Customer Reviews

Blood-Lust Chickens and Renegade Sheep: A First-Timer's Guide to Country Living

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a down to earthy tale that actually tells you what not to do. This is often more important than all those other books that tell you what to do. I highly recommend this book. It written in an easy to read format that doesn't insult the reader. Kudos for this book and the author.

A funny, yet real side to moving to the country with lots of tips on hazards. Such as: Don't tie a rope around yourself and also a Calf thinking that you can pull it away. As it says on the back of the book "This is a book about real country experiences, failures and successes." While it also contains chapters such as: To Move or not to move, Protecting yourself, Surviving your move back to the land, even points about that horror, "The Septic System". This has got to be a favorite, from the authors of this book.

Blood-Lust Chickens and Renegade Sheep; A First-Timer's Guide to Country Living by Nick Evangelista & Anita Evangelista has got to be the best book for the up coming Century. A.k.a., Year 2000 Computer Glitch, or even if you just want to move back to the land.

This book is so funny, it should be a best seller. Even if you don't plan to move to a farm, read this book. You'll get a lot of laughs. If you plan on moving to the country, definitely read this book!

I have read all the reviews on this book. I don't get all the negativity. The authors of the book come right out in the beginning and say this is what we did wrong, please learn from us. They make it a point to say that this is not a "how to" type of book. It is basically a journal of the events that happened to them in the beginning of their new life.

I felt the book was informative. There was a lot of really useful information in there. This book is not written for people who already know everything there is to know about 'country' living. This book is written for city folks who are completely clueless about rural life. The information on water storage could be invaluable to a person living in a remote area, or to a missionary going to a third world country. The information on the dairy cow was educational for me - I had no idea a cow could give three gallons of milk per day while still being with her calf. So, there is helpful information to be found.

For the reviewers who were so nasty (one lady said she got angry with the authors ??? there are some other issues with this person, not the authors of the book) anyway, perhaps maybe these are just extremely pessimistic people who cannot find joy in simplicity? And that is what the authors provide in this book - simplicity. No bells, no whistles. Just what they know to be true in their own experiences. There is no magic bullet, no formula for making a transition from city life to country life in this book, just the facts as the authors know them. Everyone has different experiences. These are THEIR experiences. And they never claim the book to be anything but.

I found the book to be educational, interesting and entertaining all at the same time. Hope that doesn't make anyone angry!

This book is written to be funny and easy to read, but yet it presents some very worthwhile insight into what one might encounter when giving up the comforts of city life. Although parts seem to be a bit dated, for example, I can't imagine someone moving to the country and doing without electricity for 3 years. Nor do I believe anyone would rely on strictly wood as a heat source in today's environment. Some of the episodes in this book would make good material for a Disney movie. I'd highly recommend it for anyone who is considering giving up the good life for a trip back to the basics of country living.

First, what I LIKED about this book:

The book takes a very realistic look at [extreme] country living and what it means on a day-to-day basis. The authors have a very dry sense of self-deprecating humor which does help lend a certain element of entertainment to the book. There are a few sections that even offer some good tips for certain aspects of raising livestock (and plants) responsibly.

What I didn't particularly care for:

The authors' tone is often condescending, referring to (presumably the folks reading this book) as "back-to-the-land types". Essentially, not only are they telling you stories of their own failures, they're -- in a sense -- implying that YOU will make these same mistakes because you're just as hard-headed, puffed up, "book smart" and clueless as they were. Sometimes these accusations of reader stupidity are extremely blatant while other times they're more cautionary.

In general, I agree with other reviewers who say that the mission of this book was honorable but the end result misses the mark. Their goal of taking the fluffy, overly-romanticized imagery away from your dream of living in the country isn't a bad thing, but I feel like maybe the authors skew the scales too far in the other direction -- especially given the gravity and utter stupidity of some of their mistakes. Essentially, they've not really moved to the COUNTRY, they've literally moved to the middle of nowhere and they now live with that decision (apparently bitterly). They come across as know-it-alls even while they're showing you why they aren't.

I've read the book twice, now (waiting a year in between). My opinion has not changed.

This is a common sense narration about life in the country. And it is realistic. No bucolic frolicking, but rather the unvarnished truth, told with sensitivity and humor.
Here you will be told of searching for a lost cow in freezing weather when you thought you were going out to dinner. Or the problem of disposing of a horse that died. Birthing animals and dealing with predators as well as some of the domestic chores such as dealing with wood heat and cooking, some basic gardening, needs vs wants, all paint a vivid picture of country living.
The other books on country living also put out by Loompanics would complement one's back to the land education. Try their site or 8003802230.

Some of the other reviewers of this book found it hilarious, I did not. It was interesting to read, offered some good insights on things to do and things to avoid before moving to the country, but it just wasn't all that funny, really. In fact, I found some parts of it to be just too much gloom and doom!

I don't live in the country now (although I'd like to) but I do own livestock, which I board with friends who have a farm. And based on my experiences on my friends farm, this book focuses too much on the bad things that can happen, and not enough on how many wonderful things can occur when you live in the country.

Mind you, these folks go head over heels. It's not necessary to move so far out of town that you're off the grid in order to own livestock and live a country life. One doesn't have to grow or raise all of one's food, it is possible to live in the country and still go to the store in town on a regular basis (bad weather or no.) All in all this is an ok book, but not as lighthearted as the other reviewers seem to think.

this is a beautifully written, funny, easy to read must do before entertaining any thoughts of moving to the country.

I don't know why this book got such high reviews by even a few people. If I could have given it 0 stars I would have. It was written by people who seem to absolutely hate their life and make the stupidest mistakes that anybody with the tiniest bit of common sense would not make. So if you have no common sense, this book is for you. It does a great job of telling you how NOT to live and what NOT to do in your life in the country. It's more sad than funny and I found myself getting more and more angry at these people the more I read. If you're considering a move to the country, go ahead and read this book. If, when you have finished you still want to move and you're shaking your head at the author and his wife, then you're ready. Don't be scared off from a rewarding and peaceful life just because these people failed so very miserably.

These southern California "city-folk" moved out to the country thinking that because they were smart, they were prepared to drastically change everything about their lifestyle. But it seems that they did no research before they moved and made huge mistakes that could easily have been avoided with a little bit of preparation. For example, who buys livestock without building proper fencing and suitable housing for them first? The author of this book. The book's one saving grace was the section on One Cow Economics -- don't get too excited, it was only about 3 pages.