Product Description

In 1878, twelve-year-old Ida Kate and her widowed father welcome a mail-order bride and her baby to their Kansas homestead, but Ida Kate soon suspects that the bride is not the woman with whom Papa has corresponded.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #765252 in Books
• Published on: 2001-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 161 pages

From School Library Journal

Gr 3-6-It's a joyous occasion when a mail-order bride arrives for Ida Kate's Papa, but an uneasy feeling descends when Caroline Fairchild has the wrong color hair and is shorter than expected. With the encouragement of a friend, the child finds increasing evidence that the bride is not who she claims to be. Clues pile up and in the midst of a spring blizzard with her father on a trip to town, the 12-year-old has to decide whether her family is in danger and what to do about it. This is a simple mystery with little suspense since it is obvious from the first that "Caroline" is kind, witty, and capable. The details of life on the Kansas prairie in 1878 help to ground the story, but the blandness of the characters and clear outcome from the beginning leave little to capture readers' interest. This series entry is not successful as history or mystery. Frances Arrington's Bluestem (Philomel, 2000) provides a more vivid picture of prairie life and Joan Lowery Nixon's In the Face of Danger (Bantam, 1996) has a stronger sense of suspense. However, fans of the series will undoubtedly enjoy another safe journey to the sanitized past, where fathers know best, women never lose patience, and the children are above average.-Carol A. Edwards, Sonoma County Library, Santa Rosa, CA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Gr. 5-7. Ida Kate is excited by the arrival her father's mail-order bride. If everything works out, Ida Kate can be relieved of the many chores she's had to take on since her mother's death. When Caroline Fairchild arrives she's good tempered, a good cook, and a good mother to her own little son. But then Ida Kate notices some odd things. Where is the auburn hair Caroline's letters mentioned? Why is she not tall or allergic to the family's cat? After some snooping, the girl realizes that the woman is an imposter. Could she be a murderess, too? Answers come in a turbulent finish during which Ida Kate braves a prairie blizzard to save Mrs. Fairchild and finally learns the truth about this newcomer. The story is formulaic but engrossing. Readers will enjoy the mystery aspect as they are immersed in an era when strength and hard work were necessities for survival. An afterward discusses the historical context of the story, making this addition to the History Mysteries series especially useful where curriculums call for literature tie-ins to history topics. Denise Wilms
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Customer Reviews

Intriguing Riddle
It's 1878. Ida Kate Deming and her father live on a farm on the Kansas prairie, several miles from the nearest town. Since the death of Ida Kate's mother, she has had to take on the household chores: cleaning, mending, cooking, etc. It's a big job for a young girl, and it doesn't leave enough time for Ida Kate to attend school or see her friends much. Small wonder, then, that Ida Kate is excitedly looking forward to the arrival of the mail-order bride that is coming from back east to marry her father. Trouble arrives with the new member of the family, however. Her hair is the wrong color, she's too short, she cooks too well and sings too well, she isn't allergic to the cat, and her handwriting is different from the handwriting in the letters they received. Who is this woman, really? What happened to the woman Ida Kate and her father were expecting?

While portraying the hardships of life on the frontier in the late 1800's, "Riddle Of The Prairie Bride" also gives kids an intriguing mystery to sink their teeth into. "Formulaic" it may be, but this is fine for kids. A plot with too many complications could be overwhelm a young reader. My ten-year-old daughter got quite caught up in this tale, and wanted to "keep reading" each evening until we finished it. Readers of other "history mysteries" will not be disappointed with this one. If you have never read one, give one a try.

A very Worth While Book!
This book is all about Ida Kate. When her Mother dies, she is left all he chores, and can't attend school. A friend of Ida Kate's mother dies also. Her father sent away for a mail bride (that is where two people send lots of letters, and then the lady comes and they get married). Her friend's step-mother was very nice, so Ida Kates father decided to try. When Caroline (his mail bride) gets there she brings a big surprise with her. This is a very good story!

A great new book from the History Mysteries series.
Ever since her mother's death two years ago, twelve-year-old Ida Kate Deming has done all the housework for herself and her father on their Kansas homestead. The year is 1878, and life on the prairie is difficult, dangerous, and lonely. Ida Kate's father has decided the time has come for him to remarry. He puts an advertisement for a wife in an eastern newspaper, and a young widow, Caroline Fairchild, who has a one-year-old son, responds. Ida Kate is eager to have a mother and a brother, and her father is eager to once again have a wife. But all is not right with Caroline. Soon, Ida Kate begins to suspect that Caroline may not be Caroline at all, but someone else entirely different. But if "Caroline" is an impostor, what happened to the real Caroline? And are Ida Kate and her father in danger? This was a wonderful addition to the History Mysteries series that brought alive life on the prairie in the 1870s. Ida Kate was a spirited, adventurous heroine. I reccomend this book to all those who enjoyed the other History Mysteries books.