Agriculture Books

I like mostly everyone liked this book; it opened my eyes to a better way to garden. The jury is still out on "Compost Tea", very little true long-term scientific trials so far, and E.Coli can be quickly introduced into the soil if brewed with poor compost and molasses, and/or poor equipment, for further reading go to the microbeorganics web site. Some "Organic" ingredients are not always organic, currently "Inert Ingredients", which could be non-organic, are not required to be listed. As far as balancing the best uses of "Organic" and non-organic "The Truth About Organic Gardening: Benefits, Drawbacks, and the Bottom Line" by Jeff Gillman would be an excellent follow-up read to this book, as well as "Gaia's Garden, Second Edition: A Guide To Home-Scale Permaculture" by Toby Hemenway. All-in-all an excellent book but the brewing thing should be handled very carefully; it is not a fix-all and could be very dangerous if not done properly. Finally rotor-tilling one time can actually be good for poor soil, just one time only not every year. Then consider "Sheet Mulching", so much easier.

I dislike reading books but I found this book easy and fun to read. There are many technical/scientific explainations in this book but it still makes very good sense...common sense to a gardener perhaps. Through many years of gardening (usually 'organic') I found that a lot of what I have read I believe to be true; i.e. through experience it works! Some of the new things I've learned from this book I've tried and they appear to be working as well.
I'm not an organic gardening 'purist' but I guess I've always taken care of the soil; using leaves, compost, cow/chicken manures, etc. without even realizing how healthy I was keeping my soil. Bottom line...my neighbors can't seem to compete even though THEY try. Hey, I'm just gardening :)

it was suggested by a Master Gardner that we get this book. Came fast. I also work at our local library and we ordered it.

I'm gardening since 20yrs, the last decade I attempted an organic approach and failed - I got slugs and snails and all pests you can imagine.
After reading this book I know why and how to "heal" my garden.
I will recommand the book to all my friends.

Prior to reading this book, I was one of the millions of Americans who bought into the wonders of "Miracle Grow" & "Turf Builder". Oh how wrong I was. After reading this wonderful book on the importance of the amazing world of soil, I've sworn off my dependence on these synthetic fertilizers in favor of compost & compost teas.
In part one of the book , the author does a fantastic job of educating the readers on the make-up of soil. Then in part two, the author provides the readers with helpful soil improvement techniques that will hopefully wean America of its fascination with synthetic fertilizers. Every gardener should have a copy of this book in their library.

The hero is a pragmatist in a Godless world. The protagonist, Frank Cassidy, had not had a day off in two years when he quits his job in New Jersey to go the the Upper Peninsula, Michigan for reason of a death in the family. He steals a car and later robs a man named Melvin. Frank's brother-cousin and his wife, Norman and Martha, dread the arrival of Frank and Honey and Robert Lee and Ernie, the children.

In the boarding house where they stay there is a hint of opulence. It is learned that the body of the deceased uncle, Ward, is being held by the authorities. Honey feels they should try to get jobs in the town. Frank works as a security guard and Honey in the business office of a college undergoing a transition from a community college to a four years residential college with a Great Books curriculum.

For Thanksgiving it is decided to eat at Cedar Lodge and stay there through the long weekend. Listed winter activities are ice skating and ice fishing. In a telephone call Frank learns that his cousin Norman is collapsing. Norman upended the sheriff's car when served with papers of foreclosure. Frank and his family go to Norman's place where it is discovered the dairy herd has been killed. In the end Frank uncovers and clarifies mysteries that have always surrounded his boyhood. The atmosphere created by the author matches the subject of the search for meaning by being indeterminate, foggy, bewildering. The children are presented in interesting realistic detail.

This book is a pleasure to read. The writing style is effortless - Mr Collins is a skillful and inventive writer.

The story follows a 1970s family who return to the Frank Cassidy's hometown for his dad's funeral. As the mystery around the death unfolds, other themes are also addressed. In a couple of generations Frank's family has moved from primary industry, mining and farming, into the service econony (flipping burgers). The novel shows the impact on families, on men and women and their ideas of their place in the world. Some people can survive in the modern world of corporate farming, of colleges which free people from their tie to the soil. It is not an easy journey but the ability of people to survive shines through, especially when the benefits of education are used to change for the better. In the background the impact of a war fought overseas is also in the air.

Ultimately, a novel about hope. Perhaps even an update of the American dream? Great book, deserves more recognition.

