Goodreads Mobile | see what your friends are reading

May 19, 2011

Anita rated it:

Overall, I found this to be a pretty interesting look at a counter-cultural approach to living. Downshifters are nothing new, as this topic has been discussed in depth in many different books ever since the back to the land movement in the 1960s, but this updated look at this movement is definitely relevant. There are a couple of issues I don't think the author dealt with. One is that it would appear that most of those interviewed, as well as the author, live in rural New England. I think th More...

1 comment like (6 people liked it)

Sep 22, 2011

Meghan rated it:

"Success, in our country, is now defined by money earned, by promotions, by continuous servitude to an employer... Our gauge of success and personal worth has become so reliant on external validation that women and men now find it difficult to believe that a life centered around the home can satisfy their needs for personal fulfillment and genuine achievement." Or, as written in 1870: "Bright women should aspire, and drudges should keep the home fires burning." Yo.

More...

5 comments like (5 people liked it)

Dec 01, 2011

Stephanie rated it:

The beginning of this book is a case for why we need to bring back the homemaker and return to being a culture of people who create rather than consume. That part had me cheering and phoning up friends to read quotes to them.

But then she got into the "hows" and . . . I loved that less. Many of the people she holds up as examples have taken themselves much farther off the grid than I could go (especially if I wanted my husband to come with me). We're talking not having heal More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 05, 2011

Mamamilkshake rated it:

The book was a very interesting read. The idea of the home as a unit of production is an idea that really resonated with me and one I've been pondering for years. It was for this reason that I have been wanting to read this book for ages. Author Shannon Hayes did a good job documenting the reasons *why* her various interview subjects went the Radical Homemaker route, making the second part of the book the highlight.

The first part was discussing the historical view of home and how tradi More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 17, 2011

Kristin rated it:

I really expected to like this book, but it had so many glaring flaws I just couldn't. For one thing, it needs a different title. As others have already pointed out, it should be called Radical Homesteading because that is what the book is really about (although the "radical" is extraneous since it's pretty much exactly what homesteaders do, not just the "radical" ones). If your parents don't already have a farm you can live on and/or you have no interest in rural life, there More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

Dec 09, 2010

Flat rated it:

Hayes has a B.A. in creative writing and advanced degrees in sustainable agriculture, so I guess you can't be too surprised to find that she isn't that great a writer and has a weak grasp of economics. She never examines the singular reason why the nuclear family is often no longer able to subsist with just one breadwinner: namely, the government spending that leads to rising taxation and inflation. Consumerism and feminism have certainly impacted women's decisions to enter the workforce, but More...

1 comment like (6 people liked it)

Oct 14, 2011

Mary rated it:

the ideas presented are very interesting and challening, but she glosses over many probelms that most people in this county would face it they wanted to adopt this type of lifestyle. I work because I love my job and the results that I am able to accomplish that improve the lives of others. I also work because I need health insurance. Whether or not I would be able to live without medicine and doctors if I changed my life is a possibility.
I do know some people who have lived outside of the More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 19, 2011

Karen rated it:

LOVED the first part of the book. She took everything that we (well, some of us) already know about the vital importance of the home and the homemaker, spelled it out, backed it up with facts and figures, and just generally did a great job. It was so loaded with quotables that I didn't even try... just get the book. It's worth it just for the first third, even if you don't read the rest.

Unfortunately the rest of the book got more than a little long-winded, repetitive and lost my int More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

May 26, 2011

Aspen rated it:

Radical homemaking is what happens when Your Money or Your Life meets Mother Earth News. It's the journey of families who decide that rather than earning lots of money so they can outsource the labor of their lives, want to bring it back inside the family; thus regaining control over their expenses, nutrition, cleaning, child care, community life, etc. The reward is that you spend more time and effort on the things important to you, whatever they may be (as long as they're not too expensive). Ha More...

0 comments like

Feb 08, 2011

Aoife rated it:

I expected to like this book more than I did. While the author's imperious tone irritated me from the first page, I mostly agree with the principles behind so-called "radical homemaking" and aspire to do much of the stuff the people described in this book do. But there are a number of problems with this book, and unfortunately they marred the whole thing.

First there's the phenomenon I refer to as "I accidentally a homestead!" I read books like this and I'm thinking More...

