Beneath the Prairie Stars

Beneath the Prairie Stars

In 1848, young Maggie O’Brien sets out with her family for a new life on the American frontier. Her father’s work as an army scout brings them to Fort Snelling, Minnesota, where Maggie’s love of adventure begins to bloom along the Mississippi River.

But when tragedy takes her father from her, Maggie is left carrying grief, anger, and fear. Hoping to begin again, her family joins a wagon train bound for California, traveling the Santa Fe Trail through the vast and unpredictable Great Plains. Along the way, Maggie faces buffalo stampedes, prairie fires, rattlesnakes, storms, and the quiet struggles of her own heart.

As unexpected encounters challenge what she believes, Maggie begins to discover that healing can come from the most unlikely places. Carla Beene’s Beneath the Prairie Stars is a heartfelt coming-of-age frontier adventure about loss, courage, understanding, and finding hope beneath wide western skies.

Follow Maggie’s journey across the American frontier in Beneath the Prairie Stars.

Excerpt from the book

June 1848

I narrowed my eyes at my brother. “No, Woody, you’re wrong! We are not leaving St. Louis! This is our home. Always has been and always will be.” I was only a year younger and looked up to him. But honestly, I never knew when he was pulling my leg. “This is another one of your crazy stories!”

“Maggie, I’m not making this up. Papa’s been called to Minnesota,” said Woody, shrugging.

I found that hard to believe. At the age of twelve, he was already known for telling tall tales or, as Papa called them, “Woody’s Whoppers.”

“How come no one told me? I’m part of this family, too!”

“Papa told me last night. You were already in bed.”

I frowned at Woody, still not believing him. “Still sounds like a whopper to me.”

“Ask Mama if you don’t believe me.”

I found Mama in the kitchen, rolling out dough for biscuits. “Is it true? Are we leaving?”

“Yes, Maggie,” she said, pushing a strand of dark, curly hair out of her eyes. “Papa just got his transfer orders to Fort Snelling. He’s one of the army’s best scouts, and they need him up north. Can you imagine living in a fort? Isn’t that exciting? It will certainly be a lot different than St. Louis.”

“But… but I don’t understand. What about my friends? What about our house?” I scowled. “Nobody asked me about leaving. How come everyone knew but me? I am old enough to be in on the family discussions.”

“Maggie, I was getting ready to tell you over breakfast. Anyway, your best friend moved away six months ago, and you don’t spend much time with other friends. There are other kids at the fort. As for the house, you’ll miss it for a while, but our new home will be exciting. You’ll see.”

“When are we going? How will we get there?”

“Slow down,” said Mama, laughing. “We’ll take a riverboat up the Mississippi River in a week.”

“That soon?” Tears threatened to spill, but I blinked hard. Crying is for babies. “How long will it take to get there?”

“Your father said it shouldn’t take more than a week or two up the Mississippi River.” She wiped the biscuit dough from her hands. “Start packing up your things. Since there won’t be enough room to take everything, choose carefully.”

After breakfast, I walked slowly back to my room. Te room I’d lived in for so many years, where I’d kept my prized possessions and hidden secrets. The room that I’d kept neat and orderly, unlike Woody’s pigsty. I ran my hand along the lacy pink curtains I’d helped Mama sew three years ago. My stitches looked terrible, but Mama thought they were a great beginning. I was proud of those curtains.