Frank Cassidy lives on the fringes of society in a succession of demeaning jobs, a wife with an ex-husband on death row in Georgia, an angst-riddled stepson waiting for his father to be executed and an innocent pre-schooler, obsessed with his toy dinosaurs. Frank's edge-of-desperation lifestyle can be traced back to his childhood, his father and mother killed in a fire that erupted on the family farm when Frank was five-years old. His memories of that time are dim, shaped by the overwhelming presence of his uncle, who raised him as one of his own, and the psychological evaluations the doctor hoped would unlock Frank's fragmented memory of the night of the conflagration.

As soon as he is old enough, Frank leaves the farm behind, along with all family connections, to make his way in a hostile world with no patience for an emotionally damaged survivor. His life since then has been a series of misdemeanors, an anti-social approach to the rest of mankind. Frank views his occasional petty crimes as the natural evolution of a careful society, like car theft, his deeds "preordained statistical probability", but refuses to believe that "stupidity and desperation equate to evil". When he reads of his uncle's murder, Frank gathers his family and heads for the past, a dark trek from New Jersey to the vast, empty cold of the far north in Michigan.

Along the way, Frank telephones his cousin at the farm, arguing about the purpose of the trip and the resolution of a shattered history. For Frank, this journey is like poking a stick at a bad tooth, as painful memories surge, taunting and confusing his every action, his haunted youth returning with savage intensity. He makes his way back to the kind of town nobody would willingly return to unless called by tragedy or loss. People here live in despair, inhabiting days frozen in minimal needs and obligations, waiting to thaw. At each phase of his odyssey, Frank is beset by images and memories, the flickering light of a television screen in a starless night, black and white reruns the backdrop for a tragedy buried in his subconscious that fills him with a vague sense of guilt, a mistrust of his own motivations.

Thirty years after the traumatic events that stole his childhood, Frank is called back into the chaos of his youth, the self-destruction that has defined every rebellious action since. Both distressed and comforted by a suffering family he can barely provide for, Frank plunges into what remains of his world, forced to redefine time and place, to make a stand in this frozen wilderness, drawing courage from his own need for resolution and the love of his dysfunctional family. He does so with consummate grace, a tragic character cart-wheeling through free-associative hell on a collision course with the truth. The prose is shadowed and disturbing, a painful view of the underbelly of American life, where the have-nots gather around a burning trash can in hopes of warmth in an indifferent landscape. Luan Gaines/2005.

~ Frank Cassidy learns in a newspaper of the death - possibly, murder - of his uncle, and goes back to North America to investigate any possibility of inheritance; to find out why his uncle died; and to sort out loose ends left in his head from a fire at his family farm in his childhood...

This book starts off quite promisingly. The writer evidently knows the mechanics of how to write well. But the book lacks sufficient plot after about the first hundred pages (of a 360-page book) to keep the reader very interested in continuing with it. The journey to the end of the book becomes boring, too unstimulating, too slow, too drawn out, with too much description and detail just for the sake of giving description and detail, too much describing of humdrum life, with the reader wondering if the book is going to go anywhere sufficiently interesting to be worth going on turning the pages. The characters in the book aren't made particularly interesting in themselves. The story ceases to be interesting. The reader is left in the dark for too long as to where the book is heading to, or why all the details are supposed to be interesting, or what the point of the book is supposed to be. Whilst what really happened many years before, in Frank's childhood, is revealed to us in the last fifteen pages of the book, by the time the reader gets there, he will probably have lost interest in the tale anyway.

A few specifics in the plot that didn't really seem to fit together well:
1. It seemed odd for Frank just to dump Juniper, the family pet, in someone else's car, and for that action then just to be accepted by the rest of the family.
2. It seemed odd for Frank to go back home with specific personal missions in his mind, but yet then never actually to get round to meeting up with Norman and Martha face to face for the whole time he was up there.
3. It seemed odd for Norman and Martha just to run away without saying more to anyone, after their herd was slaughtered.
4. Why Chester Green was suddenly being referred to as 'the Sleeper' didn't seem to be explained.
5. It seemed odd for Frank, not rich, not to want to salvage any possessions from either house before they were bulldozed.
6. It seemed odd and too convenient for Frank suddenly to be interrogating Baxter, his new co-worker, for information, which was forthcoming, as soon as he met him.
7. It seemed odd for Frank just to be allowed to be left alone with Chester Green in a hospital unsupervised, particularly in later visits after he had already been suspected of trying to harm or interfere with Chester Green earlier on.
8. Why Baxter suddenly ended up in the sanatorium following the window-smashing incident and ended up getting ECT treatment wasn't very clear.
9. Frank suddenly realising his mother had died in a fall many years ago, by listening to tapes, didn't really ring very true.
10. The detail at the end of the book (page 357), of Frank killing the paralysed 'Chester Green' in the sanatorium, seemed to be a detail borrowed straight out of 'One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest', where the huge red indian suffocates the comitose Jack Nicholson at the end of that film. That conclusion seems to be borne out by a reference to 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' in this book, just a page later (page 358).

