Hearts West: True Stories Of Mail-Order Brides On The Frontier

I got this book from a California ghost town gift shop and really enjoyed reading these true stories of mail order brides. The book is well worth buying in paperback to get the pictures and the cover photo which are of real mail order brides. This is a short history of this fascinating topic but well put together and well documented. I highly recommend this for those who enjoy romance tales of mail order brides and for those who are interested in the history of women in the early days of our country.

This was a good book but not fantastic. I have never read anything by this author before but I will be looking into other books. The book is a short read, made shorter by "ads for mail order brides". These were something I found interesting, but I wanted to hear the stories behind the ads, not just see the ads themselves. I paid for the stories that made up the history. The book shot past the editors or maybe bypassed them entirely. There are several errors in this book, both historical and grammatical. I am unsure if the word processor changed the words or if the author wrote them as is, it's hard to tell. The historical errors were the fault of the author. Pick an era and stick with it, don't embellish unless you research. It is obvious that someone, the author or the person telling the story to the author, changed up a few things. Petty stuff for me to pick on, but having worked as a living historian who was infinitely careful to be sure every single thing used or worn was period, I am a stickler. All in all, it is a good short read. My suggestion is purchase it used from one of the sellers offering it for dirt cheap and pay the $3.99 shipping instead of purchasing it new. This way you do not pay full price for an item that is really not worth that much.

I really enjoyed reading the personal journal excerpts and the actual ads that prospective brides and grooms placed in the days of the “Wild West”. They were much more candid and revealing than today’s ads on eHarmony and other such websites. So, even though we have instant access to others from all over the world today, we seem to have less access to the real person who is there. Deception and folly are rampant today, whereas most of the couples made lasting marriages in those days. I gave the book three stars, because it seemed to be so poorly organized and edited. It is disjointed and appears to have been written by a number of authors who did not coordinate their efforts, which is disconcerting. I kept editing it in my head.

This book is compiled with stories told by mail-order brides. Love, deceit, happiness and sorrow play throughout the book. Desperate to not become an “old maid” plays a part. Support plays another role. Then there’s new found long lasting love. Very enjoyable are the tales of these women from their diaries.

As I researched to write my mail-order bride historical romance series, I came across "Hearts West." I was very impressed with the detail, the photographs, and the research involved in this book. It was very fascinating and brought to life, as Miss Enss puts it, the "True stories of mail-order brides on the frontier." I would highly recommend this book for anyone who is interested in this topic. Yes, it is a small book, but well worth the read. Reviewed by Penny Zeller, author of the historical romance novel "McKenzie."

This book was a quick read as it told each brides' story in an individual vignette. Each offers a peek at the difficulty of living in the West without a female presence and of living in the East where there were not enough males. Mail-order brides is an apt term as often these young ladies did not know what was awaiting them when they arrived and they did not know what they would endure on their journey. I had hoped for more stories and more substance, but it was an interesting read and well worth my time.

This book recalls the time between the mid-10's and the turn of the centurywhen men flocked to the West to mine for gold or fish in Pacific waters or enter the lumber business. They lived in squalid conditions and soon realized they needed to "clean up their act". After theCivil War, there were thousands of widows and orphans with no means of support. The men discovered they missed women and their housekeeping skills. The women had virtually no way to earn a living wage. This coincidence occured to se eral entrpenurial types who devised ways to solve the problem of how to bring these two groups together. The most successful way was via newspaper ads. These worked because most people placing or responding to them were very honest. The stories of the mail order brides will keep you interested. It's a quick read and appropriate for younger readers.

This is the story of women in the 19th century who answer ads in the newspaper for brides to live out west. You learn why these women went west for their future and which ones ended up with a happy life. Then there were those that didn't fare so well and some who even when they got to their destination decided against the marriage they were planning. Although it dragged a bit in parts it was an interesting read.

Interesting topic written about in short stories. Would have liked more detail and I found it quite difficult to read some of the printed adverts.

This gives, what I found to be an interesting and I believe accurate narrative of what it was like for women of any age to leave the life of comfort and strike out to meet a man they knew so little about. The book pulled no punches, describe the good and the bad these women experienced. It reveals just how hard it was to bring about getting as many women as were needed in the beginning.

Purchased as gift for Christmas recipient very happy with it

Love reading stories about the old west.