The Princess Doll's Scrapbook - Elaine Melby Ayre

[MaryA]

The Princess Doll’s Scrapbook by Elaine Melby Ayre
This story follows a family who emigrated from Norway to America in the middle of the 19th Century. It follows the story of five generations of the family from the time they were considering a better life for themselves before they left home, to when they landed on America’s shores, through to present day Canada.
As a family historian, the story gave me many insights into the life that the pioneers of this new land would have led, regardless of what nationality they were, they all faced the same hardships, travel difficulties, and the kind of dwellings they lived in – generally built by themselves as and when they were able, often living in one room until a kitchen could be added the following year.
There is a great interest in antique dolls and this book also touches on repair and restoration of them as the story follows the journey of the family who owned The Princess Doll through the ages.
I was interested to discover how ship’s passenger records were discovered showing the route that was taken and dispelling myths that there are no useful records available.
Partly quoting from written accounts and letters of her ancestors, we are reminded of real life events such as Barnum Circus, some occasions that we couldn’t know about from our own experiences.
We are led through the journey of exploration and research by the author, as one question was answered it led to another, then another, which is the way our research usually takes us but she cleverly describes some of the research methods she has used to discover the finer details of her ancestors life and times.
ISBN 978-1-77067-482-0 $28.99 hardback, $15.99 paperback and also available as an ebook from http://www.friesenpress.com/bookstore/t ... 0000194088 at only $2.99