youngoxfrd I purchased the entire set of (3) Stories of The Awakening Land from A & E TV. It was on sale at the time w/free shipping & handling. We drag it out & watch the entire set on occasion & each time we watch it, we see something we missed all the other times. I have been trying to find a source to obtain the music/songs that were played & have not been able to locate it. Would love to be able to listen to just the music on occasion. The video's are a great production with excellent acting and the story lines are believable, interesting, heartwarming and simply stated so the viewer will benefit from it all & be happy & satisfied they watched.

joncdarby Of all the miniseries that have ever been this is the only one that I would buy on DVD the day it came out.Just an incredible work. Unlike most historical miniseries, where young hunks and starlets in rip away period costuming are the most important part and actual history is a very very distant third, in this miniseries "You Are There" on the western frontier of the US when that frontier was Ohio. The clothing, the sets (especially the way the family house grows from a one room cabin to a rambling squire's home while its contents change accordingly is wonderful), the scenery, the locations, the INCREDIBLE dialects and vocabulary (very true to the novel and a fantastic job by Marge Campion) all give a sense of time and place that's rarely been equaled on film. Then of course there's the acting: they went for talent rather than pretty and consequently got performances that are still great almost 30 years later. You believe Hal Holbrook, Elizabeth Montgomery (so good you never once think of her as Samantha) and the host of lesser knowns in their roles. There are moments that are hysterically funny ("The more you cry the less you have to pee!"), tragic (the insane mother handling the letter from her daughter's father-to say more would be a spoiler) and just touching, and Portius and "Say'rd" are two characters you care about, a family with real problems and real bonds, neither all saint nor all sinner and certainly not your standard plantation bodice ripper fair stock characters.If you have any interest in frontier history, see this.

bsk-4 The Awakening Land is right up there at the top of my list for best mini series, right behind The Thorn Birds and Centennial. The late Elizabeth Montgomery gives a tour d'force performance that I consider to be her best work.Of all the period pieces I've seen about the early settlers and trailblazers in young America, this one seems to give you a very accurate sense of what life was like for these brave souls who dared to venture out into the wilderness.You'll get no Hollywood fluff here. You won't see women traipsing around with their hair perfectly coiffed and in gowns that look like they just came off the runways of the top fashion houses in Paris. The women in this story literally wear sacks for dresses, have unkempt hair, dirty faces and live in shacks out in the wilds.What you do see are people struggling for food and fighting the elements in an untamed land as well as constantly fighting off predators, both man and beast alike just to survive.You see how these early settlers struggled to work their land and come together from their meager beginnings to grow and form towns. You share in their triumphs and their losses in order to make a better life for themselves.At the heart of this story is Elizabeth Montgomery as the courageous Sayward Luckett, who struggles not only to survive herself, but to take care of her sisters when her mother dies and her father takes off to go trailblazing on his own. With only her wits and her courage to keep her going, she not only survives, but becomes the true heroine of this story.Hal Holbrook and Jane Seymour give wonderful performances as well, but it is Montgomery's exquisite portrayal of the feisty pioneer woman that makes this such a pleasure to watch.I am shocked and surprised to find that The Awakening Land is not yet available on DVD. Hopefully it will be soon. But I strongly urge anyone who has not yet seen it to try and get a hold of it on VHS or check out your cable service to see if it's listed and watch it. It is one of the best and truly worth your time!

kcflood I've seen the miniseries completely once and partially once. I'd watch it twice a year if I could. Just finished the book by Conrad Richter, The Awakening Land: The Trees, The Fields, The Town. Every time Sayward spoke, I pictured Elizabeth Montgomery; her performance was so true to the book. The role was made for her. Can you picture anyone else as Sayward? I can't. This is a fascinating period of time in our American past. Will The Awakening Land ever be released on VHS or DVD?