Customer Reviews

Payne Hollow, Life on the Fringe of Society

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

 

 

This is a wonderful book about life outside of normal hustle and bustle of modern life. Harlan and his wife, Anna, lived in Payne Hollow, and spent their time living from the land and with the land. They built their home, tended their garden, fished the river, and lived their lives there. It is in some ways a beautiful love story that reminded me of what it would be like to be a castaway on a desert island. But in this case, one is castaway in the hills of Kentucky, on the Ohio river.

The book is really a journal of their lives there, and when reading it, one feels how simple yet full lives their lives were. From Harlan's rising early in the winter mornings to tend the goats, to the early passages about working by lantern light on simple tasks, to the way he wrote about the seasonal rhythms, I was taken with their story. I found that it was a tender book to read, and I found that the way they lived was so much more than the suburbanites. Harsher, perhaps, but more. The book has some sketches by Harlan, and some woodcuts. A great story.

Harlan Hubbard continues his life story from Shantyboat. In Payne Hollow, you will read of 30 plus years of living by his own methods and means. This is Hubbard's version of Thoreau's Walden. A great book.

This is an excellent book. It is very accurate as to how many people lived at that time. It should be read by anyone that is thinking about adopting a self sufficient life style.

Mr. Hubbard is a "wordsmith" and writes in an excellent manner with vivid descriptions and a little philosophy thrown in.

You might also want to read "Shantyboat Journal," a history of their trip down the Ohio and the Mississippi in a shantyboat of thier own design and building.

I read Shantyboat and wanted more of Harlan Hubbard's writing.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Pane Hollow, Life on the Fringe of Society.