Little House: The Caroline Years Reading Order
| Title | Published | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| Little House in Brookfield | 1996 | Buy |
| Little Town at the Crossroads | 1997 | Buy |
| Little Clearing in the Woods | 1998 | Buy |
| On Top of Concord Hill | 2000 | Buy |
| A New Little Cabin | 2001 | Buy |
| Little City by the Lake | 2003 | Buy |
| A Little House of Their Own | 2005 | Buy |
| Across the Rolling River | 2011 | Buy |
Maria D. Wilkes grew up reading the Little House books and spent years fascinated by pioneer history before getting the chance to write her own chapter of that story. Writing as Maria D. Wilkes (her real name is Maria T. DiVencenzo), she worked with the Laura Ingalls Wilder estate and consulted historians to make sure the Caroline Years books were grounded in genuine period detail. Her research drew on original family letters, diaries, and primary documents about the Quiner and Ingalls families.
The series focuses on Caroline Quiner, the girl who would eventually become Ma, the steady, capable mother at the center of Wilder’s books. Starting in 1845 in Brookfield, Wisconsin, the Caroline Years books fill in a gap in the Little House universe, showing the childhood that shaped the woman Laura wrote about so warmly. Caroline’s family has already suffered loss by the time the first book opens, her father was lost at sea the year before, and the series follows her growing up in a household where resilience is simply expected.
Wilkes lives in New Jersey with her family. In addition to the main Caroline Years novels, she wrote a set of shorter chapter books adapted for younger readers, expanding the audience for Caroline’s story beyond the core series.