1 comment like (8 people liked it)

Dec 22, 2010

Eileen rated it:

In a way I hate to say it, since I agree with about 70% of the practices mentioned, but this book is deeply problematic and intellectually questionable.

I expected this to fall into the how-to genre, discussing various practices people use when trying to construct a life outside US cultural norms. When it turned out to be more of a sociological study of twenty individuals (note: that's your sample size?), I was a little disconcerted, but, you know, ok. Let's read it and see how it More...

0 comments like (7 people liked it)

Oct 29, 2010

sleeps9hours rated it:

Borrowed a lot from previous writers I’ve liked. Repeats the simple living message under a new label. Still a good message to get out there. Some fuzzy thinking in the theory section was annoying, and as a nonfiction book it didn't show the quality of research that I expect, but provides good fodder for discussion.

Drew from many popular previous books and then supplemented with info gained from interviewing 20 people or couples the author identified as Radical Homemakers. If you' More...

0 comments like

Oct 21, 2010

Pumpkinbear rated it:

Radical Homemakers, while readable, isn't really about homemaking, in my opinion. Homemaking as a defiance to consumer culture would absolutely include gardening, home canning, thrifting, etc., as Hayes describes it, but living without a J.O.B, homeschooling the kiddos, forgoing health insurance, raising cows for meat--yeah, that's homesteading, right?

Of course the very fact that the book is "radical" means that it's likely going to be read as judgmental towards the vast sw More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 19, 2010

Joy rated it:

I expected to like this book because it is very much along the lines of how I think and live my life. However, this book is awful. I would go so far as to question whether Shannon Hayes should be writing books. She doesn't know how to research and she doesn't know how to write, and as such, the book is repetitive and reads like a PhD thesis. I don't know how anyone can take such a passionate subject and make it so dry and unpleasant.

Radical Homemakers is *riddled* with errors and ass More...

0 comments like (6 people liked it)

Sep 15, 2010

Laura rated it:

This was an interesting book and not at all what I expected (I thought it would be cleaning tips - that'll teach me to read the covers more closely)! Anyway, she documents a movement where people move away from consumer culture, creating more of their own food and earning less, living further away from the grid. They honor the four tenets of family, community, social justice and ecology. The book is well-organized, with the first half devoted to the philosophy and how it developed and the 2nd More...

0 comments like

Apr 05, 2010

Courtney rated it:

This book seemed like an interesting outgrowth of the voluntary simplicity movement. I liked her writing style and the first two thirds of the book was devoted to a history portion of the overall loss of the view of homemaking that involved both genders prior to the industrial revolution. The final third focused on themes emergent from the 20 plus interviews she conducted with the individuals and couples who left the traditional corporate America or academic tracks to live lifestyles centered More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 19, 2010

Gail rated it:

I loved this book. It wasn't a how-to book as in how to go live off the grid with your chickens and homemade soap (although admittedly I'd love to do exactly that). It was more the stories of various people, single and married, with and without children, who are bucking against the Western culture of consumerism and individualism. The first half of the book consisted of author Shannon Hayes explaining how our culture got this way via the Industrial Revolution, and then later as advertising becam More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

May 15, 2011

Aleah rated it:

Families nationwide are struggling with how to manage a growing sense of powerlessness as our world undergoes climate change, our economy flounders and public health worsens. Shannon Hayes, author of the manifesto “Radical Homemakers,” is not alone in her decision to return to the home – the foundation on which a healthy community is built. But this is not a call to return to well-coiffed housewives who wear heels as they keep house and bake pies. Not at all. Hayes is talking about turning homes More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Aug 27, 2011

Heather rated it:

Since I graduated college and started in the workforce, I've always felt that there has to be, to quote Roxy Music, "more than this". A career and money hasn't made me fully happy; it's never made my problems disappear. Apparently I'm not alone in this. People - women, men, single people and families - are stepping away from the corporate and money/consumption-obsessed merry-go-round, and realigning their priorities.

This is a thought-provoking and well-researched read. More...

0 comments like

Oct 26, 2011

Elizabeth rated it:

Absolutely LOVED this book!!!! Almost from the first word, I was nodding to myself and bouncing excitedly as I read, so strong was my reaction to what I see as a fascinating, necessary, and approachable take on a topic that bears much scrutiny: our current culture of consumption and how it is affecting our quality of life. I have been recommending this book to anyone who will stand still long enough to hear me gush. Ms. Hayes did a good job, in my opinion, of drawing on a diverse group of su More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 01, 2011

Kellie rated it:

Overall I liked this book. I think she articulated well some ideas I had buried in my brain somewhere but didn't know quite how to express. I hadn't ever thought about the fact that the household used to be a productive entity and now it is almost completely consumptive, and I think it is absolutely true that the more we can move back toward producing for ourselves and focusing on our own families and households, the less we are dependent on the outside world to meet our needs and generally the More...

