My Father and Other Animals

Author: Sam Vincent
Publisher: Black Inc.
ISBN: 1743822626
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 274

Book Description
Winner, Prime Minister's Literary Award for Non-fiction 2023 ‘My Father and Other Animals is a warm, surprising and beautifully crafted book.’ —Billy Griffiths, author of Deep Time Dreaming Sam Vincent is a twenty-something writer living in the inner suburbs, scrabbling to make ends meet, when he gets a call from his mother: his father has stuck his hand in a woodchipper, but ‘not to worry – it wasn't like that scene in Fargo or anything’. When Sam returns to the family farm to help out, his life takes a new and unexpected direction. Whether castrating calves or buying a bull – or knocking in a hundred fence posts by hand when his dad hides the post-driver – Sam's farming apprenticeship is an education in grit and shit. But there are victories, too: nurturing a fig orchard to bloom; learning to read the land; joining forces with Indigenous elders to protect a special site. Slowly, Sam finds himself thinking differently about the farm, about his father and about his relationship with both. By turns affecting, hilarious and utterly surprising, this memoir melds humour and fierce honesty in an unsentimental love letter. It's about belonging, humility and regeneration – of land, family and culture. What passes from father to son on this unruly patch of earth is more than a livelihood; it is a legacy. ‘Sam Vincent probes deeply into some of the biggest issues of our time ... This book is a celebration of the love of land and builds bridges of understanding that will appeal to a broad cross section of readers.’ —Judges' comments, Prime Minister's Literary Awards ‘My Father and Other Animals is a beautiful tale of legacy, family, and a millennial finding his place in the world.’ —Samuel Bernard, The Weekend Australian ‘Notable Books’ ‘For any reader desiring to understand contemporary rural Australia, this entertaining and important book is a must-read.’ —Charles Massy, author of Call of the Reed Warbler ‘Bloody hilarious and salt-of-the-earth heartwarming, My Father and Other Animals is an absolute treasure of a book.’ —Anna Krien, author of Act of Grace, Night Games and Into the Woods

The Farmer's Son

Author: John Connell
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 1328578003
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 257

Book Description
For fans of The Shepherd’s Life, a poignant memoir—and #1 Irish bestseller—about a wayward son’s return home to his family’s farm, and how he found a new beginning in an age-old world Farming has been in John Connell's family for generations, but he never intended to follow in his father's footsteps. Until, one winter, after more than a decade away, he finds himself back on the farm. Connell records the hypnotic rhythm of the farming day—cleaning the barns, caring for the herd, tending to sickly lambs, helping the cows give birth. Alongside the routine events, there are the unforeseen moments when things go wrong: when a calf fails to thrive, when a sheep goes missing, when illness breaks out, when an argument between father and son erupts and things are said that cannot be unsaid. The Farmer’s Son is the story of a calving season, and the story of a man who emerges from depression to find hope in the place he least expected to find it. It is the story of Connell's life as a farmer, and of his relationship with the community of County Longford, with his faith, with the animals he tends, and, above all, with his father.

My Family and Other Animals

Author: Gerald Durrell
Publisher: Penguin Books Limited
ISBN: 9780241951460
Category : Corfu Island (Greece)
Languages : en
Pages : 307

Book Description
'What we all need,' said Larry, 'is sunshine . . . a country where we can grow.' 'Yes, dear, that would be nice,' agreed Mother, not really listening. 'I had a letter from George this morning - he says Corfu's wonderful. Why don't we pack up and go to Greece?' 'Very well, dear, if you like,' said Mother unguardedly. Escaping the ills of the British climate, the Durrell family - acne-ridden Margo, gun-toting Leslie, bookworm Lawrence and budding naturalist Gerry, along with their long-suffering mother and Roger the dog - take off for the island of Corfu. But the Durrells find that, reluctantly, they must share their various villas with a menagerie of local fauna - among them scorpions, geckos, toads, bats and butterflies. Recounted with immense humour and charm My Family and Other Animals is a wonderful account of a rare, magical childhood. 'Durrell has an uncanny knack of discovering human as well as animal eccentricities' Sunday Telegraph

Eighty Acres

Author: Ronald Jager
Publisher: Boston : Beacon Press
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 288

Book Description
A coffee-table celebration of the beauty and impact of the tower. An artistic focus, rather than technical. Minimal bibliography. No index. 10 In this richly detailed memoir, Jager evokes rural America (i.e. Missaukee County, Michigan) in the 1940s and a life defined by wartime economy, the mores of Dutch Calvinism, and the seasons of a small family farm. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

My Father and Other Animals

Author: Mike Kirby
Publisher: Michaelmas Publishing
ISBN: 9781399973700
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
My parents chose the Yorkshire Pennines - a tough place to pursue their dream of having their own farm. Dad, a man of many actions but few words, was as relentless as the farming seasons, and through long hours and lots of mud, sweat and tears, gradually carved out a living, slowly making real the vision that they shared. My Father & Other Animals tells the story of how this driven man, blessed with a unique understanding of his animals, brought his farming dream to life and raised his family, blessing them with his common sense and restless work ethic. It is about the harsh realities of life and death, ever present on a farm, about getting-on, learning and failing but not giving up. It is about sacrifice, scrimping and saving, in the certainty of better days to come. Most of all it is about my Mum and Dad, who - given the choice - would have lived their lives no other way.

