orig from 1954

A couple of the first back-to-the-landers write about their experience with the rustic life, moving from New York City to Vermont in the 1930s (and eventually to Maine). They had their principles and tried to live according to them. Among them was a belief in a balanced life. Thus, they only worked about 4 hours a day at homesteading, and spent the rest of their time engaged in other pursuits or relaxation. The book gives you a good sense of New England homesteading, though they hide some of their advantages (I believe Helen Nearing inherited a sizable fortune which made their lifestyle a lot more possible). ( )

Helen and Scott Nearing, pacifist, teetotaling, nonsmoking, caffeine-free, collectivist, and vegetarian, moved from New York City to Vermont's Green Mountains in 1932, already middle-aged, to homestead. These books cover their trials, accomplishments, and philosophies (read: politics) on that first plot and their second homestead in Maine. These books inspired more than a few of the 1970s back-to-the-landers, as I learned from Back From the Land. However, I also learned from that book that Helen and Scott were not quite so financially independent as their books lead one to believe. Their day's division into four hours “bread labor” and four hours leisure (not to mention their purchase of somewhere in the neighborhood of 300 acres of land) was made possible not just by thrift and maple syrup profits, but also by a trust fund that doesn't get a mention in The Good Life.

Nonetheless, you have to admire their achievements. They hand-built a dozen stone buildings in Vermont and another nine in Maine largely by themselves, raised 85% of their food, wrote several books each, obtained all their heating fuel from their land, went on speaking tours, and entertained sometimes a dozen visitors a day in the height of their popularity in the seventies. They mentored Eliot Coleman and sold him the land on which he now works and lives. ( )

While the Nearings can get a little preachy about their lifestyle at times, it really didn't detract from enjoyment of "The Good Life: Helen and Scott Nearing's Sixty Years of Self-Sufficient Living." The book basically tells the story of how they started their eco-friendly farms -- first one in Vermont and when that area became too populated, the moved onto Maine. I found the book inspiring enough that I wish I had enough land to start my own rural homestead following their practical advice. ( )

The content of this book - the story of how Helen and Scott Nearing lived self-sufficiently - is very interesting, however I found the author's writing style mostly unemotional and analytical, and at times a bit pompous and irritating. The content is also quite dated now, as the Nearing's were building their house and gardens during the 1930's. Not for everyone. ( )