Little Heathens

Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression

By: Mildred Armstrong Kalish

Narrated by: Ruth Ann Phimister

Length: 9 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

Debut author Mildred Armstrong Kalish, a retired English professor, records her childhood recollections in clear, concise prose. Voted one of the 10 Best Books of 2007 by the New York Times Book Review, Kalish's Little Heathens is a compelling memoir of her hardscrabble life on an Iowa farm during the Great Depression. As foreclosure fragments her family, five-year-old Mildred and her three siblings find refuge with her grandparents - God-fearing farmers, enjoying a modest retirement. When the "little heathens" flush the seniors and their child-rearing skills out of retirement, the grandparents deploy tough but loving bedtime schedules, Bible and prayer routines, and plenty of character-building chores. Having no electricity or indoor plumbing and with little heat or money on the farm, Mildred learns to find joy in the priceless blessings of life.

©2007 Mildred Armstrong Kalish (P)2008 Recorded Books,LLC

Great Memoir

I truly enjoyed this book. It was like a time machine zipping me back to the days of my parent's childhood. Although my parents and grandparents lived in the city during the 1930's, there was much that reminded me of things my grandparents and my rural parishioners did. I remembered the root cellar, the stories I heard about electricity coming to rural areas, one-room schools, some of the dishes my grandma served, the flour bin, and so on. Since now some of my friends grew up in rural Iowa, the book gave insight into their strong work-ethic. Sometimes the author had me laughing at the antics of her siblings; sometimes her descriptions made me wish I had her memories of birds, animals, and food. I have already recommended this book to a friend and bought a copy for my mother-in-law.

A good look at rural life during the depression.

An excellent book for anyone like myself with a love for history and more specifically family history. How did people live before modern conveniences or in an environment completely different from the suburban upbringing I experienced? Kalish is a great story teller with a love for her childhood life and the family that surrounded her. My Great Great Grandmother was born into a large family in rural Iowa so the book helped me better understand the life she may have lived, though 75 ears before Kalish. If you are an adventurous cook, you may want the paper version, as I imagine that will make following some of her recipes easier.

An absolute treasure!

This story, and its superb telling, deserves to be recognized as an American classic. Highly recommend.

Required reading

This should be on the required reading list for teenagers today. Excellent description of an excellent childhood.

Remembering Yesterday

I loved the story, it took me back to a simpler time of life. The story teller was fantastic and I will look for similar books on this theme.

Takes me back to my grandparents time

Where does Little Heathens rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

The woman narrating this book takes me back to a time of thriftyness and hard work. I really enjoyed this book and recommended it to my Dad. Also it is full of lots of great recipes if you enjoy cooking with butter, beacon, and heavy cream. Only turn off was her occasional put down of people of the later generation as lazy.

So sweet! Truly enjoyed this book!!

This book was like sitting down with your grandma or great-grandma! I loved listening!! I thought the narrator’s voice was perfectly in keeping with the story and didn’t find it at all grating, as some did. I felt such nostalgia for simple times of self-sufficiency. There ARE written recipes in the story, and I can see where some would enjoy having a hard copy of these, but it’s not a cookbook, and I didn’t feel as if the recipes took away from the story at all. Overall, a sheer delight!!

A glimpse of simpler times on an Iowa farm...

What made the experience of listening to Little Heathens the most enjoyable?

The narrator is perfection & really gets you involved in the story, a true re-telling of a girl growing up with her 3 siblings & her mother on her grandparent's farm in Iowa-along with a large extended family in the Great Depression. How they all 'made do' and had happy lives even through privation is amazing. Until late in the 30s, they had no electricity, no indoor plumbing, survived on food they raised/grew on the farm with the exception of coffee, sugar & salt. This is truly a case of the author passing through the fire and coming out 'refined to gold'. She takes us through to her marriage, her training as a teacher (she taught in a university for a while) and her thankfulness for the lessons she learned growing up in hard times.Very rewarding, interesting book.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Mildred, the author of the story. She always made the best of the hand she was dealt, without grumbling. I felt as though I had found a new friend. The author must have been in her 80s when it was written & her memory is amazing. I doubt if I had been thrust into her life that I could have made such a success of it as she did. She discusses just about every facet of her life, which fascinated me, since I love social history, the little things that make up people's daily life. This is a social history that the younger generation would do well to listen to, since it is so different to the way we live today-like day and night. The people who survived the Great Depression are leaving us daily, so we should ask questions of our grandparents about this period in history before it is too late.

Which scene was your favorite?

Hard to decide, but I think when the whole family got together to cook for a holiday or some special occasion & everyone helped, even the small children-the way they shared the work. There were chores for all but the smallest kids on the farm every day so everyone felt they were of help & had self-worth. There was such a feeling of family unity & love.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

If this isn't inappropriate, when Mildred began to develop a woman's shape at age 11 and when she had her first menstrual period, she was terrified for no one had prepared her for this. Finally she told her mother, who never explained why it happened or even that it would happen every month, but showed her how to use what passed for sanitary napkins when it happened again. Parents did not tell their kids the facts of life, they were left to get it 'behind the barn' and they were also taught to be ashamed of their bodies. How sad. We have gone to the opposite now where nothing much is kept secret, but this was very affecting.

Any additional comments?

I treasure this book. Since it has so many 'layers', I will certainly listen to it again & again finding details that I may have missed. I will look for other books narrated by this same fine lady, Ruth Ann Phimister. It will probably be one of my 'comfort food' books that I listen to when I am feeling blue. Anyone who is interested in how life used to be mustn't miss this book.

Rose-tinted and realistic

The narrator is perfect for the subject matter.
Expect a smattering of recipes, sad and happy stories, and even some actionable farm medicine. Heart-warming and real.
If you like All Creatures Great and Small, you'll probably like it.

A must, whatever your generation!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Nostalgia for older folks & Boomers remembering the old stories. Eye-opening for younger generations.

What other book might you compare Little Heathens to and why?

Any wry memoir about the good & bad old days.

Which scene was your favorite?

Halloween outhouse incident?

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Too many to mention.

Any additional comments?

Kids in the 30s were mature; kids today are worldly, What a difference!