Hearts West

Title: Hearts West: True Stories of Mail-Order Brides on the Frontier 
Author: Chris Enss
Pub Date: 2005
Genre: History
Nutshell: A collection of stories of women and men who advertised (successfully or otherwise) for mates in the Western US during the late 1800s.

This was kind of a gimme. I got the ebook for 99 cents from Amazon and it's quite short. But I was behind for the month and I needed something quick. 

I read this in a morning. It's a short book and a quick read. It's 17 small chapters (not including forward and afterward) that each tell a story or two about a couple that met through matrimonial advertisements or the history of some of the various schemes to bring eligible ladies out West during the settlement of that area. Definitely the precursor to online dating, although in general people tended to be much more honest about themselves in the earlier era and usually sent accurate photos when requested. A fair number of the correspondents ended up getting married and staying married, and more than a few of those marriages seemed to actually be happy. Given the conditions in the West and the rather unorthodox method of meeting, that's either highly surprising or an argument for being slightly less picky in a life partner. 

The book also reprints several advertisements from the period, many from women in the early to mid-20s who were seeking husbands. Some of the women were in their 30s and were either spinsters (awful word) or widows. The ads from older widows are generally hilarious, and you get an idea they had full knowledge of what they were looking for in a husband. Ads from men are mostly straightforward. I find it difficult to get into the mindset that these women, many of whom had jobs and some of whom stood to inherit substantial sums, just had to get married, but I'm a thoroughly modern girl in that respect I guess. Given the dearth of eligible young men in that time period (the Civil War more or less wiped out a generation), ladies had to take their chances where they could if they didn't want to be alone.

Some of the stories are quite charming, and most of them end happily. Overall, a nice little book. There are a few typos and small problems, but for 99 cents I'm not going to complain. It was something easily read with historical insight into the lives of women 150 years ago.