cover image ADIRONDACK TALES: A Girl Grows Up in the Adirondacks in the 1880s

ADIRONDACK TALES: A Girl Grows Up in the Adirondacks in the 1880s

Edna West Teall, ADIRONDACK TALES: A Girl Grows Up in the Adirondacks in the. , $29.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-922595-20-4

Adirondack Life magazine has reissued, with a new introduction, this vivid yet intimate portrait of rural life in the late 1800s by Teall (1881–1968), a journalist and painter (her work was recognized by Life magazine) who grew up in a brick Georgian home on a 170-acre farm near Essex in upstate New York. It is a pleasure to read her childhood memories, both for their evocation of a time long past and for the author's insights into the world of a hardworking farming community, all further enhanced by 40 of her accomplished paintings. Although constrained by economy and availability, her mother's skillful cooking could cleverly turn a "monotonous" meal into a tasty treat. (Teall shares several recipes, including a mouthwatering one for chicken pie.) Despite the struggle to wrest a living from the land, her family's load was lightened by the practice of "neighboring," an active process of sharing that was more than purely social. Teall describes many joyful community events, like the annual fair and church gatherings, but, she relates, neighbors also relied on one another, in the absence of medical help, to nurse one another's sick and to help prepare a body for burial. Clearly nostalgic, Teall lovingly remembers her parents and an outdoor life in which she reveled. Still, she also relates some of the narrower aspects of that society. For instance, her neighbors looked down on some immigrant groups, and rural families like the author's were, in turn, regarded as hicks by townspeople. Deliberate and sure, Teall also delivers several tart comments on the lack of options for women in her youth. (Feb.)

Correction: The correct spelling of the name of the author of The Queen and Di (Forecasts, February 3) is Ingrid Seward.