Some time back in July I started watching the new Little House on the Prairie series on Netflix. I watched a couple of episodes but felt confused about the differences compared to the old series from 1974 with/by Michael Landon, which I must have watched several times over in the past, on various TV channels. This disturbed me, so I only got through maybe three episodes.
It struck me that I've never actually read the original books that both series are based on, though (by Laura Ingalls Wilder). So I went looking for those on my "talking books" library app, where I also managed to find them - the first four in English, the rest in Swedish translation. So that whole series was what I spent most of my "reading by listening" time on throughout the month of August, and into September.
Little House in the Big Woods
Little House on the Prairie
On the Banks of Plum Creek
By the Shores of Silver Lake
The Long Winter
Little Town on the Prairie
These Happy Golden Years
The First Four Years
It did not take me very long to realise that actually the 1974 TV series (with/by Michael Landon) took a lot of liberties with the original story too ...
... like having the family settling at one place and remaining there through most of the series; rather than starting over in new places several times (and each time building a new house!) - as I now learned from the books that they actually did...
I have not yet started over with the Netflix version - but I think I may be ready to try it now, with less preconceptions in my head of the 1974 TV series representing "the truth"... ;)
Curious to know if anyone else among my blogging friends have seen it, and if so, what you thought?
I have only seen the Michael Landon ones. Hard to believe that little Bit must be in her 60's now!
ReplyDeleteI cancelled my Netflix subscription when they raised the price for the third or fourth time without notice and without any noticeable improvement in service. So, I have not seen the new adaptation of the books. I read the first four books of the series as a child, and watched the Michael Landon adaptation when it first viewed. I even read a couple of the books to my children when they were young. It wasn't until a few years ago when I read Rose Wilder Lane's autobiography that I decided to read the series again. That was when I started picking up on some darker truths of the Ingles family that I hadn't seen when I read the books the first few times I read the books. I think now if I read them to a child, I would have to stop at certain points and point out to them the differences in social acceptability that we have now.
ReplyDeleteLisa, I didn't read these books in my childhood but no doubt it's common that we see more, or different, aspects as adults than we did as children...
DeleteDuring my late childhood and early teens, the Michael Landon series was shown on TV here in Germany. Sometimes I watched it, sometimes I didn't - never been a fan of Mr. Landon, a little too full of himself in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteBut I read ALL the books when I was about 12, and LOVED them even though some bits irked me. I remember one incident where Laura's mother forces her to give away her beloved doll to another child (can't remember the exact circumstances) and said to her daughter "You mustn't be so selfish, Laura!" I wanted to shout at the mother: "She's only a child herself! She loves that doll!"
But overall, I understood the books as Laura Ingalls-Wilder's autobiography, and they taught me a lot about hardship and making do and sticking together as a family. The wikipedia article about her, the books and her family makes for interesting reading, too.
As for the Netflix series, I watched the 1st episode with great anticipation but stopped after that. It's probably just me not being in the right mood, but I couldn't warm to the extremely pretty little girl with the rosebud lips being the heroine.
Meike, I find it interesting that you too got disappointed with the new series and didn't go on watching it - even if perhaps not all easy to pin down why. I might give it another go just to check if all my reading in between has made any difference! ;)
Delete(I've read the Wiki article too and agree that's helpful.)
I vaguely remember the original series and don't think I would enjoy a newer series, I'd be making comparisons. I think the books are better, though I no longer own any.
ReplyDeleteRiver, I find it's often very hard to fall in love all over again with re-makes of old series that one remembers well (and liked the first version of)...
Deletenooooo I can't believe they remade the series. The original was way better, I use to watch it as a child in the 1970s and loved it.
ReplyDelete