0 comments like

May 19, 2010

Lisa rated it:

Someone described this book as one for "validation" rather than "inspiration," and that certainly is the case. Hayes is arguing for an alternative lifestyle choice in which homemaking skills (gardening, cooking, sewing, knitting, raising small livestock, etc) and living simply are paramount. However, she also argues strongly against anything that does not conform to her ideal.

For example, Hayes frequently asserts that Radical Homemakers eschew six-figure incom More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 17, 2011

Gail rated it:

I like the idea presented in this book about bringing community together and being an active member within your local community. Along with building domestic skills like canning, gardening and cooking as ways to be a part of a healthier family unit, plus it is easier on the planet and budget. I could never give-up my 401k or medical insurance to complete the transition to Radical Homemaker and grateful I don't have too. It’s a great book to read if you’re questioning what you (or your partner) More...

0 comments like

Nov 27, 2010

Jenifer rated it:

This book is really inspiring and has some very interesting statistics regarding our consumer culture. It primarily discusses the why and how of people who have chosen not to be slaves to their jobs, perceived need for health insurance, societal pressures for dress, consumption and opinions. 20 Radical Homemakers are interviewed and they discuss their choices that allow them to eat better food, educate their children to be truly free thinkers and reduce the stress produced from outside sources More...

0 comments like

Apr 08, 2011

Emily Mellow rated it:

This book is divided into two sections, the first of which I skipped because it seemed to reiterate reasons for holding values that I already ascribe to. There was some interesting historical context, but I found I didn't enjoy reading much of it. However, I did find the second half of the book useful. The author interviews 20 "radical homemakers" to find out how they survive, thrive, and make their way in a consumer world while choosing to stay out of the buying culture. It's inspirin More...

0 comments like

Jan 15, 2011

Betsy rated it:

Hayes Quotes: "If you ever considered quitting a job to plant tomatoes, read to a child, pursue creative work, can green beans, and heal the planet, this is your book." "While most count wealth as the presence of surplus money, [others] count their wealth as the ability to live well without it."

This was an inspiring book looking at families who live home-based lives, relying on themselves, their skills, their families, their neighborhoods, and their communities, a More...

0 comments like

Nov 11, 2010

Angel rated it:

Part 1: History of domesticity and feminism (fascinating!); In the past 50 years, homemaking has been reduced to 2 main duties: shopping and chauffeuring. This is one of the causes of depression amongst stay-at-home moms--they have lost meaningful purpose in their role.
Part 2: Stories/interviews of "radical homemakers"--women and men who have chosen a simpler life, usually choosing to live on a smaller income, in order to do more of the following: Produce some or most of their own More...

0 comments like

Nov 04, 2011

angeleen rated it:

Shannon Hayes does a phenomenal job of explaining the extractive economy, the problems related to consumerism, and the ways working outside the home can negatively impact health, relationships, and quality of life. She put a lot of effort into exploring how families are living simply by doing more for themselves and participating less in corporate America by refusing to buy from or work for corporations. There are useful ideas in this book that I think most people can apply in their homes and More...

0 comments like

Aug 15, 2011

Tracy rated it:

This had some very good points, like our need to have so much unimportant stuff, unfortunately it was bady written. The author kept repeating the same points to her argument over and over. The people she chose to use as her case studies were ones that didn't veer far from her very narrow vision. All of those included insisted that they had no need for the perks of society, like traditional jobs and money, but most are still dependant on those who are such as living in a trailer on a friends prop More...

0 comments like

Jul 18, 2011

Vicky rated it:

This is another that I didn't actually finish, but I did get pretty close to the end. Had it not been due at the library right before I had to go out of town I probably would have finished it, but to be honest I was losing steam fast by the end of this book.

I really enjoyed the first section, all about the history of homemaking and explaining how we have become the way we are in the realm of homemaking. It was enlightening and inspiring.

Some of the second section was enjoya More...

0 comments like

reviews