All in all, this was not a very satisfying book, for a variety of reasons - mainly lack of interesting plot and lack of interesting characters.

This is an unusual book, strange in so many ways I'm going to have trouble listing them all. I'll try, though. I will say that at some level I enjoyed this book, and if you can overcome the shortcomings that I'll list below, you may enjoy it more than I did.

For one thing, there's the issue of the author's name. This *isn't* the Michael Collins who was the first president of Ireland (of course not, he's been dead for 80 years) though the author was born over there. He's also not the astronaut who stayed on Apollo 11 while Armstrong and Aldrin wandered around on the moon. And he's also not Dennis Lynds, who has a series of detective novels featuring a one-armed private eye named Dan Fortune, and who writes novels under the pen name Michael Collins. This is the other other other Michael Collins. Very weird.

The plot of the book is pretty complex. All of the plot takes place in the late 1970s, a strange choice for the author. It works at some levels, though. Frank Cassidy is a small-time next-to-nothing, working at a burger joint, married to a woman who is at first a dispatcher for a trucking company. They have two kids, though the older one is from her previous marriage. Frank gets word that his uncle has died, and he decides to return to his hometown for the funeral. However his cousin and the cousin's wife are very angry at this.

This is where things begin to get strange. It turns out that Frank's wife, Honey, was married before, and her husband killed two people and is now on Death Row. She beats the son she had with the first husband. Frank, meanwhile, steals cars and money in order to finance their trip back home. As the novel progresses, there's not a single solitary character in the whole plot who's truly honest, good-hearted, and/or selfless. Everyone's out for themselves, dishonest, and nasty. It's sort of a cross between American Beauty and The Grapes of Wrath.

One point I think worth making is that the author isn't an American. You've got to wonder what these guys are thinking (I'm thinking of the guy who wrote American Beauty) when they move here in order to write stuff and tell us what jerks we are. I wonder if an American could move to Britain or Ireland and write a novel like this, and get it published, let alone receive awards. Needless to say, all the gushing blurbs on the back of the book are from British and Irish newspapers, which all insist (of course) that it reveals "America's long malaise".

The author *can* write, though. There's not that much of a plot, unfortunately. Instead, we get a bleak, desolate account of Middle America a quarter century ago. While the author isn't positive about anything, it's interesting to watch the characters wander through the plot. The mystery angle isn't (as is traditional) important to the book, and the solution, when revealed, seems rather forced and quick. Luckily, as I said, it's not that significant.

I enjoyed this book within these parameters. I might recommend it, but you've got to be aware of how annoying it can be at times.

This is where things get weird, however.

As a life long dairy farmer, I found the book enchanting and touching. The photos are so real and help preserve farming farming as a way of life. I would have been happy with more New England dairy farms included too. This is a wonderful history.

I purchased this book and have it safely placed on display in my den.

I love farmers and ranchers and I love great photography.

So Paul hit a home run on his extensive portrait of America's heartland. He displays wonderful photographic talent and though Paul does not claim to be a photojournalist, his book is a classic documentary for the ages. I am hoping that his book will rekindle our concern for the issues faced by farmers and ranchers and perhaps we can, as a nation, help preserve this valuable heritage.

If you have any interest in farming in the USA, this book is wonderful for young and old. The photography is magnificent and the stories are great too! Thoroughly enjoyable. Did not realize there were so many pictures, but that's what makes it great!

I bought the book as a possible gift but after reading the reviews I decided to open it and keep for myself. I'm glad I did! Mr. Mobley's photos are stunning. Each image comes alive. I highly recommend the book.

Katrina Fried provides the text to AMERICAN FARMER, a collection of photos and literature capturing the spirit and events of America's heartland and pairing over two hundred color and black and white photos with over forty interviews with farmers of all kinds across the U.S. It's actually the first portrait collection of modern American farmers and ranches to be published, and pairs anecdotes and memoirs in an excellent visual and artistic survey especially recommended for libraries catering to rural audiences.

This is a wonderful introduction for the novice -OR- experienced gardener who wants to grow open-pollinated tomatoes and save their seed. Most major seed catalogs carry hybrid types of tomatoes- varieties that come true only if you use the hybrid seed. Many companies give you the impression that to avoid disease you need to buy that seed: hence, the way they make their money. You miss great tasting tomatoes, unusual looking ones and colors that you rarely see on fruit stands or in grocery stores. How about a green one that is ripe?

Dr. Male has studied and grown tomatoes for years, she's an expert and this book is a wealth of information. She tells you the origin of tomatoes, explains what an heirloom is, how they are classified, gives you information on Seed Savers Exchange (a wonderful organization that saved old varieties of vegetables, fruits, berries and flowers), delves into growing zones, disease problems and the list goes on....

