Laura Ingalls Wilder’s beloved Little House on the Prairie book series has enchanted readers for nearly a century — and for good reason. Part earnest exploration of the American West and part frontier fairytale, the novels capture the infectious joy and sometimes harsh reality of life in the 1800s. Season 1 of Netflix’s Little House on the Prairie is based on the titular third book in the semi-autobiographical series, and follows the Ingalls family — “Pa” Charles (Luke Bracey), “Ma” Caroline (Crosby Fitzgerald), Mary (Skywalker Hughes), and Laura (Alice Halsey), as well as their beloved dog, Jack (Good Boy) — on a journey from the snow-packed forests of Wisconsin to the wide-open spaces of Kansas.
After watching all eight episodes of showrunner and executive producer Rebecca Sonnenshine’s series — and as you eagerly await Season 2 — you might find yourself hankering for more movies and series that capture the same spirit. While Laura’s adventurous soul is impossible to truly duplicate, the titles below feature other intrepid young heroes, brave historical figures, and romantic encounters aplenty. Read on to learn more.
Also based on a beloved book — Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery — this series stars Amybeth McNulty as the titular imaginative redhead. Orphaned at a young age and passed around abusive families and orphanages, Anne lands in Canada’s quaint Prince Edward Island. Though aging siblings Marilla (Geraldine James) and Matthew (R.H. Thomson) originally sent for a boy to help out around the farm, they can’t help but be drawn in by Anne’s tenacity, warmth, and infectious goodness. Soon, she’s forming friendships, attending school, and making her mark on the entire island.
A young person does everything they can to save their family. Sound familiar? Based on the memoir by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer, this drama — directed by Chiwetel Ejiofor — follows a 13-year-old boy, William (Maxwell Simba), whose small community in Malawi is struck by a devastating drought. His parents, farmers Trywell (Ejiofor) and Agnes (Aïssa Maïga), pull him from school because of the cost, but the curious William still manages to study electrical engineering behind their backs. His unconventional skills become useful when the drought leads to a famine that threatens them all.
The ghost of the Civil War looms large in Little House on the Prairie, so exploring the life of one of its most storied leaders adds historical context to your viewing experience. The Ingalls arrived in Independence, Kansas, in 1869, the same year President Ulysses S. Grant was sworn into office. This miniseries, based on Ron Chernow’s 2017 biography of the same name, follows Grant, played by Justin Salinger, on his rise to historical greatness: from his humble beginnings in Ohio to his time as a Union general in the Civil War, and from post-war fame to the presidency.
While the Ingalls family’s modest homestead is nowhere near the size of the titular horse ranch in Heartland, both are built on solid foundations of love and devotion. Based on Lauren Brooke’s novels, this sprawling drama series follows sisters Amy (Amber Marshall) and Lou Fleming (Michelle Morgan), whose polar-opposite approaches to life — much like Mary and Laura — lead to plenty of strife. But after a devastating loss at the beginning of the series, the pair are forced to come together to keep their family’s dream alive with the help of their extensive community.
This 2017 take on Louisa May Alcott’s 1868 novel stars Maya Hawke (Stranger Things), Willa Fitzgerald (A HOUSE OF DYNAMITE), Kathryn Newton (The Society), and Annes Elwy (The Feast) as Jo, Meg, Amy, and Beth March, respectively, four sisters whose shared childhood during the American Civil War era leads them down wildly different paths. While some find romance, others reject it. But even as they find their way in the world, they know that they can always count on each other, even when loss and their personal differences seem determined to drive them apart.
Narrated by Campbell Scott (Nonnas) and executive produced by Leonardo DiCaprio (Don’t Look Up), this docudrama follows a collection of figures who endeavored to claim the country’s vast wilderness during its early years. From the American Revolution through the California Gold Rush, these explorers — including Daniel Boone, Lewis and Clark, and Davy Crockett — paved the way for families like the Ingalls to migrate West. The series also shines a light on the Native people who fought back against encroaching settlers, including the Shawnee chief Tecumseh, who united tribes to resist US expansion.
This coming-of-age drama follows 15-year-old Jackie Howard (Nikki Rodriguez), who’s forced to leave her life in Manhattan behind after she loses her family in a terrible accident. She moves across the country to live with her mother’s college best friend, Katherine Walter (Sarah Rafferty), in the rural town of Silver Falls, Colorado. A straight-A student who’s determined to get into Princeton, Jackie soon learns that small-town life has its charms. And as time goes on, she finds herself caught between two brothers: the bookish Alex (Ashby Gentry) and the troubled Cole (Noah LaLonde).
Josh Duhamel (Safe Haven) and Minka Kelly (Champagne Problems) star in this romantic Western series about a trio of warring families fighting for control of their land. At the center of it all are withdrawn rancher Staten Kirkland (Duhamel), who’s still recovering from a heavy loss, and his longtime friend Quinn O’Grady (Kelly), who returns from New York to run the local dance hall after pursuing a career as a concert pianist. The two fall for each other, but their connection is complicated by Staten’s troubled past, family rivalries, and the small Texas community they call home.
A woman who’s lost touch with her roots finds a way back home — in more ways than one — in this moving drama, starring Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon). Reeling from a devastating loss, Tana (Gladstone) is pulled back into the world by an unexpected invitation to a wedding in South Dakota. After reuniting with her Oglala Lakota family, Tana sets off on a road trip to retrace a surreal journey that her grandmother took decades ago, searching for connection and a meaningful location captured in an old family photograph.
Two decades ago, Kat Landry (Chyler Leigh) moved away from her small hometown in Canada after a tragic accident. That was also the last time she saw her mother, Del (Andie MacDowell), before moving back home after divorcing her husband. Kat’s daughter, Ali (Sadie Laflamme-Snow), is along for the ride — and vehemently unhappy about the move. Little do they know that their family’s rural property contains a magic pond that transports people through time. With help from Kat’s childhood friend, Elliot (Evan Williams), they might find the source of their family’s oldest wounds and … the way home.
