Her Father's Daughter by Gene Stratton-Porter

Her Father's Daughter Reviews

• 
  Rachel

  This tale could be summed up, almost, by a movie line from The Scarlet Pimpernell--"Look how they buzz round her, like bees to honey".
  
  The world of Lilac Valley revolves, entirely on its axis, around the heroine, who is a socially conscious, top scholar, a published author/illustrator, a locally renowned chef, a sports car enthusiast, a nature expert, --oh, and a junior in high school! Of course she is wholly unspoiled by the world and completely undiscovered by it until one day a boy happens to notice her practical shoes, starting a turn of events that explodes into a many faceted jewel of opportunities. Suddenly, she has the vision and independence to fight for justice on many different levels, and at least three men, of different ages, are swooning at her feet, which, with her wide eyed naivete, she is oblivious to. That would be acceptable to many Stratton-Porter readers (myself included) who have learned to appreciate the bright dreams of Utopian characterization (though I will admit, in my hypocritcal heart, that while I love the "perfection" of her male characters I am often annoyed by the interpretation of it in her heroine's.)
  
  It would be dramatically acceptable if not for the eye opening racism that had an appalling, underlying theme. Here is the answer for those of us too young to have lived through the events leading up to the internment of the Japanese, who have ever wondered, "What were they thinking?!" This is no, "To Kill a Mockingbird" where the prejudices are portrayed as the enemy, this is a full-bodied embrace of what is referred to often, as "the Yellow Menace" and which ultimately emerges as a white supremacist conceit. It was hard to read, but studied in the time period that it was written, through the hindsight lens of history, it could be an important reminder to us of how far we can stray when we are fearful and ignorant. So, in that light, it was a usefully alarming lesson to me.
  
  Of course we can't finish a Gene Stratton-Porter book without the Dickens-like alter ego. No worries on that point--it is portrayed here in it's finest china doll coolness and fragility by the worldly sister and her presumably weak and duped dandy.
• 
  DeAnna

  As someone who loves, loves, loves A Girl of the Limberlost, it hurt me to read this racist piece of trash from the same author.
• 
  Ruth

  How can I rate this? As a kid I read it over and over. Read again 40 years later I realized how racist it was. Horrors!
• 
  carrie

  Russell and I were watching a thing on National Geographic about white supremacists, and it reminded me of this book. I absolutely loved Girl of the Limberlost and Laddie, so I looked for other stuff by this author. It was mostly the same stuff: nice girl, lots of plants, but there was this sub plot about how we have to keep the white race above all the others. I was horrified, but I couldn't stop reading. What an eye opener to the the thoughts of that time period. I also read a short story by L.M. Montgomery that disturbed me in a similar way. So take this as a warning not to pick this one up, and enjoy the other stuff by her.
• 
  Rebekah Morris

  2.5 stars. I liked it, but at the same time, I didn't like it!
  What I liked:
  I did like Linda even if she was "larger than life" and did have some strong racial prejudices.
  I found some of the thoughts the main character talked about interesting seeing when this was written (between the World Wars).
  Katy, and Peter, an Donald were all likeable characters.
  The story plot kept my interest (though it started to drag by the second "Jane Meredith" installment), and the ending left me feeling satisfied that everything ended "right."
  
  What I didn't like:
  The strong racial prejudices that were mentioned many times in the book.
  That there was no Bible, or prayer, or anything like that. It was all being good on your own, or a little bit of "saying your beads."
  Some of the descriptions (Jane Meredith) got a little old.
  I did find it strange that the main character is a high school student who has such amazing talent, everyone, except Eileen, love her, two guys want to marry her, and she is a perfect specimen of womanhood.
  
  I probably won't be reading this book again, but it wasn't bad, if you can get past the prejudices.
  
• 
  Ellen Hamilton

  Unfortunately, this is not one of Gene's best works. Usually, Gene's books are very compelling to read, very interesting, and are filled with warm humanity, love, and hope. The racism in this book and the prevailing white supremacy were a total turn-off. The romance was insipid and the heroine talked way too much. I could not bear to go on.
• 
  Meredith

  Pros - Nature descriptions
  
  Cons- Racism (apparently endemic to the time period) ; unbelievably faultless protagonist
• 
  Rachel M