If nothing else get this book for a great explanation on how to save seed. Just think ...when Grandma shares with you Grandma Bishop's Big, Ugly Orange tomato (BUT it tastes super-delicious and only she has the seed) you'll be able to grow and share seed with future generations.

Lastly she gives you the scoop on 100 varieties of tomatoes that you can grow out. How about Mortgage Lifter or Mule Team? You'll find out the history, her taste experience, size, maturity: in summary, everything you need to know. I use this as a wonderful reference book after having tried many types. Enjoy!

I love thumbing through this book. I buy most of my seeds from Seed Savers Exchange so it is especially fun because several of the varieties I was already growing, are featured in this book. Plus I have been inspired to try a few more. Well laid out. Beautiful book.

Wonderful book written by Dr Carolyn Male. If you don't own or have not read this book, then you really are found lacking in life!

I have a small greenhouse and sell organic heirloom tomato plants. This book is my tomato bible! I am growing many of the plants she lists. Some I already knew about, some will be new this year, based on the information in this book. In addition, this book contains the simplest and clearest instructions I have found for saving seeds.

Her pictures - well, they are REAL! What a concept! Instead of pictures of these pristine tomatoes that were probably airbrushed, the pictures of her cherry tomatoes show a little crack here and there, and she unabashedly shows scarring and other blemishes. She shows top views, bottom views, and each picture shows a cut tomato so one can see the flesh. For a tomato grower like me, this is great information.

Her descriptions are frank, and since I was already growing some of these tomatoes myself, I know they are honest. You ever notice how the descriptions of the tomatoes in the catalogs imply that EVERY tomato is the BEST tomato? Dr. Male tells it like it is! In fact, she describes some of them having some faults, but has listed them for other reasons. (We agree - Amish Paste? Ho-hum. But historically significant and in spite of its faults, a very popular tomato.)

If you are a tomato aficionado, then you must add this book to your library! I will have a copy at my booth at the farmers market - and I bet it will be dog-eared by the end of the tomato season! I may have to buy another!

I received this book as a gift, after my small 4-plant tomato plot fared disastrously last summer. 1 of the 4 plants produced decent tomatoes, while the rest died unceremoniously. This year, following the recommendations in this book, my 4 plants are all doing great, and I already have little tomatoes-to-be on 3 of the 4. For that reason alone I would recommend this book. I wish some of the planting and tending suggestions were a little clearer; you have to piece some of them together for yourself. Nevertheless, just two of the express recommendations on their own have made a world of difference for me.

The photographs and descriptions of the different heirloom varieties are fantastic, and will inspire you to pick out some different and unusual tomatoes for your garden. You don't have to be a tomato fanatic to enjoy and learn from this book.

This is such a beautiful book. I have been a collector of rare and interesting rooster kitsch for years. Does anyone know where you can
see perhaps a show of these extraordinary birds?

This is a note card set with featured photos from the book "Extraordinary Chickens". The cards are approximately 4"x5" and have nice yellow envelopes with them. They come in a reusable heavy box with a chicken featured on the front. If you write a lot these cards are really very nice. I've repurchased them many times.

Excellent quality, stunning photos, makes a great coffee table book and topic of conversation! I never get tired of turning the pages, you can't help but laugh at the funny photos. The photography is awesome. Be sure to get the matching wall calendar, it's just as entertaining!

This hefty little book is a surprise on every page. I've always known chickens were beautiful, as all fowl, poultry and gamebirds are. But these lovely macros of the breed standards are really just incredible, from a fellow writer/photographer's point of view. Whatever your interest in these birds, be it a curiosity or a hobby, you will love this book.

I also like the size. Easy to find on my overloaded bookshelves. So kudos to Mr. Green-Armytage, for a job well done. Chickens aren't the most cooperative subjects for a photo shoot. I just wonder how many hours to photograph plus travel time he has into this!

My dad raised chickens all of his life. He had many breeds and varieties. He no longer has the chickens and when I saw this book I thought he would enjoy it. I gave it to him for Christmas and when he opened it he looked through it right away and said, "Maybe I need to get some chickens again." The pictures are great. Everyone at the party enjoyed the book and I know my dad will enjoy it over and over again.

Saw article on sugar gliders - wanted more info - this is a great book!

This is a professionally done work with excellent writing, lots of pictures and illustrations, and a thorough index. However, it is dated, that is to say that this is a re-publishing of a work originally done well over a decade ago, and it does show in places. The amount of information on every aspect of sugar gliders is well worth the price, but it would be nice if the author or publisher updated the volume and included some guidelines and suggestions for websites and the information (some not valid) about sugar gliders (aka sugar bears) available on the web, including cautions about misinformation too.

