Book Review: Prairie Tale, by Melissa Gilbert

I came across Prairie Tale while I was in the middle of reading The Wilder Life, by Wendy McClure. McClure's book left me so indifferent that I was uninspired to write a review on it, but in its pages it had mention that Half-Pint herself had published a memoir.

I was always a fan of the Little House television series. My family also owned the country blue box-set of paperbacks, although I never cracked one open other than to look at the illustrations. My reading likes, at that age, fell more into Beverly Cleary, Judy Blume, Shel Silverstein territory. If I had access to prairie life via an hour in front of the tube, God bless you Michael Landon, that's how I was going to take it!

Laura was always my favorite character in the series (becoming slightly over-shadowed once her handsome adopted brother was introduced into the show.) I also being the outdoorsy middle-child tomboy in the family, it was easy to relate. So I dove right into this easy read, even as it spun so insanely far from innocent prairie territory.

Prairie Tale certainly covers Melissa Gilbert's chaste and idyllic years growing up on the Little House set. Her home life was a stark contrast to that of the Ingalls, but she still grew up very privileged and loved. The discomfort in your stomach will come at the point were Melissa starts to party a bit, have teenage sex and dabble with cocaine. You'll do the math in your head and realize that this turn of events comes about while Melissa is still playing Laura, albeit grown Laura who becomes married to Almanzo and a mother... But, nonetheless, Laura Ingalls doing cocaine?!

Then the book got really good.

 

I always knew Melissa Gilbert had dated Rob Lowe at some point in the eighties. I just didn't realize how many years that relationship strung on for and how entrenched in the Brat Pack clique Laura Ingalls, eh... Melissa Gilbert actually was. She partied with the Estevez-Sheens (dad, Martin, included), dated Tom Cruise, Scott Baio, Billy Idol (this is not a joke!) and while Rob Lowe was cheating on her with a number of young blonde starlets, she cheated on him with his own buddy John Cusack!

At this point, you start to finally lose the Prairie image, forget about "Laura" and start to get wrapped up in Melissa Gilbert's story. Which is a good and triumphant one. She winds through heartbreak, addiction, motherhood, sobriety, breaks in sobriety, that whole SAG presidency and all of the drama that came with it. She does dish, but somehow in a way that doesn't seem dishy. Just like someone telling her story and deciding to be completely honest about it.

And, she's kinda funny. Who knew!

In the final Acknowledgments section she leaves a list of possible book titles that her friends (including the likes of Tom Hanks) had suggested to her, including:

• Half Pint Goes to Hollywood
• Lights, Cameras, Blackouts
• From Half Pint to Sag-ging Adult
• Nellie's Not a B****, Mary Is

and my personal favorite

• I Never Tripped on That Hill (But My Little Sister Did, Bwaaaaahhh)

It's a good tale.