An American Homeplace

by Donald McCaig

On a September day in 1971, Donald McCaig and his wife, Anne, arrived at their new home, an abandoned farm in the least populated county in eastern America. Over the next twenty years they learned - one challenging day at a time - how to raise sheep and grow enough food for themselves and their stock.
The story of the McCaigs' farm, from the time it was first cultivated in the eighteenth century to the McCaigs' struggle to keep it productive today, is at the heart of An American Homeplace. Amplifying that personal account are the voices of farmers, storekeepers, horse breeders, mechanics, and other country people.
McCaig writes wonderfully about his working dogs, the animals he raises, and the wild animals he encounters; the seasons of the farmer's year; the ways of rural society; the ageless challenges of agriculture; and the modern dangers of agribusiness.
This is the history of the American family farm, an institution built on personal honesty, trust in one's neighbors, and optimism about the future. An American Homeplace is a wise and powerful report on a part of America that is struggling - often ingeniously - to survive.

Genres: Nonfiction

95 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Donald McCaig was the award-winning author of Jacob’s Ladder, designated “the best civil war novel ever written” by The Virginia Quarterly. People magazine raved “Think Gone With the Wind, think Cold Mountain.” It won the Michael Sharra Award for Civil War Fiction and the Library of Virginia Award for Fiction.

Donald McCaig wrote about rural American life, sheepdogs, and the Civil War. He also wrote poetry and wrote under various pseudonyms.

Reviews

[Rachel Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely, folksey book about the ups and downs of the rural life. Some of these were written as articles, some delivered on public radio, but all show episodes of McCaig's life on a small farm in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley. Much like the rhythm of country life, he dances between tasks, telling us of the travails of purchasing a sheepdog to the sadness of losing a ewe in childbirth, to the absurdity of trying to hold an election in the middle of a flood. He speaks of the interdependence of family and friends in the area; you have to get along when you work on the volunteer fire department together, and have patience if your mechanic has to work far away all day.

This is a quiet book with the attraction of James Herriott books, small chapters posing as love songs to a place that, quite clearly, McCaig loves.

[Susie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know what to make of this book. My mom's cousin's husband (also my PCP, because the world is a small place) loaned it to me -- along with two others -- at Christmastime and I feel bad for not making progress on the books. This seemed like it would be an entertaining memoir about a couple of city folk who learned how to farm. And some of the chapters read that way, but some of them offer directives for raising sheepdogs, or outline the (somewhat convoluted) familial histories of the region where the author established his farm. It was disjointed and sometimes convoluted, but other times it was incredibly enjoyable.

I did like the author's take on the importance of small farms and his general condemnation of agribusiness. All in all, it was enlightening, but not light. Slightly disorganized and a bit meandering, but that seems like how the author pretty much goes about all his business. So par for the course, perhaps.

[Christie Bane · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a disappointment after Donald McCaig’s border collie books. It’s about living in the country on a farm — both the author’s experience of it (in a sparsely populated part of Virginia) and rural life in general. I am not a fan of rural living and even less of a fan of anyone who romanticizes it, so this book was a bit of a drag for me. I suppose for people who do yearn for a simpler life out in the country, this book could be a nice escape, but for me it was just a reminder of how much I never want to go back.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! It's the kind of thing I like.
I got hooked because he spends some early pages talking about the geology of his farm and neighborhood. So if you don't like that kind of thing, just keep reading. Most chapters are short, some only 2 pages, others are much longer.
He writes about his place, the neighbors, the animals, the land, and all the meanings surrounding them.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly short essays about the changing rural landscape and the death of small farms, not only in Highland County but in the US. I would have liked a map and am fearful of what has happened in the 20 years since this was written... but maybe it's actually getting better. I know there are youngish people now doing what he and his wife did -- moving to a farm and trying to make it work.

[Charity · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book starts out a bit slow, but by the end I couldn't put it down. A mix of thought-provoking stories about farming life, animals, and neighbors; as well as incisive comments on contemporary agriculture. If you like Wendell Berry, you may like this.

[Jen Dary · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like these quiet books about what life was like, etc etc. This one is about urbanites who buy a farm in rural VA, including reflections on farming in the 70s-90s. Made me come to know our new home state better and also wish for a baby lamb 🐑

[Lanette · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first 50 pages of this book were hard to get through... rambling, rabbit trails. After that it got better, but still not the finest homesteading book I've ever read.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting