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		*Rural Route Bookstore* Scandinavian-American and Rural Humor Books Books about Farm Life, Small Town Life, the Midwest, and Scandinavian-Americans Featuring the Heartwarming Humor of "Those Lutheran Ladies"
Home Caragana Press (Books & Products by Nelson & Martin) Books/Tapes Trivets Cloth Stuff Plus Lutheran Ladies Martin House Books Hotflash Helps Erling N. Rolfsrud Books Children's Books Church Basement Ladies (CBL) CBL 1 Tour Schedule CBL 2 (sequel) Urness Township Book Rural Route Farm Life Hometown Humor Country Schools Church Life Nostalgia Music & Videos Reference Calendars Language Dictionaries General Scandinavia Sale Items About Suzann Place an Order		Immigration Nonfiction Norway to America: A History of the Migration by Ingrid Semmingsen Semmingsen, former professor of American history at the University of Oslo and international expert on the topic of Scandinavian immigration, has written the definitive study of emigration from the Norwegian perspective. Translated by Einar Haugen and first published in 1978 by the University of Minnesota Press, the book has been recently reissued. The book tells the story of the migration, from 1815 to 1915, as it affected both Norway and the United States. IM-8 Paperback $16.95 The Red River Trails: Oxcart Routes between St. Paul and the Selkirk Settlement, 1820-1870 by Rhoda R. Gilman, Carolyn Gilman, and Deborah M. Stultz If you heard stories about your grandfather taking the oxcart to St. Cloud for supplies and being gone for two weeks, this book, recently re-issued by the Minnesota Historical Society Press, is for you. It traces the paths running through Minnesota, North Dakota and Canada that were used as international trade routes for furs and merchandise between St. Paul in the south and the settlement that was to become Winnipeg in the north. Supplemented with maps, sketches, a full index and reference notes, the book is divided into chapters featuring six main trails: Manitoba, North Dakota, Minnesota Valley, Woods, Middle and Metropolitan. "At the risk of sounding like a full-blown geek, this is about to become my favorite book. Maps for the Middle Trail even show my little hometown, right there, two weeks from St. Cloud...a trip that takes about an hour and a half today!" Suzann Nelson G-01 Paperback $14.95 The wait is over! Between Rocks and Hard Places by Ann Urness Gesme -- AGAIN AVAILABLE Now in its fourth printing, it has a beautiful new cover that reflects the beauty of Norway and does justice to Gesme's thorough research. Quite a few books cover the lives of Scandinavian immigrants in the United States. Between Rocks and Hard Places is one of the few books written for the non-Norwegian reader that looks at daily life in Norway before mass emigration. Gesme fully explains the "push factors:" the conditions, customs and traditions in the early 1800s that drove so many people from their homeland into the unknown. It is perhaps the most comprehensive book on this topic designed for the English reader. I - 11 Paperback Price: $13.95 Norwegians in Minnesota by Jon Gjerde & Carlton C. Qualey Foreword by Bill Holm The farming communities and Lutheran churches formed by Norwegian immigrants to Minnesota have been widely documented. Less frequently written about is their urban legacy; trades, industry, art and culture. This book, a part of the Minnesota Historical Society's "People of Minnesota Series", goes a long way in filling that gap. IM - 1 Paperback $13.95** Swedes in Minnesota by Anne Gillespie Lewis Foreword by Bill Holm Swedes in Minnesota is the newest addition to The People of Minnesota series. Anne Gillespie Lewis recounts the story of the Swedish migration to Minnesota through census reports and settlement patterns, but also through cultural institutions that the Swedish settlers founded: churches, schools, lodges, Swedish-language newspapers, businesses, neighborhoods and associations. But, this book also tells the story of people through their anecdotes and letters, and through interviews with the immigrants themselves and their descendants. IM - 3 Paperback $13.95 The People of Minnesota series, published by the Minnesota Historical Society, continues to evolve. Norwegians in Minnesota and Swedes in Minnesota are stocked by Rural Route Bookstore and ship within 24 hours. To order one of the other books in the series, use the "Place an Order" form and include the title and quantity (no Product Number) of the book you are ordering. Your special order will be shipped in 8 to 10 days. Books available through special order in this series include all that have been published to date: African Americans in Minnesota, Chinese in Minnesota, Germans in Minnesota, Irish in Minnesota, Jews in Minnesota, Mexicans in Minnesota, and Poles in Minnesota. Future volumes will include Finns in Minnesota, Ojibwe in Minnesota, Dakota in Minnesota, and Hmong in Minnesota. Norwegians in Wisconsin by Richard J. Fapso This perennially popular book, now revised and expanded with additional historical photos and documents (including selected letters of Ole Munch Ræder), offers a concise introduction to Wisconsin's Norwegian immigrants. The narrative examines the mass migration of Norwegians from 1837, when Ole Nattestad became the first Norwegian settler in Wisconsin, to the late nineteenth century, when Norwegian immigration largely came to a close. This chronicle of Wisconsin's early Norwegian immigrants is part of the Wisconsin Historical Society's Ethnic Series. IM - 6 Paperback $9.95 Swedes in Wisconsin by Frederick Hale This informative book looks at the reasons Swedes left for the New World, their arduous journeys to North American soil, and their establishment of communities in Wisconsin. New to this edition are the selected letters of Swedish novelist