Buffalo Flats by Martine Levitt

Based on true-life histories, Buffalo Flats shares the epic, coming of age story of Rebecca Leavitt as she searches for her identity in the Northwest Territories of Canada during the late 1800s.

Seventeen-year-old Rebecca Leavitt has traveled by covered wagon from Utah to the Northwest Territories of Canada, where her father and brothers are now homesteading and establishing a new community with other Latter-Day Saints. Rebecca is old enough to get married, but what kind of man would she marry and who would have a girl like her—a girl filled with ideas and opinions? Someone gallant and exciting like Levi Howard? Or a man of ideas like her childhood friend Coby Webster?

Rebecca decides to set her sights on something completely different. She loves the land and wants her own piece of it. When she learns that single women aren’t allowed to homestead, her father agrees to buy her land outright, as long as Rebecca earns the money —480 dollars, an impossible sum. She sets out to earn the money while surviving the relentless challenges of pioneer life—the ones that Mother Nature throws at her in the form of blizzards, grizzles, influenza and floods, and the ones that come with human nature, be they exasperating neighbors or the breathtaking frailty of life.

Buffalo Flats is inspired by true-life histories of the author’s ancestors. It is an extraordinary novel that explores Latter-Day Saints culture and the hardships of pioneer life. It is about a stubborn, irreverent, and resourceful young woman who remains true to herself and discovers that it is the bonds of family, faith, and friendship—even romance--that tie her to the wild and unpredictable land she loves so fiercely.

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I’ll admit it: my knowledge of the American pioneer period comes mostly from Little House on the Prairie and a little bit about Jamestown’s Starving Time. This novel is set in Canada, but the spirit of the pioneers is very much at the heart of it. Rebecca loves the Northwest Territories fiercely, and through her eyes, we grow to love it as well.

I don’t know a lot about the historical accuracy, but it certainly reads right. Rebecca’s family relies on their animals and crops, they use herbs for medicine—including for the often-fatal grippe (the then-common name for the flu)—and as Latter-Day Saints, the unmarried community members find their movements and behaviors strictly curtailed. Rebecca often worries if her thoughts are good enough, unaware that her actions speak volumes about her character. She keeps her spirit no matter what happens and works hard and loyally to protect and help others. And, most tellingly, she has no hesitation in giving up the thing that’s most important to her when someone else needs it more.

This novel is a beautiful glimpse into a history I knew little about and a powerful reminder that, despite time and circumstance, people remain fundamentally the same.

Book Recommendation
My Antonia by Willa Cather
This classic novel captures the spirit of the pioneer era, focusing on the challenges and triumphs of life on the frontier. Like Rebecca, Ántonia Shimerda is a strong-willed young woman who grows up amid the hardships of prairie life. Themes of resilience, love for the land, and the bonds of family and community make this a fitting companion to Buffalo Flats.

Movie/TV Recommendation
TV Series: Anne with an E
This series adapts the beloved Anne of Green Gables with a fresh and slightly grittier take. It shares Rebecca’s sense of adventure, determination, and a young woman’s journey to assert her identity and independence. Both stories explore family, community, and the beauty and challenges of rural life with a vivid, emotional touch.

Buffalo Flats publishes on the 28th of January, 2025. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.