I really enjoyed this well-written and insightful memoir of a year in the life of a sheep farmer in Canada. For 50 years Barbara Mclean has tended her flock of Border Leicester sheep on her small Ontario farm Lambsquarters. She writes eloquently, but never sentimentally, about the pain and pleasure of a farming life. Now in her 70s, new problems increasingly arise. She questions how much longer she will be able to continue with the physically demanding work. Farming can be a dangerous profession. Farm accidents account for five times the death rate of workers in other industries, and are the greatest risk of injuries causing disability. Ageing and farming is particularly bad for safety. The number of farmers over 80 in Canada has increased by 50% in recent years, and the accidental death rate of these older farmers exceeds the national average by more than 40%. All this Barbara McLean explores in her book, and although there are plenty of details about sheep farming itself to enjoy, it was perhaps these other issues I enjoyed most of all. Such as her views on the stewardship of the land. Her home, for example is on the traditional territory of the Iroquois Confederacy. Should it, perhaps, be given back? She also discusses the position of women in farming, as only relatively recently has the contribution of women been recognised in law. The climate crisis, too, is having an effect on farming. So I found myself riveted as I read. Even if you’re someone who has no interest in the nitty-gritty of the farming day, there is still so much else to enjoy here. As well as a farmer, Barbara McLean is an academic, and it shows in her writing, which is always clear, concise and perfectly pitched. A great read, for many reasons.

This book is a beautiful meditation on farm life and human's place in nature. Barbara McLean is an aging shepherd and she is grappling with her legacy and her future on her farm. This book is structured around the months of the year, and I love that decision. We follow the patterns of a year, and the changing weather patterns, the chores, the holidays. This is a beautiful and heartfelt book, and I would love to become just like Barbara McLean: a thoughtful shepherd of both a flock of animals and the farm itself.

Many of us dream of bucolic life on a farm, but only a select few resolve to actually live it month after month, year after year in all its beauty and brutality. Writing about shepherding with a chapter dedicated to each month in a year, Barbara McLean reveals the yearly ups and downs of running a sheep farm in rural Ontario, Canada. McLean opted into this life as a young woman and writes from the perspective of a woman who has lived it out for half a century. She shares wisdom from her collected experiences while humbly accepting that she doesn’t know everything. In fact, she embraces opportunities to learn more even as she mourns the loss of old ways of farming. I expected this to be a cozy read, and in some ways it was, but it was often heartbreaking and awe-inspiring to learn what it really takes to shepherd a flock through all the seasons of the year.

I received a digital advance reader copy from ECW Press in exchange for an honest review.

A cautionary tale for anyone who thinks it might be fun to throw it all off and start farming. This month by month account of a year on McLean's Ontario sheep farm is fascinating- filled with facts but also with emotion because she clearly loves her animals. It's illuminating and thoughtful. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A very good read.

I requested Shepherd's Sight from the catalog because I've got a sweet spot for sheep. I went to a preschool called Little Lambs and I have a plush ewe on my bookshelf. I am also a fan of James Herriot and the PBS series, All Creatures Great and Small. I was still in that mindset when I initially saw this title. This book was indeed very cozy and sweet, but I thought it was overlong.

It was difficult to digest this information when it continued page after page. I wasn't that invested because I had no personal attachment to it. I'm not a farmer and I have no kinship towards animals. Perhaps if I were similar to the author in my occupation I could have related more to the novel instead of just a passing interest in a Scottish veterinarian. She had some sweet phrases and nice narrative framing, but I wish I enjoyed myself more. I'm grateful for this opportunity and the advanced copy from the publisher. Looks like I'll only be counting sheep in my dreams from now on because I have lost the Shepherd’s Sight.

Written by a shepherd with decades of experience on her farm, Lambsquarters, Shepherd's Sight is an insight into a year in McLean's life with reflections on the past and what the future may bring. An interesting life, I read this in the winter and it certainly made me thankful for a comfortable home.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for a fair review.

Barbara McLean’s Shepherd’s Sight is an engrossing look into the year in the life of a sheep farmer. This memoir is an intimate examination of the shepherd’s joys and hardships through the seasons on her Canadian farm. I learned so much about sheep and farming in general. Also a good bit about maple syruping and stone wall building. This is truly a lovely book full of fascinating memories and observations.

A fascinating insight into the life of a sheep farmer in Ontario over the course of a year.. The farm, Lambsquarters, has been run by Barbara and her husband Thomas for the last fifty years where they have kept a small flock of Border Leicester sheep.
The author gives a monthly account of the goings on at the farm. There are many hardships, particularly throughout the winter months and Barbara's descriptions of Ontario's winter weather had me shivering at the thought. However when Spring arrives and lambs are successfully delivered there is much joy and these passages are so uplifting.
The author's musings on growing old ( she is now in her 70's) and whether she'll be be able to continue farming, and who will want to take over the farm at a later time obviously weigh heavily, as she looks back to how things used to be.
Barbara's love of her animals is evident throughout the book.
This is a charming tale. Highly recommend.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC.

Really enjoyed this eye opening look at living on a farm. As a city girl I found their way of life their daily routine and hard work fascinating..Beautifully written a book of quiet beauty.#netgalley #ecw