  Girl of the Limberlost was one of my favorite childhood books, but this one just finally drove me nuts. The author seemed too fond of Linda, and way too eager to show her off. Linda apparently gets the shorter end of the stick - she and her sister Eileen are orphaned four years before the plot, and because Eileen is older, she assumes the majority of their income as her own and leaves Linda in rags. It is easy to feel angry at this injustice, and proud of Linda for stepping up and asking for what is hers in a very assertive, non-manipulative manner. But then you hear the inner thoughts of the other characters, and they all think, "wow, Linda is so brainy/such a hard worker/so beautiful", and they all make this very clear. But the author says so many times how unfair Eileen is, and how Eileen gets everything. Then, in the next scene, Linda is making another friend, or another man is falling in love with her, or she is having another big break. Linda sails through the plot with so much confidence and pride that you figure she's doing well enough on her own, and there is no use feeling too sorry for her. But the last straw is Linda's numerous diatribes about how the white race is superior to every other one, and how any non-white race is only capable of copying the ingenious creativity of white people. That was the end of it for me. And these men, who seem more like decorative butterflies, just flutter around Linda saying, "You know, I think you must be right."
  Yuck. In many ways, Linda just seemed like a version of Teddy Roosevelt, dressed up as a girl. (This is not to imply that Teddy Roosevelt had white supremacist leanings). But, her whole charm, as Porter presented her, seemed to be in this upper class, white American pride of hard work, brains, and natural giftedness overcoming all obstacles. While hard work and brains do accomplish a lot, I had a hard time trusting the message, probably because it struck me as so blatantly arrogant.
• 
  Els

  goodreads, you are IN ZERO (0) WAY READY FOR THE ABSOLUTE RAMOAGE I AM GOING TO GO ON as soon as I actually have three free seconds.
• 
  Alicia

  I'm between a 3 and a 4 on this one ... I really enjoyed Linda as a smart accomplished tomboy character who is polar opposites with her sister. The story has a fairy-tale quality to it; Linda is the put-upon, neglected orphan. Her fashionable older sister hoards all the money for her own use and is a real two-faced conniver when it comes to men and friendships. It was super entertaining and I really enjoyed that and how Linda is an accomplished naturalist. It's not realistic--the characters are a bit too good, a bit too evil, and a bit too silly at times. The plot is far-fetched overall.
  
  But I was okay with those things. My big problem with this story is that it is extremely racist. To the point of being laughable, except it's in earnest. WOW, I cannot believe certain claims that are made throughout the entire story about white supremacy and the supposed inferiority of people of non-white races. I know part of that was the time period, but it was really disappointing from Gene. And it was central to the overall plot. So I would not recommend this book necessarily, although I would love to re-write it and tell a better story.
• 
  Rhonda Mast

  I’ve been rereading some of the books I loved as a girl, so I picked this one up the other day. I was completely caught off guard by how grossly racist this was. It’s really disappointing because I enjoy so many things about Gene Stratton-Porter’s writing. Like many of the other books she writes, this one had so much fascinating information about plants and the dessert. I also have a serious aversion to books about girls with multiple men chasing them, but it would have been forgivable if it weren’t for the racism. It’s so bad. If I hear one more word about the superiority of the white man and the suppose inbred dishonesty and sneakiness of the Asian I think I’ll scream. I really do try to keep in mind the historical context of the story. I get that this was a fairly accepted attitude of society at this time, but it’s so disgusting.
  I don’t think we do ourselves any favors by canceling something because it’s offensive and despicable. Turning away because it’s ugly and makes us uncomfortable profits absolutely no one. But I have absolutely no intention of picking this up again. Will I keep reading about it and keeping my eyes and ears open? Absolutely. But no one needs this.
• 
  Danielle

  When you read early 20th century fiction you have to be prepared for some level of racism. Most of the time it's limited to stereotypical portrayals of minor characters or the occasional "N" word - things that are easily ignored and don't affect your overall enjoyment of the story. "Her Father's Daughter," however, belongs in an entirely different category. From the first pages to the climax the racist themes are preached by the 17 year old heroine. There's nothing subtle about it - pages and pages of warnings against the "yellow peril" and the dangers of all the other non-white races. Blech.
  
  Other than that it's just your typical overly perfect, gifted, rich and beautiful heroine whom everybody loves struggling to make her way in the world.
• 
  Cathy

  Times were indeed different back in the days of Gene Stratton-Porter but this book was far too racist and bigoted for me to be happy with. The book is one long lecture on how white people are superior than any other race, and not only that but other races are low and debased. I would not recommend this book to anyone. Too bad that I tarnished the happy memory of some of the better titles by the same author.
• 
  Jodi

  So so awful. The creepy older man lusting after 17 year old girl, the killing that was brushed under the rug, the super bratty and controlling heroine, and worst of all the incredibly hateful racism. Steer clear!!!
• 
  Victoria Lynn

  THIS BOOK! I love it so much! The story, the characters, the nature. . . In my top five by GSP. Sigh, beauty!
• 
  Kari

  Hm...this is the last of hers I'm going to read, and yes, you can see by the end that her whole idea of the Japanese element "had to be the way it is" for the rest of the story to fit as nicely together as it does...this does not make it a great idea :)
  
  And this would be one of those books where you read, thinking something will happen soon, and meanwhile you know you're gathering (slowly) lots of tidbits, but you don't know why any of them are in the least important; and by the time the book ends, you say, "ooohhh, yes, okay, it's one of these books," and everything (thankfully) (rather) comes together, and if you're not any more gung-ho than you probably are after getting to the end, then your lazy brain doesn't want to think of any better way she could have tied things together, or to think of any better way she could have introduced all the parts, either; you just sort of laugh and say well, that was rather a strange book and move on.
  
