SOURCE: “Back-Country Folkways in Mrs. Kirkland's A New Home—Who'll Follow?,” Michigan History, Vol. 40, No. 3, September, 1956, pp. 297-308.

In the following essay, McCloskey examines Kirkland's depiction of western settlers in A New Home. Paying special attention to her realistic style and use of satire, McCloskey notes the manner in which Kirkland differed from other writers of the era who typically chose a more sentimental approach to their subject matter.

Backwoods life in Michigan from 1835-1836 Mrs. Caroline Matilda Stansbury Kirkland¹ observed with an accuracy and a freshness which make her book of sketches A New Home—Who'll Follow? Or, Glimpses of Western Life (1839)² a historical, literary, and social document of genuine interest, informative, and entertaining.

Writing in an age of literary sentimentalism and fed upon romantic tales, Mrs. Kirkland was, nevertheless, a realist and a comic satirist of considerable skill, who attempted to “body forth” an unvarnished picture...