and feminist Frederika Bremer, who visited Wisconsin in 1850. This volume about Wisconsin's early Swedish immigrants is part of the Wisconsin Historical Society's Ethnic Series. IM - 7 Paperback $9.95 The History of Urness Township For information on this great new book about Central Minnesota, click on The History of Urness Township Bold Spirit: Helga Estby's Forgotten Walk across Victorian America by Linda Lawrence Hunt The Vikings, Roald Amundson, Fridtjof Nansen, Thor Heyerdal ...Norwegians whose names evoke a spirit of exploration and adventure. Add a new name, Helga Estby. Helga went through many of the hardships experienced by Scandinavian immigrants — adventurers in their own right — but Helga went a few steps more, 3500 miles more . . . on foot. Born in Oslo, Helga came to America with her mother and step-father at the age of eleven settling in New York. At a young age Helga gave birth to Clara, married and moved to Minnesota. She eventually bore nine children, had a difficult life on the prairie, and moved with her family to the state of Washington in time for the 1893 depression. Lured by an offer from a mysterious sponsor, Helga was promised $10,000 — money which could prevent foreclosure and save the family homestead — if she could walk to New York City. Helga and her daughter Clara left Spokane in April 1896. During the journey they faced extreme temperatures, hunger, exposure and even shot a man in self-defense, but they also met with mayors, governors and other important people, including President-elect McKinley. They arrived in New York City on Christmas Eve, 1896. What followed was an American tragedy. You'll have to read the book to get the rest of the story. Bold Spirit was written by Linda Lawrence Hunt, Associate Professor of English at Whitworth College in Spokane, who researched Helga's life and journey for her Ph.D. dissertation. I-44 Paperback $16.95 Ole Goes to War by Jerry Rosholt Recently several books have been written about some regiments and leaders among 10,000 Norwegian immigrants in the Civil War. Rosholt, with a focus on research, has been able to identify 6,500 of them, some who had just barely arrived in the U.S. In this book, issued in April 2003, Rosholt uses the soldiers' own words, photos, and belongings to explore the personal experiences of these volunteers and their families. As part of a larger project for the Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum, the data base of these soldiers -- compiled by Rosholt -- is available worldwide on the web at www.vesterheim.org/CivilWar/db/. "Oh yes, 1,000 of the 6,500 identified were named 'Ole' -- thus the title for the book. "And, one of these Ole's was my great-grandfather. He and his two brothers served in the 15th Wisconsin Regiment and all three have information included in the database. "My Ole's" twenty-year-old brother died in Kentucky. He had been in the war less than a year, and in America less than two years." SN IM - 2 Paperback $14.95 Historical Novels Grass of the Earth by Aagot Raaen First written in the early 50s, this book has been republished by popular demand. One isn't sure where nonfiction leaves off and fiction begins, but my brother-in-law in the Northwood, North Dakota area recognizes the names and places described. The book recounts the settling of the Red River Valley from the late 1880s. I - 03 Paperback $15.95 Sigrid Nilsdatter's Family by Maxine Shulstad This wonderful new book is more than a family history. It traces 200 years of Maxine's ancestor's lives, loves, trials and victories. Contains family photos and other treasures, including Sigrid's trunk. I - 38 Paperback $18.95 The Emigrants by Johan Bojer This is the Norwegian version of emigration to homesteads in North Dakota. Written in 1925 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Norwegian emigration, the book was, and perhaps still is, required reading in "Grad School." I - 08 Paperback $12.95 The Emigrants by Vilhelm Moberg Considered one of Sweden's greatest 20th-century writers, Vilhelm Moberg chronicled the joys and tragedies of Karl Oskar and Kristina Nilsson's lives as early Swedish pioneers in America. First published between 1949 and 1959 in Swedish, the four books were considered a single work by Moberg, who intended that they be read as documentary novels. Book 1 introduces Karl Oskar and Kristina Nilsson, their three young children, and eleven others who make up a resolute party of Swedes fleeing the poverty, religious persecution, and social oppression of Småland in 1850. I - 09-1 Paperback $17.95 each The Settlers by Vilhelm Moberg Book 2 opens in the summer of 1850 as the emigrants disembark in New York City. Their journey to a new home in Minnesota Territory takes them by riverboat, steam wagon, Great Lakes steamship, and oxcart to Chisago County. I - 09-2 Paperback $17.95 each Unto a Good Land by Vilhelm Moberg Book 3 focuses on Karl Oskar and Kristina as they adapt to their new homeland and struggle to survive on their new farm. I - 09-3 Paperback $17.95 each The Last Letter Home by Vilhelm Moberg Book 4 portrays the Nilsson family during the turmoil of the Civil War and Dakota Conflict and their prospering in the midst of Minnesota's growing Swedish community of the 1860s-90s. I - 09-4 Paperback $17.95 each Cutbank Girl by Erling Rolfsrud Immigrant homesteaders speak only Norwegian causing interesting situations. Writings about children's games, escapades, school and work. R 1- 03 Paperback $8.95 Petticoat Pioneer by Erling Rolfsrud A novel inspired by Rolfrud's immigrant mother. Fiction based upon experiences of single women and widows who homesteaded, often beginning in sod huts. R 1- 04 Paperback $10.95 Order by using the 'Place an Order' form or you may order by phone (800 494-9124). For payment and shipping charges, see 'Place an Order.'

