Wendy Jehanara Tremayne

If what you're looking for is some inspiration or how-to advice for using your hands and wits to learn homesteading skills so you can buy less stuff and maybe even adopt a back to basics lifestyle by giving up your nine-to-five, then this is the book for you.

But you’re also going to love reading this if what you're looking for is a well written, beautifully designed book about living off the land and turning junk into art or useful objects or both, because you’re fascinated by the concepts and love post-apocalyptic novels where these skills would come in handy.

Maybe, like me, you're a little of both. Part memoir, part instructional manual, part joy-infused but earnest and thought-provoking philosophical treatise, this book is way too attractive to be one of the objects I’d happily give up to live a less commodity-driven life. The how-to part of it mends a gap in our wisdom of the ages chain; knowledge about basic skills like home building and food gathering used to be passed down from generation to generation but for many of us it’s all but lost today.

Wendy Jehanara Tremayne and her partner Mikey used to live in NYC but they craved a more natural, creative, connected life with the freedom to live without too many compromises, so they cashed in their retirement savings and bought a defunct trailer park as their new homestead in the aptly named Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. One thing I especially enjoyed about their story is that for Wendy and Mikey being off the treadmill doesn't mean living off the grid (though they do generate some of their own energy) or in isolation--they are connected to the lively community in their town and, via the internet, to other homesteaders around the country through email, blogs, vlogs, and video chats. Plus all those far flung pioneers visit each other to swap newly learned skills and have fun.

I’m not planning to pull up stakes, but I am viewing and interacting with the world a little differently after reading this book.… (més)