  And yet, except for the racist stuff (yes, I realize--now--better than I think I did before--how the world was when people apparently really thought and would put into books like this, these attitudes about other cultures [heck, did the fact that the U.S. seems to have felt this way this strongly for...like, all the years after WWI, actually have a bearing on the Japanese attitude towards the U.S. by about 20 years afterward?]) I don't know that there are any other strong reasons why this can't be called a decent book. Again, she does an interesting job of putting into words things that girls 80-100 years later think and say, but it seems on the modern side; so if you find out that girls thought and said those things in the nine-teens, then maybe they were thinking and saying them in 3800 B.C. and 50 A.D. as well.
  
  It's still a "totally different" style from what seems her best signature style, for the most part; so I'm glad that Keeper of the Bees has so much of what you expect from her, coming "after" this book (although maybe it was actually written earlier).
• 
  Kathryn

  A Young Woman Who Loves Life
  
  Written during WWII or soon after, this is the story of a young girl, Linda Strong raised by her Father in California who shares his knowledge of the beauty of the state with her when he was alive. When her parents pass away unexpectedly, she is left with her sister Eileen in a big house with much wealth. Her sister wastes much of the money on herself until one day young Linda has an awakening and realizes what is happening. She takes matters into her own hands, talks to the town banker and learns to provide some for herself doing what she enjoys. Immigrants are part of the story who at that time in history, were.. not welcome in the US as they may be now. Romance, enjoyable repartee, California flora and fauna as well as outdoor recipes, and even murder are all pieces of this wonderful old story. Delightful reading. Keep in mind the period it was written to be more amenable to the story.
• 
  Talea

  The story takes place during WWI so there is a lot of talk about Japanese in particular (they are a wartime enemy) and other races being inferior to the white race. It’s a reoccurring thorn in an otherwise excellent novel. It felt almost as if it added for propaganda reasons but the date it was published put it just after WWI. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed the descriptions of the WWI LA County California countryside. The wild foraging food prep descriptions and other the uses for various plants was breathtaking and highly educational. It was also nice to read about a strong female character that valued brains and the outdoors, especially for a novel copyrighted in 1921. I highly recommend reading it for those reasons alone, if you can get past the white supremacy undertones. (I almost stopped reading it even knowing that it was written in a time when such views were common and see past it. This time it was a little harder than usual.)
• 
  Susan

  This novel by one of my favorite authors, Gene Stratton-Porter, was rather a surprising read. The general story line was enjoyable, although perhaps unrealistic, but the racist elements that were espoused by the main character, Linda, were definitely hard to read. It certainly colored my opinion of the story and made me heartsick. I realize that this novel was written between the time of the two World Wars, and that deep-seated prejudices were more common then, but it bothered me and tainted the story for me. I still love Gene Stratton-Porter as an author, an have read her novel, "Keeper of the Bees" multiple times, as well as most of her other books. Nevertheless, I probably wouldn't recommend this particular book to others.
• 
  Virginia Allain

  I read this while in my teens and though I loved and reread Gene Stratton-Porter's other books, this one languished on my shelf. Finally after 50 years, I pulled it out for a reread.
  It has many elements that made her books popular (lots of nature, good characters, some dramatic developments), but I was horrified at the hateful parts about the Japanese living in California. This is in the era after WWI and before WWII, and I suppose it reflects some of the public sentiment at the time. Still, the frequent discussions of white supremacy are quite distasteful.
  If I went through and Xed out all those sections or tore out the pages, it would be a lovely story. Sadly, this book no longer will have a space on my bookshelf.
• 
  Kara Potts

  A horrifying book full of racism. Words really can't describe awful it was to read.
  After reading other books of Gene Stratton-Porter, I expected to read a lot about nature, a lot about the old-fashioned (yet forward thinking!) perfections of the heroine and a cliched resolution at the end. I didn't expect that the heroine would began giving long speeches about the superiority of whites and how they must retain their dominance in the United States. Skip this one if you want to have even a shred of appreciation left for Stratton-Porter. This book is headed for the trash bin. And if I saw it a second hand store, I buy it to throw it away again.
• 
  Corrine

  I have read many of this author’s works and I just plain like her wholesomeness!! And I’m kind of a plant freak, so I like her botanical descriptions too. (I confess—I sometimes skim a very little when the description gets too long… don’t tell!!!)
  
  So. Yes—I liked this book!! A little too many things going on that were less convincing in this story than in her other books. But I still really enjoyed it. A strong white supremacy slant that was tough to read around but of course her character development of the main characters was as lovely as ever and snagged my heart!! I can only recommend with reservations.