FeedTrail of Thread, Historical Fiction, Blog Tour!
May 30, 2011 in Book Club Possibility, High School Teachers, Journal Writing, Journal Writing, Middle School Teachers, Young Adult Novels Tags: historical fiction, WOW! blog tour, young adult novel
I am happy to host, Linda Hubalek, today. She’s stopping by as part of the WOW! blog tour. She is giving away one copy of her historical fiction book, Trail of Thread, as an e-book, which can be read on a Kindle. If you’d like to win a copy or even just say, HI! GOOD JOB! SOUNDS INTERESTING!, please leave a comment after the post. 
This book has been used in classrooms! It’s a great resource. Contest ends Sunday, June 5 at 8:00 pm CST.
Planning for a Trip and Move…in 1854
Guest post by Linda Hubalek, author of Trail of Thread
Pretend your husband—or father—decided to leave the home you’ve always known, and you’ll be traveling through several states to a new territory he heard about. It’s the nineteenth century, and you may not even have a paper map to guide your family to this new, free land—but he is determined to start a new farm in some wild land behold civilization.
My ancestors, John and Deborah Pieratt—with six young children along—left Kentucky in 1854 to move to the new Territory of Kansas. Their journey was the basis of my book Trail of Thread, which is written in the form of letters that Deborah wrote and mailed back to family in Kentucky. Deborah describes what she saw and what their family experienced on their three-month journey.
The family had to carefully plan first so they would be prepared for the journey, and for the wilderness land they would eventually homestead on.
Here is an idea to use with the book:
Pretend you want to prepare for this journey as a class or family project.
- What—and how—do you pack in the four by ten foot wagon for a family of eight? (And what do you need for your trip to begin with?!) How much weight can the wagon hold and the oxen (or horses or mules) pull?
- How long will the trip take? What will be your route? What roads (or rough trails) will you use and what towns will you be traveling through?
- How will you cross rivers with your wagon? Is there any rough terrain along the way that may make the trip hard and dangerous?
- How much food should you pack? How do you keep it from spoiling?
When you’re done researching the trip preparation and route, look for stories from old newspaper clippings of what was going on in the Territory of Kansas during 1854-1865. The Pieratts settled in an area and time frame known as the Bleeding Kansas conflicts, due to the tension mounting about the slavery issue that exploded into the Civil War. (You can read more about these conflicts and how it affected the family by reading the rest of the Trail of Thread series, Thimble of Soil and Stitch of Courage.)
I brought the Pieratt’s story to life in the pages of Trail of Thread. Now can you plan your own trip in 1854?
Follow Linda on Twitter
Visit Linda on Facebook
Contact Linda at linda (at) lindahubalek.com
Don’t forget to enter the contest!
May 30th, 2011 at 6:21 am
Hi Linda,
I really like what you have done with your family stories. Trail of Thread sounds like something I would enjoy reading in addition to teaching. I will definitely pass along the information to teacher friends and I will take a look see for myself.
I am going to be following you on my blog, so look for your addition there and stop by every now and then to check up on various health issues, debunking cultural assumptions about our bodies and just the fun of reading what relates to our families and ourselves.
Ciao,
Carole Di Tosti, Ph.D.
May 30th, 2011 at 6:42 am
Hi Margo,
Trail of Threads sounds like a fascinating book. The thought of heading out on a journey without a map and with six children in tow is stunning. How courageous Linda’s ancesters were to embark on such a journey!
I don’t have an e-reader, so please don’t put my name in the running to win the book. I just wanted to leave a comment about Linda’s post.
donna v.
May 30th, 2011 at 9:24 am
Linda, How wonderful to know your family history enough to write about it. I know a few things, but not enough to give factual accounts without lots of research.
Enjoyed your post on my blog about quilts. I found it very touching. As a quilt lover, I have always been in awe of the work done by women who had so little, yet created such amazingly beautiful quilts.
May 30th, 2011 at 10:09 am
Hi Margo,
This period of American history is so fascinating — I’ve been researching a few stories from 1856. “Trail of Thread” would be a great conversation starter for kids to consider so many topics — transportation before roads and bridges, feeding a family before grocery stores, needs vs. wants, not to mention big issues like slavery. Wow. And the idea that personal family letters help put these experiences into a very real context — that’s an author’s dream. I imagine Linda had a lot of fun writing this.
Thanks for sharing.
Kate
May 30th, 2011 at 11:06 am
I love historical novels – fiction or otherwise. Congratulations on publishing a very interesting sounding novel. I loved you suggestions for use as a teaching tool, and I have forward Margo’s blog to my friend.
Marcella Dill
marcelladill@gmail.com
May 30th, 2011 at 4:39 pm
Hi Margo,
I like the suggestions you made for the use of the book. I wonder if this work can be read in concert with Across Five Aprils which is a civil war story (fictional) also told in part through letters. It might be an extra credit assignment if a student wants to explore a work of fiction whose setting is four years after Trail of Thread takes place. It’s a marvelous way to learn about The Civil War and the divisions between North and South and amongst families living in both regions. It’s also an interesting way to see if a student/students prefer fiction or nonfiction written about this period.
Carole
May 30th, 2011 at 7:29 pm
Hi Linda,
I downloaded Trail of Thread and read it this afternoon. What a great story and from the female/mother perspective.
I grew up loving old westerns (books and TV). I knew they showed a skewed version of history–you’ve told the rest of the story. I really enjoyed this book and will download and read the rest of this series.
Thanks for a great read. Sharon Hohler
May 30th, 2011 at 7:43 pm
WOW! Sharon you are a go-getter!
Thanks for all your comments. If you know of anyone who needs a historical fiction book such as this, let them know. 
May 30th, 2011 at 8:09 pm
This sounds like a great book. I’ve read several reproduction diaries from this ear and will, one day, write what I refer to as ‘the wagon train’ story. Trail of Thread sounds like something I need on my bookshelf.
May 30th, 2011 at 8:10 pm
“This era.” I really hate typos!
May 31st, 2011 at 9:13 am
Thanks everyone for your comments.
And thanks Sharon for already reading Trail of Thread! I hope you read my other 9 ebooks too.
I have two other series- Butter in the Well, 4 books (including an old time recipe book, Egg Gravy) and the Planting Dreams series of 3 books.
All three series are great references for school projects and ideas, so please use and pass the word around to teachers and home educators.
Many thanks from the Kansas prairie!
author Linda K. Hubalek
May 31st, 2011 at 10:45 am
Linda,
Trail of Thread sounds wonderful. I love history, personal accounts of amazing journeys is even better. And this is great way to bring it to history to kids/teens.
Your uses for the book in a classroom are a good way to get kids even more involved.
Best wishes for your book’s success.
May 31st, 2011 at 11:58 am
“Trail of Thread” sounds terrific–and now that The Oregon Trail game is enjoying a resurgence in popularity, I bet kids will be interested in reading a book like this. Although I live in Illinois now, I grew up in the south central part of Kansas. I’m always interested in historical fiction about Bleeding Kansas. Please enter me in your drawing for the e book! Thanks,
Sara
May 31st, 2011 at 4:39 pm
I love family-based stories! This sounds like a great one. I don’t have a reader, but CONGRATULATIONS to Linda Hubelak and wishing her much success for her new book, Trail of Thread!
June 5th, 2011 at 9:33 pm
Thank you to everyone who left a comment! The winner is Linda Rhinehart Neas. Congratulations! Sharon said the book was great. She downloaded it and read it right after reading this post.