Rural Route Bookstore

Scandinavian-American and Rural Humor Books

Books about Farm Life, Small Town Life, the Midwest, and Scandinavian-Americans

Featuring the Heartwarming Humor of "Those Lutheran Ladies"

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by Nelson & Martin)

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About Suzann
Place an Order

Immigration

Nonfiction

Norway to America: A History of the Migration by Ingrid Semmingsen

Semmingsen, former professor of American history at the University of Oslo and international expert on the topic of Scandinavian immigration, has written the definitive study of emigration from the Norwegian perspective. Translated by Einar Haugen and first published in 1978 by the University of Minnesota Press, the book has been recently reissued. The book tells the story of the migration, from 1815 to 1915, as it affected both Norway and the United States.

IM-8 Paperback $16.95

The Red River Trails: Oxcart Routes between St. Paul and the Selkirk Settlement, 1820-1870 by Rhoda R. Gilman, Carolyn Gilman, and Deborah M. Stultz

If you heard stories about your grandfather taking the oxcart to St. Cloud for supplies and being gone for two weeks, this book, recently re-issued by the Minnesota Historical Society Press, is for you. It traces the paths running through Minnesota, North Dakota and Canada that were used as international trade routes for furs and merchandise between St. Paul in the south and the settlement that was to become Winnipeg in the north. Supplemented with maps, sketches, a full index and reference notes, the book is divided into chapters featuring six main trails: Manitoba, North Dakota, Minnesota Valley, Woods, Middle and Metropolitan.

"At the risk of sounding like a full-blown geek, this is about to become my favorite book. Maps for the Middle Trail even show my little hometown, right there, two weeks from St. Cloud...a trip that takes about an hour and a half today!" Suzann Nelson

G-01 Paperback $14.95

The wait is over!

