Whoa, Nelly!: A Love Story with Footnotes

She went looking for Laura. She found herself.

Lonely librarian Nelly sets out to walk in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s footsteps—only to find that the prairie isn’t as romantic as she imagined. As she confronts the darker legacies of the Little House series—racism, revisionist nostalgia, and the shadowy influence of Rose Wilder Lane—Nelly must reckon with her own buried truths.

Along the way, there’s a clever, slow-burn romance with a modern-day Almanzo, a rivalry with a would-be Laura, and a blizzard that will test everything Nelly thought she knew about courage and care. By the time she boards the train home, Nelly has rescued more than just a child in danger—she's reclaimed her own story.

Whoa, Nelly! A Love Story (with Footnotes) is a sharp, soulful heroine’s journey for the literary misfits, the daughters of difficult mothers, and anyone who ever found solace in a well-worn paperback.

About the Author

Julia Park Tracey is an award-winning journalist and author of nine books, with an emphasis on women’s history and her female ancestors’ stories. Inspired by a mysterious train receipt in her family’s scrapbook, she researched her Orphan Train roots and continues to write novels about her found relatives. A lifelong fan of the Little House books, Tracey put her train-traveling time when crossing the American prairie to good use when she toured for her previous novels.

Praise for Whoa, Nelly! A Love Story (with Footnotes)

"A must read for risk-takers and dream-weavers who create whole cloth with homespun desire. (Sorry, not sorry, Ma.)" —Kate Farrell, author of Story Power and The Fairy Tale Heroine

"The librarian heroine is a treasure in herself, simultaneously despairing and hilarious, and seriously addicted to Laura Ingalls Wilder. Nelly is the greatest of company for a witty immersion into the Little House world with a powerful love story of her own. A delight in all departments." —Diana Birchall, author of Mrs. Elton in America and The Bride of Northanger

"Nelly’s inner dialogue pulls us along as much as a train ride west that will spark memories in anyone who has made that trip. This authentic, angst-ridden, anxious though funny voice is a hook that drags you in as much as triumph of narration. We root for Nelly as she wrangles things most of us take for granted: people to exchange ideas with, friends to share pain with, even romance. Whoa, Nelly? More like go, Nelly!" —Eric Turowski, author of Willing Servants, Inhuman Interest, and the Irons Series

"Tracey is a quick-witted, snappy writer who misses nothing and tells a hell of a story. More, please!" —Billie Thomas, author of Murder on the First Day of Christmas

"Whoa, Nelly! is a delight with serious undercurrents, a story for everyone who enjoys a heroic feminist quest relevant to our times, with a nod to the country’s literary and pioneer past." —Robin Somers, author of Eleven Stolen Horses