Book Title and Author: Wisconsin Lore by Robert E. Gard & L. G. Sorden
Main Idea of Story: A collection of Wisconsin folklore.
Main Characters in the Book: With the wide range of stories being shared the characters are abundant. Famous characters include Paul Bunyan, the greatest lumberjack, Whiskey Jack, a renown raftsman, and the infamous “Fighting Finches”, masterful horse-stealers.
Something Unique and Interesting about the Story/Book for readers to know: This book is a compilation of many stories. Stories of Wisconsin pioneers, Native American Indians, farmers and communities as a whole. These various stories paint a culturally rich and historically abundant picture of Wisconsin!
Favorite Part of the Story/Book and Why: There are two main parts we would like to highlight.
- The stories of the Raftsmen. Starting around page 95 to chapter 4. These stories provide insight into the past lives on the water.
- Chapter 8 is all about good ol buried treasure. Do we need to say more!? Who doesn’t like buried treasure!??
Was This book entertaining, educational, amusing, etc?: This book is educational and entertaining! At times a bit dense reading, but worth the dig in to learn more about who we are as a Wisconsin Community!
Would you recommend this Book?: With the varying stories this is a great book for the coffee table or 3 season room to pick up and enjoy in small breaks. We recommend reading a few stories, setting it down and continuing the adventure in casual increments.
“…a real peak into vanishing 19th Century America, and into real folk temper and folk wit. A treasury of Americana.”
-The Kirkus Reviews
“Fun and interesting to read, especallly if you live in Wisconsin. Topics range from circus lore and lumberjack stories to tall tales and buried treasure stories.”
-Matt (GoodReads)