Between Rocks and Hard Places by Ann Urness Gesme -- AGAIN AVAILABLE

Now in its fourth printing, it has a beautiful new cover that reflects the beauty of Norway and does justice to Gesme's thorough research. Quite a few books cover the lives of Scandinavian immigrants in the United States. Between Rocks and Hard Places is one of the few books written for the non-Norwegian reader that looks at daily life in Norway before mass emigration. Gesme fully explains the "push factors:" the conditions, customs and traditions in the early 1800s that drove so many people from their homeland into the unknown. It is perhaps the most comprehensive book on this topic designed for the English reader.

I - 11 Paperback Price: $13.95

Norwegians in Minnesota by Jon Gjerde & Carlton C. Qualey
Foreword by Bill Holm

The farming communities and Lutheran churches formed by Norwegian immigrants to Minnesota have been widely documented. Less frequently written about is their urban legacy; trades, industry, art and culture. This book, a part of the Minnesota Historical Society's "People of Minnesota Series",** goes a long way in filling that gap.
IM - 1 Paperback $13.95

Swedes in Minnesota by Anne Gillespie Lewis
Foreword by Bill Holm

Swedes in Minnesota is the newest addition to The People of Minnesota series**. Anne Gillespie Lewis recounts the story of the Swedish migration to Minnesota through census reports and settlement patterns, but also through cultural institutions that the Swedish settlers founded: churches, schools, lodges, Swedish-language newspapers, businesses, neighborhoods and associations. But, this book also tells the story of people through their anecdotes and letters, and through interviews with the immigrants themselves and their descendants.

IM - 3 Paperback $13.95

** The People of Minnesota series, published by the Minnesota Historical Society, continues to evolve. Norwegians in Minnesota and Swedes in Minnesota are stocked by Rural Route Bookstore and ship within 24 hours. To order one of the other books in the series, use the "Place an Order" form and include the title and quantity (no Product Number) of the book you are ordering. Your special order will be shipped in 8 to 10 days. Books available through special order in this series include all that have been published to date: African Americans in Minnesota, Chinese in Minnesota, Germans in Minnesota, Irish in Minnesota, Jews in Minnesota, Mexicans in Minnesota, and Poles in Minnesota. Future volumes will include Finns in Minnesota, Ojibwe in Minnesota, Dakota in Minnesota, and Hmong in Minnesota.

Norwegians in Wisconsin   by Richard J. Fapso

This perennially popular book, now revised and expanded with additional historical photos and documents (including selected letters of Ole Munch Ræder), offers a concise introduction to Wisconsin's Norwegian immigrants. The narrative examines the mass migration of Norwegians from 1837, when Ole Nattestad became the first Norwegian settler in Wisconsin, to the late nineteenth century, when Norwegian immigration largely came to a close. This chronicle of Wisconsin's early Norwegian immigrants is part of the Wisconsin Historical Society's Ethnic Series.

IM - 6    Paperback     $9.95

Swedes in Wisconsin     by Frederick Hale

This informative book looks at the reasons Swedes left for the New World, their arduous journeys to North American soil, and their establishment of communities in Wisconsin. New to this edition are the selected letters of Swedish novelist and feminist Frederika Bremer, who visited Wisconsin in 1850. This volume about Wisconsin's early Swedish immigrants is part of the Wisconsin Historical Society's Ethnic Series.

IM - 7    Paperback      $9.95

The History of Urness Township

For information on this great new book about Central Minnesota, click on The History of Urness Township

Bold Spirit: Helga Estby's Forgotten Walk across Victorian America
by Linda Lawrence Hunt

The Vikings, Roald Amundson, Fridtjof Nansen, Thor Heyerdal ...Norwegians whose names evoke a spirit of exploration and adventure. Add a new name, Helga Estby.

Helga went through many of the hardships experienced by Scandinavian immigrants — adventurers in their own right — but Helga went a few steps more, 3500 miles more . . . on foot.

Born in Oslo, Helga came to America with her mother and step-father at the age of eleven settling in New York. At a young age Helga gave birth to Clara, married and moved to Minnesota. She eventually bore nine children, had a difficult life on the prairie, and moved with her family to the state of Washington in time for the 1893 depression.

Lured by an offer from a mysterious sponsor, Helga was promised $10,000 — money which could prevent foreclosure and save the family homestead — if she could walk to New York City. Helga and her daughter Clara left Spokane in April 1896. During the journey they faced extreme temperatures, hunger, exposure and even shot a man in self-defense, but they also met with mayors, governors and other important people, including President-elect McKinley. They arrived in New York City on Christmas Eve, 1896. What followed was an American tragedy. You'll have to read the book to get the rest of the story.