I read this book in about two hours from cover to cover just the other day. This book left out some details about meal preparation that I've been taught from other sources (owners, websites, etc.) to do. I talked to a friend of mine to confirm the details about that meal stuff. Specifically about how if you don't plan to breed, using the protein supplements instead having crickets or egg all of the time is fine.
That is the only thing preventing this book from receiving a 5 star rating from me.
You can tell the author really cares for her animals and had a lot of fun writing the book. I would highly reccomend this book to anyone interested in getting a glider although this should not be your only source. Talk to someone who has owned them before who has no stake in selling you one so they'll give you the straight talk.

EDIT: Just realized this book looks to have first been published in 1997 so that is why it does not go over the dry glider food, which is apparently a more recent advancement. Still highly reccomended because as I said before you should never have just one source.

My children both wanted Sugar Gliders and based on Amazon book recommendations, I bought the book. Both children are reading it. It is easy to read, full of good information even if some is out of date, and will help us make the decision about whether a sugar glider is the right pet (s) for us.

this is a really great book to know more on suggs they go into detail about what is good for them and what is not. I would recommend this book if your thinking about owning a sugg or even if you already have them, the more information the better,

More than a coffee table book. This exquisitely photographed volume is filled with loving insights about this gentle breed of dogs that will touch the heart even if you have never been fortunate enough to know one of these animals. A must for anyone who has ever adopted a greyhound (or more) ex-racers. A book that is a joy to have in your home just like the dogs that it is dedicated to. More over, it is a fund raiser for the breed................so buy it new, you will never regret it.

Brings the elegant form and quiet heart of these incredible creatures into a visual format. From the quirky ears to the artfulness of the long legs and paws in repose. This is a must have for those of us who love our hounds and for those who love visual art forms. This is an incredible juxtapostion to the photos of starved greys in Guam, Spain, or horror stories of nearly dead greys pushed out of trucks on the roadside. Makes you think about human nature and the resiliance of the soul of these dogs.

What Karant does so beautifully with her photography is reveal the parts as well the whole of Greyhounds, the majesty of an eye, ear, paw, chest, tendon, toenail, tongue. Karant understands, as all admirers of Greyhounds do, that each part is a poem, the whole a volume that is written anew with each changing pose, mood, angle, lens, and light.
Karant's minimalist photography allows her subjects to shine unadorned, without props, against a white background that maximizes the varied canvas of Greyhound colors and expressions. If you want "warm and fuzzy," look elsewhere. If you want natural truth and beauty, look here. This book will have special appeal to Greyhound fans, but will also intrigue those who appreciate art and animals. Added attractions to the photographs are eloquent essays by Alice Sebold, Alan Lightman, Yvonne Zipter, and Neko Case.

Whereas most greyhound photographs show the hounds in a specific context - on a beach, frolicking together, owning a sofa - this book focuses entirely on the hounds themselves, sharply contrasted against stark white backgrounds so that every feature stands out. Although the beauty of these pictures can't be overlooked, the absence of any textual accompaniment left me feeling strangely empty, wanting more. It definitely has merit as a coffee table book, but those who want substance along with style might be disappointed.

I bought this as a gift and she likes the book as she is a dog lover. I am sorry I don't have more details.

ISBN 0789429160 - Cute little board books featuring animals are everywhere, so finding a novelty among them is a pleasant surprise. The touchable, feel-able parts of this book are fairly large and the variety of them is nice.

You're invited to meet the animals on the farm, offering children a tactile experience that non-farm dwellers might otherwise miss out on completely.

That the book also introduces new adjectives into the vocabularies of small readers is a great plus. The only potential negative is that, if you get a used copy, the Touch and Feel parts aren't what they ought to be. The pig's spongy nose, in particular, can get completely flattened and the touchable spot of the chick on the cover will fade after many pettings. Buy it new, and it's well worth it; used, not so much.

Both my kids loved this book from a very young age. The touchy feely aspect really draws the attention of little ones. And all in all the books are quite durable. Mine have been well loved by our two, and are now heading to our baby cousins. The farm and baby animals were my childrens favorites.

This was my daughter's first board book and the first book she took an interest in. She loved the photographs of the animals, as opposed to drawn illustrations. The book includes a variety of textures and recognizable farm animals.

My 2 year old enjoys this set a lot. She loves touching the furry parts of the cards and they are super sturdy (cardboard). There are about 5 cards that are way to hard for her limited vocabulary so we make up the names, other than that they are great!

Whenever we go out to eat, we are sure to take this book along. It keeps my little boy (11 months) entertained while we wait for our food, and works like a charm. There is nothing better when he is screaming his head off than to pull out this book and presto, instant smile. He touches and feels and tries so hard to say baa at the sheep at bark at the dog. It is well worth the money. And so far it has held up remarkably well (even though there is rice in the dogs fur and cheese on the lambs wool).

This book is like so many about homeless animals it doesn't tell the reader about the most successfuf program in North America. Everyone spends so much time doing what PETA and HSUS say when in reality these organizations want to end animal ownership altogether. The No kill shelters seem to be working. The best one is Calgary and they have no laws against pets in any form and they have 95% compliance which makes their programs pay for themselves. "The Best Animal Control Program in North America"

None of the 5000 dogs a year that end up in Calgary, Canada shelters are euthanized for population control. The dog licensing rate is over 90%, where 10-30% is the norm in the US. Many stray pets that are picked up by Calgary Animal Services are returned straight home, they aren't impounded. This saves money and it saves lives. It also ensures that the owner will license the pet as its the only way it can get a ride back home.

Over the past 18 years, the city of Calgary has cut their number of dog bites and chases by more than 50% (all the while, the human and dog population of Calgary has doubled). The taxpayers of Calgary pay nothing for this excellent service. It's all paid for by pet licensing fees. "Your pet's license is his ticket home" is the motto.

Calgary, when it comes to animal control, is the envy of the continent.
The leader of this superb organization is Bill Bruce.
no - mandatory spay/neuter
no - breed specific legislation
no - pet limit laws
no - anti-tethering laws
yes - providing valued services rather than simply punishing citizens into compliance
yes - buy in and cooperation among community stakeholders
yes - extensive education and PR campaign to emphasize responsible pet ownership
yes - low license fees and modest fee differential for intact pets

Calgary's phenomenal success depends on a sense of trust among pet owners that they will be treated fairly by and obtain good services from Calgary Animal Services. Trust makes for unprecedented high licensing compliance. High licensing compliance means that the taxpayers do not foot the bill for animal services, and it means that nearly all stray pets are quickly reunited with their owners which saves lives and keeps costs low. There is no way to achieve this kind of licensing compliance in an environment where citizens feel they must hide their dogs and cats from pet limit laws, BSL, or mandatory spay/neuter laws. Without the voluntary licensing compliance of 95% of the population, none of the rest of the success could have happened.

This is a great book about the reality of animal shelters. I give it as a gift to friends when they get a pet from an animal shelter instead of pet stores or breeders. It's my way of saying thanks. There are lots of photos and the book is written in chapters, with different segments inside each chapter chronically the experience of a specific animal. Some of the stories are sad but some are very inspiring.

This book is fantastically written from the heart. It describes the inner workings of an American animal shelter and the outcomes of those animals who are unfortunate enough to end up in such a place. With this book reflecting reality, they of course do not all have happy endings. A box of tissues is advisable when reading (I personally was in tears by the end of the introduction!). Although a sad and heart rendering read, it reflectes the truth in a brutal yet honest manner. It will hopefully inspire readers to make a difference to the 'throw away' animal society.

Warning: Load up on the tissues. I had to resist the powerful urge to run to the local shelter yelling "I will take them all!!!!"...somehow my other 3 dogs might be overwhelmed. It makes you realize how many people do not seriously consider the responsibilities attached to pet stewardship. Not sappy in the slightest, just reporting as the authors saw it which in itself is the tragedy.

Authors Leigh and Geyer made a brave move to follow and document the lives of animals in a shelter in northern California for one week. They have a story to tell that will at times warm your heart with joy and at other times break your heart. They are to be commended for telling a very difficult story in an honest and non-biased way. They make a point to tell stories of the dogs and cats in the kennel consistent with the actual adoption/euthanasia rates at that kennel. Some animals are adopted or recovered by their human guardians others are euthanized. It's heartbreaking to know that some dogs and cats have no chance of adoption and are euthanized simply because of their unpopular breed or age or health condition. Some happy adoptable animals succumb to kennel stress and the personality problems it causes. Some wonderful animals never have a chance from the second they enter the kennel. I found myself looking at the end of each brief story to see the outcome before I even started reading about the animals. Many do find wonderful homes but the odds are against shelter animals especially for cats. The authors are honest and fair to the shelter staff who also face unbelievable odds in their attempts to save animals. There is not enough money to care for sick animals or time or staff to socialize animals with behavioral problems. It is often a losing battle. The authors make it clear that much of the blame lies on irresponsible people who don't spay or neuter their animals. Some people just become bored with their pets or don't make the effort to work on correctable behavioral problems. Some seemingly well-cared animals are found lost and not wearing an ID tag. An ID tag and microchip could save countless lost animals. You begin to realize how hopeless the odds are even at the most well-run animal shelter. Many more animals arrive than can be adopted. You need to be strong to read this book. You'll fall in love with some of the animals and learn they did not survive the kennel but there is joy in knowing many do find new homes. The book selects several animals to feature and there is a picture or two. All are beautiful animals who deserved a chance that many never got.

