Letter to a Young Farmer: How to Live Richly without Wealth on the New Garden Farm

Synopsis

&“In the midst of our epidemic fear of the future and its so-far predicted emergencies and catastrophes, here is Gene patiently, quietly, with the right touch of merriment, talking about the small, really possible ways of solving our one great problem: how to live on the Earth without destroying it.&”—Wendell Berry, from the forewordFor more than four decades, the self-described &“contrary farmer&” and writer Gene Logsdon has commented on the state of American agriculture. In Letter to a Young Farmer, his final book of essays, Logsdon addresses the next generation—young people who are moving back to the land to enjoy a better way of life as small-scale &“garden farmers.&” It&’s a lifestyle that isn&’t defined by accumulating wealth or by the &“get big or get out&” agribusiness mindset. Instead, it&’s one that recognizes the beauty of nature, cherishes the land, respects our fellow creatures, and values rural traditions. It&’s one that also looks forward and embraces &“right technologies,&” including new and innovative ways of working smarter, not harder, and avoiding premature burnout.Completed only a few weeks before the author&’s death, Letter to a Young Farmer is a remarkable testament to the life and wisdom of one of the greatest rural philosophers and writers of our time. Gene&’s earthy wit and sometimes irreverent humor combines with his valuable perspectives on many wide-ranging subjects—everything from how to show a ram who&’s boss to enjoying the almost churchlike calmness of a well-built livestock barn.Reading this book is like sitting down on the porch with a neighbor who has learned the ways of farming through years of long observation and practice. Someone, in short, who has &“seen it all&” and has much to say, and much to teach us, if we only take the time to listen and learn. And Gene Logsdon was the best kind of teacher: equal parts storyteller, idealist, and rabble-rouser. His vision of a nation filled with garden farmers, based in cities, towns, and countrysides, will resonate with many people, both young and old, who long to create a more sustainable, meaningful life for themselves and a better world for all of us.&“Sagacious and sly, practical and poetic, Logsdon&’s voice may have been contrarian but it was never condescending.&”—Booklist

Copyright:

2017

Book Details

Book Quality:

Publisher Quality

Book Size:

232 Pages

ISBN-13:

9781603587266

Related ISBNs:

9781603588065, 9781603587259

Publisher:

Rizzoli

Date of Addition:

04/01/25

Copyrighted By:

Chelsea Green Publishing

Adult content:

No

Language:

English

Has Image Descriptions:

No

Categories:

Nonfiction, Cooking, Food and Wine, Home and Garden, Social Studies

Submitted By:

Bookshare Staff

Usage Restrictions:

This is a copyrighted book.

Foreword by:

Wendell Berry