MAY 2013 - AudioFile
Part memoir, part diatribe, part idyll, TRAUMA FARM defies easy classification, but narrator Michael Puttonen's relaxed style makes it easy to get caught up in this intriguing audio offering. The sense of quirkiness is enhanced by its unusual format and the setting on British Columbia's Salt Spring Island. Puttonen's effortless delivery and slight Canadian accent combine to create a mellow presentation that is perfect for the many anecdotes and reflections on family- farm life. Shifting smoothly to a more forceful gear, he ably conveys Brett's alarm at unsustainable mega-farm methods, then cycles down to express his practical resignation to some of the harsh realities of raising animals for food. By turns troubling and entertaining, this is a unique and enjoyable listen. M.O.B. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
Both a celebration and excoriation of farm life, the latest from author Brett (Uproar's Your Only Music) examines his family homestead on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, and the state of contemporary farming. With intimate knowledge, Brett speaks to the challenges faced by many independent farmers as well as the fleeting joys: "Rural living is an eccentric pursuit, in the same way that beauty is an eccentric pursuit." Raising fruits and vegetables, a small group of cows, chickens and pigs, Brett airs some strong criticism of modern agriculture-such as cattle slaughterhouses "that resemble medieval torture chambers"-tempered by lighthearted passages on topics like farm-fresh eggs: "I can tell what a chicken has been eating and how it's been raised when I break an egg on the frying pan." His account is also spiked with a grim sense of humor: "How do you make a small fortune at farming? Start with a large fortune." Brett's wit and giddy ambivalence makes this account a stretch more provocative than similar rural memoirs, and an altogether compelling read,
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From the Publisher
“A wonderful meditation on farm life and by extension life itself ...told intelligently and often humorously, by a writer with a welcome fresh sharp eye.”
—Peter Matthiessen, author of Shadow Country and the Snow Leopard
"a superb, wise, witty, and vivid weave of barnyard tales with deep insights into the fraught symbiosis of animals, plants, and man”
—Ronald Wright, author of A Short History of Progress
"a touching and tender memoir, at once humorous and profound, filled with wonderful insights about life as a poet and accidental farmer"
—Wade Davis, National Geographic Explorer in Residence and author of One River and The Serpent and the Rainbow
"[Brett] comes with the gumboot poet’s fearless tongue to speak truth to those who would reduce the life-and-death work of farming into a pastoral idyll. ...If it’s hope you’re looking for, you’ll find it in the fortifying madness of Trauma Farm"
—James MacKinnon, author of Plenty (aka The 100-Mile Diet)
"…It is a striking, stunning book, easily one of the best of the year."—National Post
MAY 2013 - AudioFile
Part memoir, part diatribe, part idyll, TRAUMA FARM defies easy classification, but narrator Michael Puttonen's relaxed style makes it easy to get caught up in this intriguing audio offering. The sense of quirkiness is enhanced by its unusual format and the setting on British Columbia's Salt Spring Island. Puttonen's effortless delivery and slight Canadian accent combine to create a mellow presentation that is perfect for the many anecdotes and reflections on family- farm life. Shifting smoothly to a more forceful gear, he ably conveys Brett's alarm at unsustainable mega-farm methods, then cycles down to express his practical resignation to some of the harsh realities of raising animals for food. By turns troubling and entertaining, this is a unique and enjoyable listen. M.O.B. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine
