Blog Update!
For those of you not following me on Facebook, as of the Summer of 2019 I've moved to Central WA, to a tiny mountain town of less than 1,000 people.

I will be covering my exploits here in the Cascades, as I try to further reduce my impact on the environment. With the same attitude, just at a higher altitude!

Monday, August 29, 2011

On the bookshelf

Aside from the myriad books I'm reading in researching my potential new book, I thought I'd share some of the things I'm currently reading:

1. The Wisdom of the Radish: and other lessons learned on a small farm, by Lynda Hopkins. Two ex-suburbanites move to the country to grow crops, raise chickens and sell the fruits of their labor at the local farmer's market. It first starts out sounding all pastoral and idyllic but ends in disaster with crop failures, worm infestations and a flood. I haven't gotten far enough along to give you much of an opinion on this one.

2. The Winter Harvest Handbook: Year-Round Vegetable Production, by Eliot Coleman. This is a classic which teaches you all the ins and outs of trying to grow food year round, in inclement weather, too far north and under pretty much any crappy condition you can think of. I'm using this to plan my winter crops.

3. Telling True Stories: A Nonfiction Writers' Guide from the Nieman Foundation at Harvard University. This little gem is invaluable if you are even contemplating writing a nonfiction book. So, for all of you bloggers out there thinking of writing something a little longer, I implore you to buy this book and read it NOW.

It may not necessarily help you get a book contract but it can give you useful information for producing a book proposal and, if you already have a book deal, will aid you immeasurably in writing an excellent book.

What's on your bookshelf?

1 comment:

Jenny said...

Wow! Just finished "Wisdom of the Radish" and loved it. Makes me want to start my own farm. Loved hearing about the great highs and lows of organic gardening (and the tip about using row covers to keep insects from leaving holes in greens will be useful- I'm sure). Then just picked up "4 Season Harvest" from the library today to make fall garden plans. I'm thinking I just might have to buy my own copy. Great reads!