O Pioneers! by Willa Cather (novel #244)

But the great fact was the land itself, which seemed to overwhelm the little beginnings of human society that struggled in its sombre wastes.

Willa Cather’s O Pioneers!, published in 1913, is the first book of Cather’s Great Plains Trilogy: O Pioneers! Song of the Lark, My Ántonia. O Pioneers! tells of the Bergson family, Swedish immigrants to the Nebraska frontier. The story focuses on Alexandra, the only daughter, who, at her father’s death and by his wishes, becomes the business head of the family farm. The Bergsons, like others around them, are struggling to make ends meet, and there is mounting pressure to sell out and move back east.

 

Alexandra’s father is determined not merely to take a living from the land, but to love it and prosper.

 

John Bergson had the Old-World belief that land, in itself is desirable. But this land was an enigma. It was like a horse that no one knows how to break to harness, that runs wild and kicks things to pieces. He had an idea that no one understood how to farm it properly, and this he often discussed with Alexandra.

 

Alexandra inherits the vision from her father, and when he is unable to realize it in his lifetime, he wisely chooses Alexandra to see it through.

 

She had never known before how much the country meant to her. The chirping of the insects down in the long grass had been like the sweetest music. She had felt as if her heart were hiding down there, somewhere, with the quail and the plover and all the little wild things that crooned or buzzed in the sun. under the long shaggy ridges, she felt the future stirring.

 

It is a sweet tale, though not fast-paced nor thrilling. There are sometimes gaps of many years in the narrative. Contextual clues make it clear they were filled with slow, determined struggle, resilience, sacrifice, and human drama.

 

In addition to man, or in this case, woman, versus nature, there is indeed human drama. Alexandra is often at odds with her two oldest brothers, though they acquiesce for the most part. They seem to understand, but never acknowledge, that she is the brains of the operation. And there are two love stories: Alexandra and a family friend, and her youngest brother and his childhood friend. Circumstances don’t allow much of a chance for either.

 

Cather does an expert job of creating empathy for Alexandra. Remarkable since this reader at least has little pioneer spirit, nor any sense of connection to the land, which is Alexandra’s defining trait. She is a completely likable heroine in a story with few villains.

 

I did live in Nebraska a century after Cather, who moved there when she was nine. I lived in a modern city, and she grew up on the plains, so I defer to her portrayal of frontier life.

 

My rating 4 of 5 stars

 

For its timeless portrayal of American frontier life, for its themes of pioneer courage and vision, sacrifice, family, community, and love.

 

This is the second novel by Cather that I’ve read. The other being Death Comes for the Archbishop. I enjoyed both and will certainly read more by Cather, probably from the Great Plains Trilogy. I understand the trilogy is a new set of characters and non-chronological, so it may be read in any order.

 

This novel satisfies the “Wanderlust” category in the What’s in a Name? 2025 challenge. Titles for this category need to include words or phrases related to wanderlust.

 

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