One of New York Times“Top 10 Books of 2009” (Dwight Garner)“Easily the funniest, weirdest, most perversely provocative gardening book I've ever read. I couldn't put it down . . . The writing soars.” —The New York Times Book Review
“Captivating . . . By turns edgy, moving, and hilarious, Farm City marks the debut of a striking new voice in American writing.” —Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma and Food Rules
When Novella Carpenter—captivated by the idea of backyard self-sufficiency as the daughter of two back-to-the-earth hippies—moves to a ramshackle house in inner-city Oakland and discovers a weed-choked, garbage-strewn abandoned lot next door, she closes her eyes and pictures heirloom tomatoes, a beehive, and a chicken coop.
What starts out as a few egg-laying chickens leads to turkeys, geese, and ducks. And not long after, along came two 300-pound pigs. And no, these charming and eccentric animals aren’t pets. Novella is raising these animals for dinner.
An unforgettably charming memoir, full of hilarious moments, fascinating farmer’s tips, and a great deal of heart, Farm City offers a beautiful mediation on what we give up to live the way we do today.
NOVELLA CARPENTER grew up in rural Idaho and Washington State. She studied biology and English at the University of Washington, where she had many odd jobs, including assassin bug handler and 16-millimeter film projectionist. After moving to California, she attended UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism where she studied with Michael Pollan. Her writing has appeared on Salon.com and sfgate.com and in Mother Jones and Food and Wine. Her adventures in urban agriculture began with honeybees and a few chickens, then some turkeys, until she created an urban homestead called GhostTown Farm near downtown Oakland, where she and her boyfriend, Bill, live today. Her most recent book, The Essential Urban Farmer (co-authored with Willow Rosenthal), was published by Penguin Books in 2011.
www.novellacarpenter.com.
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"Utterly enchanting.... The juxtaposition of the farming life with inner-city grit...elevates it to the realm of the magical." —-Publishers Weekly Starred Review
