What do you think?
Rate this book
Accidental Cowgirl: Six Cows, No Horse and No Clue
In 1990, we heard the wilderness call to us, and, God help us, we answered. Of course, we had no business trying to run a full-time ranch with no experience. People tried to tell us that "The Simple Life" wasn't so simple, but we weren't listening. If you're over 50, or in a job rut, or looking for adventure (or all of the above), and you yearn for a tranquil country hideaway, please read this cautionary tale first.
- GenresNonfiction
Paperback
First published September 6, 2007
1 person is currently reading
9 people want to read
About the author
Mary Lynn Archibald
4 books3 followersMary Lynn Archibald is a business copywriter and award-winning author of two memoirs: Briarhopper, A History, and Accidental Cowgirl: Six Cows, No Horse and No Clue. Both are available at Amazon.com and BN.com, as well as select bookstores throughout the US and the UK.
She is also a polished and entertaining speaker. Contact her for available dates and times, at marylynn@winecountrywriter.com, AccidentalCowgirl.com, or www.redrom.com/author/mary-lynn-i-arc..."
She is also a polished and entertaining speaker. Contact her for available dates and times, at marylynn@winecountrywriter.com, AccidentalCowgirl.com, or www.redrom.com/author/mary-lynn-i-arc..."
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 2, 2012
REVIEW: ACCIDENTAL COWGIRL—SIX COWS, NO HORSE AND NO CLUE
BY MARY LYNN ARCHIBALD
In 1990, Mary Lynn Archibald and her husband, Carl R. Sutter, ventured out from suburbia to the hinterlands of Northern California. From a life of designer clothes to coveralls. From traffic choked freeways to isolated byways, mostly dirt. From central heat to bluebirds crashing in the Franklin woodstove. It was not the bucolic country retreat she’d fantasized as her learning curve stretched to infinity, and her energy with it.
Though Archibald questions her writing ability, it is with her poetic images that she takes the reader into her new world to share in her discoveries of self, relationship, ranch life, and the greater environment. This was a period of momentous turmoil in the Trinity Alps with federal legislation (think Spotted Owl and old growth redwoods,) tree sitters, marijuana cultivation and culture, and the loss of logging jobs all impinged on the safety and peace of residents.
Images of starry, starry nights, frozen water lines, rampant bulls and feral cats, breeding cows and verdant fields, hard work and ever expanding gardens barely tell the story. With humor, pathos and considerable insight, Archibald invokes a strong sense of place and of her internal journey. Doubts about the move resolved as Twin Creeks Ranch worked its magic. The seemingly impulsive purchase and move to the ranch was followed twelve years later with a mindful, deliberative leave-taking
In a special gift, the book closes with the couple’s poetry drawn from the beauty and energy of their sojourn. Even before the poetry, a rich use of language marks this work:
“I think now of the sweetness of each returning spring, which brought with it the myriad of wildflowers, some of which I’d never seen before; the feeling that we were not so much stewards of the land, but rather that the land would benevolently tolerate us, for a time.”
Treat yourself to a day in the life of a passionate observer, read:
Accidental Cowgirl—Six Cows, No Horse and No Clue
BY MARY LYNN ARCHIBALD
In 1990, Mary Lynn Archibald and her husband, Carl R. Sutter, ventured out from suburbia to the hinterlands of Northern California. From a life of designer clothes to coveralls. From traffic choked freeways to isolated byways, mostly dirt. From central heat to bluebirds crashing in the Franklin woodstove. It was not the bucolic country retreat she’d fantasized as her learning curve stretched to infinity, and her energy with it.
Though Archibald questions her writing ability, it is with her poetic images that she takes the reader into her new world to share in her discoveries of self, relationship, ranch life, and the greater environment. This was a period of momentous turmoil in the Trinity Alps with federal legislation (think Spotted Owl and old growth redwoods,) tree sitters, marijuana cultivation and culture, and the loss of logging jobs all impinged on the safety and peace of residents.
Images of starry, starry nights, frozen water lines, rampant bulls and feral cats, breeding cows and verdant fields, hard work and ever expanding gardens barely tell the story. With humor, pathos and considerable insight, Archibald invokes a strong sense of place and of her internal journey. Doubts about the move resolved as Twin Creeks Ranch worked its magic. The seemingly impulsive purchase and move to the ranch was followed twelve years later with a mindful, deliberative leave-taking
In a special gift, the book closes with the couple’s poetry drawn from the beauty and energy of their sojourn. Even before the poetry, a rich use of language marks this work:
“I think now of the sweetness of each returning spring, which brought with it the myriad of wildflowers, some of which I’d never seen before; the feeling that we were not so much stewards of the land, but rather that the land would benevolently tolerate us, for a time.”
Treat yourself to a day in the life of a passionate observer, read:
Accidental Cowgirl—Six Cows, No Horse and No Clue
June 26, 2023
“Prolific writer”? Hmmm…
The book was all over the place and a jumbled mess of rambling. I’m not sure an editor would want to take this project on, so here we are.
The book was 200 pages of foreshadowing the shocking conclusion that your typical urbanite couple is ill-prepared to take on a large, remote farm/ranch later in life.
The book was all over the place and a jumbled mess of rambling. I’m not sure an editor would want to take this project on, so here we are.
The book was 200 pages of foreshadowing the shocking conclusion that your typical urbanite couple is ill-prepared to take on a large, remote farm/ranch later in life.
Read
December 5, 2023book club selection
January 7, 2013
Hands up! How many of you at some point have wanted to return to the land? Give up the rat race. Move to the country. Live off the fruits of your labours.
STOP!
Before you go any further with those thought processes, you need to read Mary Lynn Archibauld’s Accidental Cowgirl. She and her husband did all of the above.
If you are considering diving into the country life, you should really read this country life reality check first. If you are a confirmed city dweller, and would never dream of stepping foot in the country, this book is a great validator. And regardless of which camp you fall into, this is simply a great read. Enjoy!
To read the full review visit http://silverandgrace.com/book-review...
STOP!
Before you go any further with those thought processes, you need to read Mary Lynn Archibauld’s Accidental Cowgirl. She and her husband did all of the above.
If you are considering diving into the country life, you should really read this country life reality check first. If you are a confirmed city dweller, and would never dream of stepping foot in the country, this book is a great validator. And regardless of which camp you fall into, this is simply a great read. Enjoy!
To read the full review visit http://silverandgrace.com/book-review...
September 12, 2012
If you're looking for a book about farming and homesteading, well, this isn't it. If you're looking for a diary about city folk who have a midlife crisis and want to play at being a farmer on weekends, this might be fore you. But really, this is simply a journal about what happens when ill-prepared and under-educated city people decide they'd like a weekend retreat and don't think through what it means to have critters that depend on you day in and day out. Needless to say, I was really disappointed.
July 27, 2010
Mary Lynn wrote about her adventures of taming her little patch of the Old West...and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I learned quite a bit about cows, and ranch life, and her neck of the woods (which was actually Trinity County in California). Humor and authenticity shine through on every page.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews