What an amazing life she led! I can't imagine the hardships she endured. Really makes me think of all I take for granted in my life.

This is a good readalike for people who liked Letters of a woman homesteader (still one of my favorite audiobooks).  Most people would be surprised at the timeline for settlement in many out-of-the-way places-- in this book, it's the rural South, but the situation is very similar to settlement in the couple counties out here: stump farming and homesteading a la Little house on the prairie lasted into the 1900s and WWI happened before electricity.

The writing isn't superb, and the memoirist contradicts herself a couple times, but we're reading it for her life experience, not necessarily the literary quality.  Not a required purchase, but suggested.  3.5 stars.

It was hard for me to believe this story was written so long ago. Mary Hamilton must have been made of iron. She endured many hard trials. I would certainly recommend this book to history buffs.

This is one of the best books I have read so far this year.  Trials of the Earth is stunning for so many reasons, but I was blown away to read such an amazing primary source of history written by a denial pioneer.  As an armchair historian, so many books are written from a white male viewpoint, I am always so excited when I find a book that presents a different view or experience.  This is not a summer beach read, rather it is the story of one woman as she survives countless heartbreaks and hardships while managing to survive and thrive.

What struck me most is the author's never faltering resilience throughout her lifetime.  She was such a strong and hardworking woman, it was absolutely amazing to hear her story.  I was particularly struck by the sheer amount of work it took to just survive.  Reading her story made me realize how easy modern women have it.  There was no "me time" on the prairie, just endless work from sun up to sun down.  If you are at all interested in the history of our country I highly recommend this book!

This book was provided to me by Net Galley, my review is my true opinion of this great book!

Loved this book
So interesting
Highly recommend
Learned so much

Trials of the Earth is Mary Mann Hamilton's memoir about her hardscrabble life in America during the late 1800's.

She uses period speech to illuminate a life of struggle and hard work. If certain anachronistic and racially insensitive terms bother you, especially the casual use of the N-word, you may want to chose another memoir. It was shocking but I kept reminding myself that Mary was a product of her times.

On top of the constant struggle of putting food on the table and keeping a roof over her head, it seems like she was perpetually pregnant and her husband was an alcoholic.

But Mary lived up to the challenges, raised and buried children, nursed her husband through his hangovers and illnesses- she was a survivor. That is mainly what Trials of the Earth was to me- a survival story.

Recommended for readers who enjoy memoirs that read like historical fiction. Ability to tolerate the bleak role that women occupied in society in the late 1800's is a must.