mentor New York cover art

The Able McLaughlins by Margaret Wilson

The Able McLaughlins by Margaret Wilson

By: Mentor New York
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 The Able McLaughlins won the Pulitzer Prize for a novel in 1924 in Margaret Wilson's debut work. Aptly described as "Little House on the Prairie - but for adults" the novel follows a group of Scottish families who pioneer the Iowa prairie in the 1860’s. The main storyline concerns Wully, the eldest McLaughlin son, who returns home from the Civil War to find that his sweetheart, Chirstie, has experienced an unspeakable tragedy that will profoundly affect the couple's lives. Their story is one of shame and honor, secrets and guilt, fear and loathing, revenge and forgiveness. But perhaps the stars of the novel are the strong older women such as Wully’s mother, Isobel, whose love and matriarchal strength keeps the family together as well as Chirstie’s stepmother, Barbara, who finds ways to make her good-for-nothing husband keep his promises. Interlaced with the plots are richly detailed descriptions of frontier prairie life, the love that families share, and the relationships within the Scottish immigrant community. (Warren Kati)Copyright Mentor New York Art Literary History & Criticism
Episodes
  • The Able McLaughlins - Section 17

    The Able McLaughlins - Section 17
    Jul 16 2023
    28 mins
  • The Able McLaughlins - Section 16

    The Able McLaughlins - Section 16
    Jul 16 2023
    18 mins
  • The Able McLaughlins - Section 15

    The Able McLaughlins - Section 15
    Jul 16 2023
    21 mins
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A slice of Midwestern Scottish Tradition

As winner of the #1924 #pulitzerprizeforfiction , #theablemclaughlins by #margaretwilson centers on an extended Scottish immigrant family who've settled in #iowa in the #civilwarera . After joining the Union Army and witnessing the loss of his younger brother and being held as a prisoner in a #confederatearmyprison , #wullymclaughlin returns home to his expansive brood to discover his intended is a frightened and terrorized woman. As we discover the reason for her descent and his efforts to build a family with her, the ups and down of Scottish Clan life, though transplanted from the Scottish Highlands to the American Plains, still indelibly affects the religious, business and personal lives of everyone in the community. The novel was particularly notable as it was a debut work for Margaret Wilson, herself raised in an extended Scottish family in a rural Iowa town. It was the first in a series of McLaughlin Family novels over many generations and the Pulitzer was just one of a handful of prizes awarded for the novel.

I had looked for a copy of the novel, now in the public domain, as an option in #audible . Rather than finding the book, I found a 17 part podcast broken down by chapter as part of a non-profit effort to resurrect out of print novels for a new audience. While I would have preferred to pay a fee rather than suffer through the same few obnoxious ads, I do appreciate the effort made to make older celebrated works which won't attract the attention of a major publisher due to the inherent unprofitable nature of the work. Likewise, I downloaded a public domain written copy of the novel to read along wih the narration. I appreciate having the opportunity to read important works less interesting to modern tastes. The Able McLaughlins definitely fits into that category.

A Slice of Midwestern Scottish Tradition

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