Stories in chronological order
Among Tall Trees
Rating
PG After Inger's death Ben, Adam and baby Hoss journey west.
Adam makes a new friend
and the family find a new home.
The Solitary Way - two volumes
Rating: PG
Synopsis: The period of Adam Cartwright's life from Marie's arrival at the Ponderosa
until after Joe's birth.
The Good Samaritan
Rating: G
Synopsis: Ben tries to teach a young Hoss the
parable of 'The Good Samaritan' but Hoss turns the tables on him and
Ben learns the real meaning of the story.
Sweet Caroline
Rating: PG13
Synopsis: First love can be painful in more ways than one. When Adam first begins to
explore the world of girls and
love the whole family find this out as they and he try to come to terms with his growing pains.
Hidden Talents
Rating G
Synopsis: Hoss is having trouble
at school and uses a boast of Adam's to help him out. The boast threatens to have
tragic consequences when Adam feels obliged to carry it through.
The Christmas Engine
Rating G
Synopsis: Good little boys always get what they want for Christmas, even if
Santa needs a little help sometimes.
Reflections
Rating PG13
Synopsis: Whilte waiting
for Ben to come home, Marie reflects on what might have been her fate had she not met him.
Promises
Rating: PG
Synopsis: The story of Marie and her relationship with Adam told
in flashback.
The
Canoe Trip
Rating: G
Synopsis: Adam and his friend Ross decide to take a fishing
trip, to Adam's dismay two little brothers manage to go
along too. Of course with a mischievous six-year-old along the trip is not quite what Adam had planned.
Yard Chores
Rated G
Synopsis: Little Joe finds out all about
yard chores and his brothers wish he hadn't!
Hard Lessons
Rating: PG13
Synopsis: Follow up to Promises, deals with the aftermath of Marie's
death.
Missing
Rating: G
Synopsis: Adam reads a letter from Hoss that makes him realise how
much he misses his brothers. Hoss and Joe are
missing their bossy older brother, he had his uses! Ben is simply worried about his youngest sons who are
MISSING.
The
Impossible Dream -
Rated X
Volume 1 - The story of Adam’s first year in college, its highs and lows
as he changes from boy to man.
Volume 2 -
The Unreachable Star - in progress
Special Bond
Rating: G
Synopsis: The bond between brothers and a boy
and a horse. Set on Adam's return from college.
The first story I wrote of the adventures of the Cartwrights.
The Sermon
Rating G
Synopsis: One Sunday, one sermon and four different people in the congregation. What
thoughts go through the
Cartwrights' heads as they listen (or not) to the preacher.
Talking Turkey
Rated G
Synopsis: Joe cries wolf once too often, but his brothers help prove that this time he was telling
the truth.
A Chill In The Air
Rating: G
Synopsis: Through their troubles the Cartwrights are gently reminded of the
true meaning of Christmas.
Crossing
Swords
Rating
PG
Synopsis: Adam tried to get Joe out of trouble
with Pa and Miss Jones but only succeeds in making trouble for himself.
Treasures in the Attic
Rating G
Synopsis: Adam and Joe bring down
some trunks from the attic and Pa relates a hundred year old family story to
amuse a bored Little Joe on a winter’s day.
The Gunpowder Plot
Rating PG
Synopsis: A Snowy winter day and Joe hears another story of his older brothers’
misspent youth.
"Reflections"
rated R
Marie waits for her husband to come home and reflects on what might have been if they had not met
in New Orleans. (Warning for Marie fans - this is how I see her past based on the Episode The Stranger. It may
not suit your view.)
Snakes Alive
Rating G
Synopsis: Third of the stories told on a winter’s
day to amuse Joe. A young Joe begs for a new story to while away
another winter's afternoon. Ben responds by telling how a simple request for Adam to find Hoss a new pastime
rebounds on him.
Pandora’s Box
Rating PG
Little Joe opens an old diary and jumps to
conclusions way too fast.
Voice from the Past
Rating: PG
Synopsis: Ben falls in love with a mirror image of his first wife.
Hands
Rating G
Synopsis: Joe and Adam plan on an afternoon at the summer picnic,
unfortunately their plans aren't compatible.
Hoss
has plans too but he ought to know better than to listen to Joe if he wants a quiet boys' afternoon!
The
Alibi
Rating
PG
Synopsis: Joe and Mitch are in real trouble with the law.
But their alibi is one that neither is too keen to reveal to
their parents.
A Clear Cut Case
Rating PG
Synopsis: Joe defends a friend accused
of murder when all the evidence is against him
Unwillingly to School
Rating G
Synopsis:
The Cartwright boys are only too willing to help out the new schoolteacher. This causes a little
conflict
between them but Adam
and Joe learn that you should never jump to conclusions.
Always There
Rating G
Synopsis; After a cave in at the mine Joe discovers that his older brother is always
there for him, no matter
what
the circumstances. (Published in the 1999 Convention Anthology)
Ripples on the Lake
Rating G
Synopsis; Ben opposes a new railway to
carry lumber to the mines because it means losing a piece of land that means
a lot to him. Will he re-think his attitude when he finds out who is to engineer the project.
(Published
in the 1999 Convention Anthology)
One Good Turn
Rating PG
Synopsis: Trouble for the Cartwrights in San Francisco. Ben finds out that deeds
he did in his past come back to
haunt him; fortunately it’s the good deeds that prove to be most useful. (Published in the 2002
Convention Anthology)
Lady in Waiting
Rated G
Synopsis: A young lady invites the Cartwrights to her birthday party and then waits for the right
man to ask her to dance. But who is the right man? (Published in the 2002 Convention
anthology)
Through
the Mist
Rated
G
Synopsis: The bond between brothers is strong, but is it as strong as Hoss believes.
(Published only in the 2005 Convention Anthology)
The
Gift of Love
Rated PG
Synopsis: Adam discovers that to love someone means to put their needs before your own.
A Good Example
Rated PG
Synopsis: Adam decides to set a good example with
disasterous results.
Nine Tenths of the Law
Rated PG
Synopsis: A trip to check on line shacks
turns into a gun battle for Adam.
The Sailboat
Rated G
Synopsis: On the eve of Joe’s wedding, the Cartwright boys spend a day at the lake,
talking over
old times and the first time Adam and Hoss took Little Joe sailing.
The Road that Leads Me Home
Rated PG
Synopsis: Adam is
going home but what will he find when he gets there?
"The Flatpack"
rated G
A tongue in cheek story of what our favorite family might make of a modern
day purchase. Inspired by a fun day spent assembling flatpack furniture. We imagined
what the boys would have made of the less than explicit instructions.
"The British Ally".. rated G
During the Civil War Ben is caught up in a range war for timber, can his new neighbour help him win, or is there
another agenda.
"The Black
Stallion" rated G
A wild horse helps Adam and Joe come to a new understanding
"The Coffee Pot" rated G
The keeper of the coffee pot hears everything,
as Ben learns.
"The Rabbit Drive" rated G
A short piece about the Nevada
Native Americans traditional rabbit drive and how a Cartwright joined in.
"The Stagecaoch Whip"
rated G
Adam and Joe remember a wild stagecoach journey when they read of the death of the driver in the
newspaper.
to read any of these stories please email me at vicki.christian@ntlworld.com