The Farmer's Wife

July 31, 2023
In this frank, good-natured debut memoir with recipes, Rebanks recounts the trials and triumphs her family faced after inheriting and restoring her husband James’s family farm in England’s Lake District (an experience also covered in James’s 2020 memoir, English Pastoral). Though ingratiating, this is no rose-colored account; Rebanks shares her difficulties—the sometimes overwhelming tasks of caring for four children, fighting for building permits, and fixing up a “tatty old” farm—alongside recollections of evenings around the farmhouse table, afternoons teaching her kids how to “live mindfully” in nature, and days hosting school field trips that highlight the importance of organic food. “Living on a farm has helped me to see that we all have a responsibility, when we shop, to support good farming,” Rebanks muses in one characteristic passage. “The industrial farming practices I hate that are damaging to the planet are driven by our insatiable desire for ever-cheaper food.” Mouthwatering recipes are generously sprinkled throughout, including savory blinis with crème fraîche and smoked salmon, traditional English roast beef with Yorkshire pudding, and fall-apart scones. Black and white pen illustrations enhance the charm. Home cooks and aspiring farmers will be captivated by this lively and accessible look at life on the farm. Agent: Byrd Leavell, UTA.