This book drove me crazy. But then, I have a really low threshold for Zen- and an even lower threshold for that peculiar style of reverent, whispery, needlessly flowery Japanese-to-English translation. Here's an example from the text- "Humanity is like a blind man who does not know where he is heading. He gropes around with the cane of scientific knowledge, depending on yin and yang to set his course." Now, the sentiment may very well be true-- but lighten up, Francis. That's the tone of the entire book, and it never lets up.

If you're already an adherent of real food, permaculture, and no-till, you won't learn anything new here. If you want a snapshot of how the real food movement got started in Japan, you might get something out of the book.

This is one of the more inspiring books I've ever read. If you have any interest in gardening you must read this book. It's also totally enlightening in exploring eastern philosophy/ culture and the scientific method. I cannot recommend this strongly enough.

I mentioned in In Search of Simplicity: A True Story that Changes Lives the inspiration I had received from Japanese scientist and farmer, Masanobu Fukuoka. He found through trial and error a number of secrets that nature revealed to those prepared to work with her and to observe keenly. This knowledge didn't come easily to Fukuoka. He openly revealed in his writing that he almost killed the existing citrus trees when he first took over his father's farm. But his wisdom, presented in books such as The One-Straw Revolution: An Introduction to Natural Farming (New York Review Books Classics) is a palpable testimony to the unswerving dedication of one man.

Fukuoka maintains that our society's motto seems to be that `Bigger is Better.' People want to feel important through `important' jobs. He saw that agriculture, in Japan and elsewhere in the modern world, has come to rely on chemicals and machines. In order to pay for the costs of these inputs farmers aim for higher yields and people get busier and busier.
Fukuoka suggests we can look at how plants grow in Nature--effortlessly. If man could work with Nature to grow his food he could live without much work and exertion.

After leaving his work as a trained microbiologist and research scientist, Fukuoka began to search for methods of growing that were more natural than the modern trends that surrounded him.

He developed a method of growing rice that involves no digging, ploughing or machines. He walks through his field(s) of high standing rice just before the time of harvest, hand sowing seeds of winter grain--usually barley--and white clover. After harvesting the rice, the rice straw is left lying on the ground as mulch and to return organic material to the soil. Some chicken manure is added.

In time the winter grain and clover seeds germinate and grow. Clover fixes nitrogen for the barley, reduces weed growth and its roots break up the soil.

Rice is usually sown in the spring, when heavy rains help it to germinate and discourage the growth of the clover. Barley straw is left on the ground, again as mulch and to improve the soil. Fukuoka hasn't ploughed his fields in decades. In that time the soil has dramatically improved. Microbes, worms and other creatures broke down organic material and, together with the roots of plants, aerated the soil. He experienced little insect and pest damage, hypothesising that the plants grew stronger and more resistant in the undisturbed soil.

He decided to plant a steep hillside with citrus trees, without resorting to the building of terraces. He started out by dynamiting holes in the rock-hard soil for mandarin and orange trees. In time, he found an easier and more natural way. Fast growing acacias were established to fix nitrogen. Within seven years each tree was the size of a telegraph pole and could be cut down for firewood. The citrus trees were under planted with comfrey, burdock and daikon (long white radish, a traditional Japanese vegetable). The soil is now richer and more manageable and it supports low care vegetables (even comfrey roots are eaten and are claimed to be delicious) and a nearly pest-free citrus crop. He plants a few acacias each year to ensure a constant supply of firewood for heating and cooking.

Fukuoka states that chemically-grown vegetables may be considered as foodstuffs but not as medicine, whereas organic, naturally grown plants can be considered to be both medicine and food. This sounds like Hippocrates saying 2400 years earlier, "Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food."

Fukuoka warns of the dangers of Europeans dedicating so much of their arable land to wine grapes and livestock. He says that an equivalent acreage, dedicated to the growing of grain and vegetables, could support many more people. He is concerned that the industrialization of society is wasteful and polluting. In Japan sulphur dioxide from factories changes into sulphuric acid in the atmosphere, and has resulted in the widespread death of native pine trees. He sees that the world is moving forward quickly and without regard for the consequences of rapid change. In the West, people are separated from nature and industrial agriculture is based on what he considers contempt for Nature. In Japanese philosophy God is in Nature, the wind and the rain and the plants, in everything. Since God is in rice, eating rice in a conscious way puts one on the same level as God. He urges everyone to turn back to Nature for solutions. He says anyone can use `Natural Farming'. What he calls The Great Way has no gates.

