When Chores Were Done

by Jerry Apps

"When Chores Were Done" is a collection of stories about rural life in the 1940s and 1950s as seen through the eyes of a child. From working with draft horses to doing chores, from reminiscences of outhouses to learning cusswords, Apps reveals how warm, loving, and supremely educational growing up on a farm could be.

Genres: Nonfiction

186 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Jerold W. Apps, born and raised on a Wisconsin farm, is Professor Emeritus at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the author of more than 30 books, many of them on rural history and country life. His nonfiction books include: Living a Country Year, Every Farm Tells a Story, When Chores Were Done, Humor from the Country, Country Ways and Country Days, One-Room Schools, Cheese, Breweries of Wisconsin, Ringlingville USA (History of Ringling Brothers circus), Old Farm: A History, Barns of Wisconsin, Horse Drawn Days: A Century of Farming With Horses, and Campfires and Loon Calls. His children's books include: Stormy, Eat Rutabagas, Tents, Tigers and the Ringling Brothers, and Casper Jaggi: Master Swiss Cheese Maker. He has an audio book, The Back Porch and Other Stories. Jerry has published four novels, The Travels of Increase Joseph, In a Pickle: A Family Farm Story, Blue Shadows Farm and Cranberry Red. Jerry is a former publications editor for UW-Extension, an acquisitions editor for the McGraw-Hill Book Company, and editor of a national professional journal.

Jerry has won awards for his writing from the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Library Association (the 2007 Notable Authors Award), American Library Association, Foreword Magazine, Midwest Independent Publishers Association, Robert E. Gard Foundation, The Wisconsin Council for Writers (the 2007 Major Achievement Award), Upper Midwest Booksellers, and Barnes and Noble Bookstores, among others. In 2010 he received the Distinguished Service Award from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences. Check www.jerryapps.com for more information.

Reviews

[Anna]

Just a book about a boy growing up on a farm. It’s a light, relaxing read that reflects a hard, but enjoyable and worthwhile childhood. Four stars because while it was enjoyable, it wasn’t a page turner. :)

[Linda Stein]

Enjoyed this book. It brought back memories of grandma and grandpa's farm.

[Becky]

I really enjoyed this book, especially since I also grew up on a farm. Mr. Apps is a bit older than myself, but a lot of his stories ring true, even though I grew up a couple of decades later. The author does a great job of explaining how and why certain jobs are done on the farm, so even those who didn't grow up in the country would enjoy this book as well.

[Larry Wegman]

More of his farm stories.