Bold Spirit was written by Linda Lawrence Hunt, Associate Professor of English at Whitworth College in Spokane, who researched Helga's life and journey for her Ph.D. dissertation.

I-44 Paperback $16.95

Ole Goes to War by Jerry Rosholt

Recently several books have been written about some regiments and leaders among 10,000 Norwegian immigrants in the Civil War. Rosholt, with a focus on research, has been able to identify 6,500 of them, some who had just barely arrived in the U.S. In this book, issued in April 2003, Rosholt uses the soldiers' own words, photos, and belongings to explore the personal experiences of these volunteers and their families. As part of a larger project for the Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum, the data base of these soldiers -- compiled by Rosholt -- is available worldwide on the web at www.vesterheim.org/CivilWar/db/.

"Oh yes, 1,000 of the 6,500 identified were named 'Ole' -- thus the title for the book. "And, one of these Ole's was my great-grandfather. He and his two brothers served in the 15th Wisconsin Regiment and all three have information included in the database. "My Ole's" twenty-year-old brother died in Kentucky. He had been in the war less than a year, and in America less than two years." SN
IM - 2 Paperback $14.95

Historical Novels

Grass of the Earth by Aagot Raaen

First written in the early 50s, this book has been republished by popular demand. One isn't sure where nonfiction leaves off and fiction begins, but my brother-in-law in the Northwood, North Dakota area recognizes the names and places described. The book recounts the settling of the Red River Valley from the late 1880s.

I - 03 Paperback $15.95

Sigrid Nilsdatter's Family by Maxine Shulstad This wonderful new book is more than a family history. It traces 200 years of Maxine's ancestor's lives, loves, trials and victories. Contains family photos and other treasures, including Sigrid's trunk.

I - 38 Paperback $18.95

The Emigrants by Johan Bojer

This is the Norwegian version of emigration to homesteads in North Dakota. Written in 1925 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Norwegian emigration, the book was, and perhaps still is, required reading in "Grad School."

I - 08 Paperback $12.95

The Emigrants by Vilhelm Moberg

Considered one of Sweden's greatest 20th-century writers, Vilhelm Moberg chronicled the joys and tragedies of Karl Oskar and Kristina Nilsson's lives as early Swedish pioneers in America. First published between 1949 and 1959 in Swedish, the four books were considered a single work by Moberg, who intended that they be read as documentary novels. Book 1 introduces Karl Oskar and Kristina Nilsson, their three young children, and eleven others who make up a resolute party of Swedes fleeing the poverty, religious persecution, and social oppression of Småland in 1850.

I - 09-1 Paperback $17.95 each

The Settlers by Vilhelm Moberg

Book 2 opens in the summer of 1850 as the emigrants disembark in New York City. Their journey to a new home in Minnesota Territory takes them by riverboat, steam wagon, Great Lakes steamship, and oxcart to Chisago County.

I - 09-2 Paperback $17.95 each

Unto a Good Land by Vilhelm Moberg

Book 3 focuses on Karl Oskar and Kristina as they adapt to their new homeland and struggle to survive on their new farm.

I - 09-3 Paperback $17.95 each

The Last Letter Home

The Last Letter Home by Vilhelm Moberg

Book 4 portrays the Nilsson family during the turmoil of the Civil War and Dakota Conflict and their prospering in the midst of Minnesota's growing Swedish community of the 1860s-90s.

I - 09-4 Paperback $17.95 each

Cutbank Girl

Cutbank Girl by Erling Rolfsrud

Immigrant homesteaders speak only Norwegian causing interesting situations. Writings about children's games, escapades, school and work.

R 1- 03 Paperback $8.95

Pioneer Petticoat

Petticoat Pioneer by Erling Rolfsrud

A novel inspired by Rolfrud's immigrant mother. Fiction based upon experiences of single women and widows who homesteaded, often beginning in sod huts.

R 1- 04 Paperback $10.95

Order by using the 'Place an Order' form or you may order by phone (800 494-9124). For payment and shipping charges, see 'Place an Order.'