Changing Season

Author: David Mas Masumoto
Publisher: Heyday.ORIM
ISBN: 159714374X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 170

Book Description
In a series of personal essays, the organic farmer and author of Epitaph for a Peach prepares to hand his family’s eighty-acre farm to his daughter. How do you become a farmer? The real questions are: What kind of person do you want to be? Are you willing to change? How do you learn? What is your vision for the future? In this poignant collection of essays, David Mas Masumoto prepares for one of life’s greatest transitions. After four decades of working the land, he will pass down his beloved peach farm to his daughter, Nikiko. Echoing Nikiko’s words that “all of the gifts I have received from this life are not only worthy of sharing, but must be shared,” Mas reflects on topics as far ranging as the art of pruning, climate change, and the prejudice his family faced during and after World War II: essays that, whether humorous or heartbreaking, explore what it means to pass something on. Nikiko’s voice is present too, as she relates the myriad lessons she has learned from her father in preparation for running the farm as a queer mixed-race woman. Both farmers feel less than totally set for the future that lies ahead; indeed, Changing Season addresses the uncertain future of small-scale agriculture in California. What is unquestionable, though, is the family’s love for their vocation—and for each other.

The Folk and Their Fauna

Author: Scott D. Gottschalk
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
ISBN: 145682872X
Category : Pets
Languages : en
Pages : 212

Book Description
The Folk and Their Fauna: The Story of One Man’s Love Affair with Animals is a collection of true stories about domestic and wild animals. The author has taken some of the countless tales from his lifelong association with animals and written a sensitive book about the creatures he knows and loves. His stories are sometimes funny, sometimes sad, and sometimes painful. Yet each incident shows an insight into the majestic cycle of living things. The Folk and Their Fauna, with its eloquent descriptions of animal personalities, promises to entertain every animal lover. Second only to the weather, the author remarks, people enjoy talking about their beloved animals. Indeed, like our attraction to animals, the appeal of this book is natural.

My Family and Other Hazards

Author: June Melby
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
ISBN: 0805098321
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 248

Book Description
A funny, heartwarming memoir about saying goodbye to your childhood home, in this case a quirky, one-of-a-kind, family-run miniature golf course in the woods of Wisconsin When June Melby was ten years old, her parents decided on a whim to buy the miniature golf course in the small Wisconsin town where they vacationed every summer. Without any business experience or outside employees, the family sets out to open Tom Thumb Miniature Golf to the public. Naturally, there are bumps along the way. In My Family and Other Hazards, Melby recreates all the squabbling, confusion, and ultimately triumph, of one family's quest to build something together, and brings to life the joys of one of America's favorite pastimes. In sharp, funny prose, we get the hazards that taunted players at each hole, and the dedication and hard work that went into each one's creation. All the familiar delights of summer are here—snowcones and popcorn and long days spent with people you love. Melby's relationship with the course is love-hate from the beginning, given the summer's freedom it robs her of, but when her parents decide to sell the course years later, her panicked reaction surprises even her. Now an adult living in Hollywood, having flown the Midwest long ago, she flies back to the course to help run it before the sale goes through, wondering if she should try to stop it. As the clock ticks, she reflects on what the course meant to her both as a child and an adult, the simpler era that it represents, and the particular pains of losing your childhood home, even years after you've left it.

The Cow Book

Author: John Connell
Publisher: Granta Books
ISBN: 1783784199
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 277

Book Description
Farming has been in John Connell's family for generations, but he never intended to follow in his father's footsteps. Until, one winter, he finds himself back on the farm and begins to learn the ways of the farmer and the way of the cows. Connell records the hypnotic rhythm of the farming day - cleaning the outhouses, milking the herd, tending to sickly lambs, helping the cows give birth. But alongside the routine events, there are the unforeseen moments when things go wrong: when a calf fails to thrive, when a sheep goes missing, when illness breaks out, when depression takes hold, when an argument erupts and things are said that cannot be unsaid. The Cow Book is the story of a calving season. It is also the story of the cow itself, from its domestication and worship as a God by the Ancient Egyptians to the modern practice of mechanized herds, via the figure of the cowboy, the destruction of the American buffalo, the demise of the aboriginal jackaroos and the consequences of BSE. And, above all, it is the story of Connell's life as a farmer, of his relationship with his birthplace of County Longford, with the community around the family farm, with the animals he tends, and with his father.

Animal Crackers

Author: Colm Keane
Publisher: Capel Island Press
ISBN:
Category : Pets
Languages : en
Pages : 199

Book Description
Adorable dogs, spirited horses, mischievous donkeys and cats who barely tolerate us are just some of the colourful characters you will meet in Animal Crackers. You will also encounter bright bunnies, cunning foxes, wise old birds, a drake who believes he is human and a host of other furry friends some of whom are as mad as hatters. Many do extremely funny things, more reveal remarkable skills, others experience sad endings. Animal Crackers contains stories from all corners of Ireland. It is a must-read for all animal loves. This is a funny and moving book.