Remarkable Stories in the Words of The Mound Ridge 13 is a book of autobiographical recollections from a family of 13 children. The authors/compilers of the stories are two of the children, Michael Pedretti and Leo Pedretti. The children all grew up on the Mound Ridge farm in Genoa, Wisconsin and their stories cover life there. Additionally, there is genealogical information for the family going back to their earliest roots. The book includes many photos of the siblings, as well as a section that shows family photos from the early days of photography. One part of the book tells about the experiences of children who grew up on farms in the mid-20th century. The book is Part 10 of 12 in a series called The Story of Our Stories.

Remarkable Stories in the Words of The Mound Ridge 13 is a fascinating book. Author Micheal Pedretti, with the assistance of his brother Leo Pedretti, provides a fine service to readers everywhere with this exceptionally well-done work. Asking 13 siblings to each write their recollections was a stroke of genius and the resulting book is unique and compelling. I also enjoyed the stories about farm life in the mid-20th century. The fact that sometimes the same events are written about by different children adds additional perspective and interest to the stories. Anyone who reads this book can’t help but have their interest in their own genealogy piqued, and the extended family members of the authors will certainly want to keep the book forever as a family keepsake. I recommend Remarkable Stories to everyone.

Remarkable Stories: In the Words of The Mound Ridge Thirteen is written by Michael and Leo Pedretti. Thirteen different stories from thirteen different siblings make up a volume that shows how things change from generation to generation. Even the differences in the way children live across the span of several years can be significant. Agnes had eight children, lived through the times brought on by World War II, had a mental health crisis, and had to navigate through life in a new way. Michael and Dan share a memory of building a wagon with wheels made of yarn spools. Daniel reminisces about his time in school and the life he lived on the farm. Thirteen children in total with very unique experiences make for quite an interesting volume of autobiographies!

Remarkable Stories is an amazing compilation of true stories of a family’s life through decades of differences. I absolutely loved reading about the amazing contrast of how each one of the children grew up, and I enjoyed reading about their ancestors, too. Remarkable Stories resonates with the heavy truths of being defined by what we do for work. The pages of poetry by Leo add another level of depth and difference to this book, too. I recommend Remarkable Stories by Michael and Leo Pedretti to those who love reading about the unique experiences others have faced. There is so much to learn and understand from this family dynamic, and I hope that the Pedrettis decide to get together again to share more of the memories and challenges the family has lived and thrived through.