CastOff: True Adventures and Ordeals of an American Family on a French Farm [Hardcover]

Jan Murra (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2001

Humor and hard won lessons in life and love infuse this luminous true story of a family cast off but determined to build a new life.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In her acknowledgments, Murra says, "credit must be given to my once-husband, Dan, for dumping us on an antiquated farm in southwestern France...." Several years after persuading her to leave New Jersey for "Operation Let's-Move-to-a-Simpler-Life" on a dilapidated, 300-year-old farm in the Dordogne, Dan abandoned her for another woman in the United States. Left on her own to support four children, all under the age of 11, Murra decided to emulate the local people and become a dairy farmer. For 10 years she labored at this "backbreaking, heartbreaking, unrelenting, freezing, sweaty, make-do, non-profit occupation." Living the same rough life as her neighbors, and facing tremendous odds no experience whatever at farming, rudimentary knowledge of the language, bad weather, financial worries, depression about the breakup of her marriage she overcame and thrived. She did so well, in fact, that when she finally decided to go home to the States so her children could attend college, one of her rural neighbors exclaimed, "But you can't. You're one of us." She felt it was the "finest compliment" she'd ever received. Now remarried and living in Arizona, she looks back on her life in France with pride and affection the countryside she grew to love, the run-down farm she restored so well, the animals she cared for, the neighbors who accepted and helped her, her plucky children who worked alongside her and encouraged her every step of the way. This is a heartfelt addition to the current spate of memoirs by expatriates.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 200 pages
• Publisher: New Horizon Press (November 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0882822098
• ISBN-13: 978-0882822099
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,503,845 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dream Home in France Becomes Nightmare, December 7, 2003

By 

takingadayoff "takingadayoff" (Las Vegas, Nevada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: CastOff: True Adventures and Ordeals of an American Family on a French Farm (Hardcover)

If you were expecting another tale of Americans who buy a fixer-upper in France and write a gushing book about how wonderful it all is, you are in for a shock. But not as big as the shock that Jan Murra got when her husband moved the family to France, then abandoned her and their four young children in an old farmhouse that lacked both heat and electricity.

Murra did not know anything about farming, about farmhouse maintenance, or anything about France, including the French language. And her marriage had just crumbled, apparently unexpectedly. So she sent the kids to school (they learned French pretty quickly), and went about learning to farm and how to make France home.

This is a remarkable story, free of self-pity, and full of good writing. After spending ten years in France, the Murras returned to the U.S., and Jan Murra lets us know what she and the kids did once they got back (not all of them left France for good).

This is an unusual book, a real twist on the usual farmhouse in France story, and certainly more memorable.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a Wonderful Book, January 2, 2002

By 

Thomas J. Crowe (Columbia, MO USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: CastOff: True Adventures and Ordeals of an American Family on a French Farm (Hardcover)

After what seemed like a good family plan Murra finds herself and her four small children "abandoned" on Vesat, a primitive farm in southwestern France. With no farming experience and no French language skills, the family faces numerous trials and challenges of animal husbandry, plumbing, drought, illnesses, storms, and most wrenching, loneliness. Through all the pain, Murra adeptly weaves a tapestry of solutions and friends to make the situation not a sentence but rather a joy. Knowing that I have not the ability or courage to do what Murra did, I read with sorrow and delight as she encountered and tackled each problem. The book clearly was written from Murra's heart; and touched my heart at the turn of each page. I highly recommend this beautiful story.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!, February 1, 2005

By 

SYB "Sandie" (Tempe, AZ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: CastOff: True Adventures and Ordeals of an American Family on a French Farm (Hardcover)

I loved Jan Murra's story of her family's adventures on a farm in France. I've read this book twice because I enjoyed it so much. Her writing skills are excellent and her humor throughout the book keeps the reader's interest. The circumstances of how her family ended up in France is pretty amazing and the fact that she kept her family not only intact, but strong with her very capable ways. She was a great inspiration to me and her book is a definite keeper!