“An exceptional book. Tales from the Homestead reveals the experiences of settlers to the Canadian prairies. Based on in-depth research, Sandra Rollings-Magnusson presents the tragedies and triumphs of newcomers through their own voices and stories. Everyone interested in western history will be inspired by the tenacity and optimism of those early pioneers.”
—Faye Reineberg Holt, author of Alberta: A History in Photographs and Settling In: Early Homes of Western Canada

“The personal vignettes collected in this volume, tenderly written by those who were there, transport one directly to the prairie. Rollings-Magnusson’s settlers ride wood-slatted railway seats, dig in the soil for rusted iron homestead stakes, and view wheat stook-dotted fields. Their experiences, the common and unique, all poignant, come alive.”
—Molly Rozum, author of Grassland Grown: Creating Place on the U.S. Northern Plains and Canadian Prairies

“The settlement of the Canadian West was not for the faint of heart. Sandra Rollings-Magnusson has produced a compelling social history that explores the experiences of economic migrants, adventurers, or those seeking political and religious freedom, including both men and women. Many accounts are moving; anger, bitterness, and despair at adversity are balanced by the more positive voices recounting economic betterment and belonging. What struck me, in particular, were the ordinary acts of human kindness that tipped the balance between failure and success.”
—Adriana A. Davies, editor of The Frontier of Patriotism: Alberta and the First World War and author of From Sojourners to Citizens: Alberta’s Italian History