The One-Straw Revolution: An Introduction to Natural Farming (New York Review Books Classics) is Masanobu Fukuoka's manifesto about farming, eating, and life. In reading it I could see and feel that for Masanobu growing and eating food is indivisible from spirituality. What a contrast and challenge to the present global systems of food growing and procurement. Read this book and be inspired to be the change you want to see in the world.

John Haines: Author of In Search of Simplicity
In Search of Simplicity: A True Story that Changes Lives

As is apparent, not only from the abundance of rave 5-star reviews of his book, but also from the many organizations and websites stemming from his approach to agriculture, Masanobu Fukuoka (1913-2008) clearly has had a profound and lasting influence as founder of a grass roots "natural farming" movement and, more broadly, as a respected representative of the more interconnected way of viewing our place within the ecosystem.

Published in 1978, following more than 30 years of Fukuoka's hands-on experience farming in the Shikoku region of Japan, "The One-Straw Revolution" is both an exposition of the Fukuoka method of farming--direct seeding through broadcasting of pellets; no plowing or tilling; no chemicals fertilizers, insecticides or herbicides; seasonal grain/rice succession; mulching with clover and rice straw--and an extended discussion critiquing scientific values and their negative impact on commercial agricultural practices, our food, nutrition and lifestyle, instead advocating a "one with nature," Zen-influenced philosophy of life.

However much we can agree in spirit with Fukuoka's natural approach to farming and living, we should not overlook the irony in how his own application of scientific inquiry undoubtedly aided his discovery and innovation of natural farming methods: "I have made a lot of mistakes while experimenting over the years and have experienced failures of all kinds. I probably know more about what can go wrong growing agricultural crops than anyone else in Japan." Fukuoka's success can be attributed, at least in part, to his diligence and perseverance in following that very same, experiment-based, scientific method he learned in his formal training and prior research as a microbiologist, yet liberally criticizes in his book.

There is further irony in Fukuoka's writing regarding humans and work: "I don't particularly like the word `work.' Human beings are the only animals who have to work, and I think this is the most ridiculous thing in the world. . . . I think the way animals live in the tropics, stepping outside in the morning and evening to see if there's something to eat, and taking a long nap in the afternoon, must be a wonderful life. . . . To move things in this direction is my goal." I understand Fukuoka's sentiment in wishing to place humans on par with animals, but I would also contend that this view is much too simplistic. Hundreds of thousands of years ago, when the human brain evolved to a larger size and humans lost their coat of hair and found they needed to harness fire and invent clothing for warmth and survival, our evolutionary path diverged in significant ways from that of other animals--so that returning to the idyllic animal-like existence Fukuoka seeks is a practical impossibility.

Like it or not, we humans will never be content existing as animals do. Fukuoka's criticism of the detrimental impact that chemical-based commercial agriculture has had on humans and our environment is well taken; however, I cannot agree that humanity long-term will be better off if we stop attempting to reason, analyze and understand the world in which we live, for the inquiring mind (including Fukuoka's!) that evolution gave us when we acquired larger brains is inherent in our nature as human beings. Our only path ahead into the future is to accept being uniquely human and forge earnestly onward--in a "natural" spirit consistent with Fukuoka's teaching, but without subscribing to his overly simplistic goal of becoming one with animals.

This book will generally appeal to two types of people:1-those wishing to learn farming or gardening using the most sensible, natural methods known while also doing the least amount of work and being rewarded with bountiful harvests and 2-those seeking spiritual enlightenment through communion with nature. I am one of the first type mentioned. I pretty much skimmed over the Zen Buddhism/Taoism, slowing to study the parts where Mr. Fukuoka talks about his methods and experiences in farming the natural way.
I tend to write in my books, highlighting and underlining the passages that speak to me, instead of taking seperate notes. My copy of this book now has alot of added ink--sometimes I have underlined entire pages. The amount of useful information in this book is astounding. It's full. I'm not seeking enlightenment, or I would say it is full to overflowing.
While I don't have a farm, I do keep a backyard garden, and I have found the techniques Mr. Fukuoka teaches to be especially useful and time/energy saving for me. You don't have to have a green thumb for his methods to work either.
I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to begin farming or gardening the natural way, especially if you want to get in on the now popular "Go-Green" trend, as his methods call for No Tilling, No Fertilizer, No Pesticides, and No Weeding.
Sounds like "No Work" right? Well, there is work involved, but it is minimal compared to the modern methods of farming and gardening.
You will want to check into this one. I did, and I have not once been sorry for it.
Five big, bright shiny stars from me to you, Mr. Fukuoka.