Customer Reviews

Wisdom of the Last Farmer: Harvesting Legacies from the Land

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Perhaps one has to be a farmer, or to have lived within an ag community such as the San Joaquin Valley in California, to get the full effect of this book. I had the pleasure of hearing the author and his daughter reading excerpts from this book for the Valley Writers Read program on the local NPR station. It was an amazing reading. In fact, it was what drew me to Amazon to find the book. Mas Masumoto's reading was so lyrical and tender, the rhythms so rich with poetic force, that I had to find this book. His work reminded me of my favorite poet, Li-Young Lee. A reader who cannot relate to or envision the difficult and demanding life of farming, who cannot imagine a fierce love for the land and how what it produces links nature with human existance, who have no sense of a generational link to the earth which is strong enough to transcend all risk and struggles to survive, who knows nothing about the blistering Central Valley summer heat, may have difficulty getting into this one. But for those who do understand, or would like to understand, I highly recommnded the book.

In a series of five previous popular books, Mas Masumoto, the storyteller, has given us vignettes into his life on his farm in California's Central Valley. In Wisdom of the Last Farmer, Mas returns to his familiar themes - being Japanese American, the struggle to maintain his farm, his own mortality and succession planning. His experiences mirror those of many Central Valley farmers struggling to make a living and debating whether to continuing farming. To these experiences he adds his family's struggles after his father's strokes. I feel for Mas and his family while reading about his father's stroke, rehabilitation and subsequent second stroke, recalling my family's own experiences with my grandfather's long illness after a stroke.

His books mirror so much of what I knew growing up on a farm in the Central Valley - baling wire repairs to farm equipment, a noxious weed that can puncture tires and bare feet, "dry" Valley heat, an old farmhouse built in the early 20th century and parents that worked so hard and sacrificed so much to give their children a better life.

In his earlier works, there was an undercurrent of optimism in his writing. In Wisdom, however, I sense a certain fatalism; that he feels that time might be catching up with him. Maybe his optimism will be renewed when his daughter returns to the farm.

One of my favorites--we read for book club. Author is a lyrical writer--felt more like poetry at times than prose. Not to be off-putting, just a wonderful flow to his writing. I am a farmer's daughter, Japanese American, and of the same generation as the author. Needless to say it resonated with me.

A wonderful, reflective memoir on what it takes to be a writer who is also a farmer, a son, a husband and a dad. Reading this book took me back to my childhood when we had to lean over to let the juice drip down our chins and arms as we ate peaches that were as sweet and juicy and full of sunshine flavor as described in this story. The way Mas relates his experiences with his dad's illness, welding, plowing the fields, and his own short-comings was inspiring. It's a quiet story that is full of energy and leaves you wanting more. I loved it and bought copies of this book for my friends.

Masumoto's words are so beautiful. It's a soothing read. Sometimes sad, sometimes optimistic, a kind of poetry. I really loved it.

There is a lot of wisdom about farming and life in this memoir of the author's life as the third generation Japanese American farmer in the Central Valley. If you grew up in the valley or around a farm, you will experience nostalgia. If you are not familiar with farm life, you will be both educated and entertained as David re-creates his experiences with words that describe all of the senses plus emotions that any human can identify with.
It is enjoyable to read and there is a lot to learn about life and family besides farming. He is a great story teller and his stories are full of wisdom. He explains the challenge of organic farming and because there is so much work and so little profit, fewer people are owning and operating family farms. He shows how it is a way of life that is at risk of becoming extinct along with the flavorful peaches they produce. Now as he says, he farms stories to support his passion for farming the 'perfect peach'.

This brought back many memories. Our family was on a farm in Lancaster, CA. It was the best years of my life.That was in the 40's. I could taste the elberta peaches which you can't find any longer. As Mas said the name of peaches are generic. We drove to Pearblossom and Littlerock for peaches and we canned them.Also pears. For dessert we always had fresh canned fruit. Oh, the bygone years.
It was a great read.