In the conjured realm of childhood, Kally is the fastest, smartest, prettiest and most courageous of all. Enter the world of the 1950s and 1960s. She's the youngest of five children growing up in Wyoming and Colorado, the baby of the family with six, twelve and sixteen years respectively between her and her siblings. She often spends her time alone with Tramp, her dog and Vix, her horse. Her family is close and supportive, sharing a love of reading, music making, storytelling and camping, but Kally feels she doesn't fit in with the others. As the only one with red hair and green eyes she often wonders if she is adopted or a changeling.
Kally creates worlds in which her differentness makes her stand-out as a strong heroine battling tremendous odds. In her fantasy worlds, no taunting words or hard stares sting her heart or make her wish she could melt into the walls. No siblings or schoolmates tease her, for she triumphs over strife and evil, always.
Prairie Child - A Novel Memoir, is a story in which LaFrance combines Kally's real world with her play world, blending a pretend-gypsy dancer dressed in fanciful clothes with entertaining her parents; racing a horse to get home before dark while fantasy ne'er-do-wells lurk in shadows along the road. She goes through experiences which reflect the times, during which she creates imaginative events with herself as the main character. She conjures personas, pretending to be a captured WWII spy in Greece, a freedom fighter from Scotland, a wagon train passenger, a saloon girl at a shoot-out in the desert on her road to work for Gunsmoke's Miss Kitty.
We come to realize, after all is done, it is love and the relationships among the various characters interweaving their fantasies with a realistic portrayal of a child who doesn't quite fit in her world, that the yearnings we hold within ourselves are no different than those of a young girl named Kally.