On Brassard's Farm

I loved this book. Actually, I didn't think it was really going to be my cup of tea and only opened it to read the first few pages. Next thing I knew I was half way through and could not put it down. I forgot it was a novel for a little while and was really pulling for Ann and wishing her well!

I loved this book! There was so much beauty in the characters, they carried such a realness. The main character, Ann, begins describing this story as a love story, but it’s not the kind of love story you would expect.

Ann’s life is a little broken, not outrageously so, but broken In a way that any of us could have a broken life. She’s hiding out and licking her wounds. In the midst of the pity party she finds a piece of land that changes her as she works on the Brassard farm, she finds community and family, and she finds a strength that causes her to heal in beautiful ways. She doesn’t find a repaired life, she ends up with a NEW and very fulfilling life!

I loved this book so much because i wasn’t just reading about Ann falling in love, I fell in love too! I loved it all and I loved the land and I even loved the bears! Mostly, I loved watching Ann become passionate about something and invested in people. I loved watching her go from self pity to a woman with gumption! It was all just so good!

This is one of those books where I fell in love with the imagery more than the characters but Hecht's writing was so vivid that after a while Ann grew on me and I found her endearing as well. I loved the experiences on the farm, the life and scenery. I was an excellent rainy day read.

Totally different than books that I would normally pick up, and well worth a read!

Ann Turner felt untethered and alone. Both of her parents had died and her brother was incognito, somewhere on the West Coast. Ann, a middle school teacher, made some unfortunate professional choices. She decided to cut and run to Vermont and shed her prior life. To this end, she purchased a forty acre parcel of land on Brassard's Farm.

Brassard's Farm was a small dairy farm run by Jim Brassard, a man of few words and Maureen "Diz" Brassard, a dynamo and unrelenting "work horse" who kept the farm running. Earnest Kelly, an Oneida Indian who served with Jim in Vietnam, fixed farm equipment in need of repair and helped with the workload when he had breaks from his job as a tree surgeon. The farm was "old school"....a "mom and pop" operation.

Like most farmers, the Brassards were fiercely attached to their land. Fluctuations in market prices for items such as milk could signal disaster. It became necessary to sell off a forty acre plot of hard, uneven ground unsuitable for farming. Ann purchased the land as a refuge, a place to regroup. Due to economic market changes, she had insufficient funds to complete the final payment of the land sale. She now must work off her outstanding balance as a farmhand, a kind of "indenture" to the Brassards who intend to get their money's worth!

"On Brassard's Farm" is written in first person narrative where Ann recounts her relationship with Jim and Diz. Earnest is often nearby to provide assistance to his "Pilgrim". Ann works long, backbreaking hours on the farm then hikes up to her land at nightfall. By her own account, she learns to seal the seams of her tent after an awful downpour that created soggy bedding. She learns the difference between the nighttime sounds of deer and bears.

Author Hecht's descriptive writing style enabled this reader to "feel" the farm experience including the rigorous milking schedule and the difficulty laying pipe for a drainage system. It was clear that farmers honor their soil. Land is their foundation for living.

"On Brassard's Farm" by Daniel Hecht was a tome I connected with on many levels. I miss the rugged individuals who populate this novel. An excellent read I highly recommend.

Thank you Blackstone Publishing and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review "On Brassard's Farm".

4 bucolic stars to On Brassard’s Farm! ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 🐄 🐮

Ann Turner leaves her urban life behind and moves to remote area of Vermont where she buys a small plot of land on an existing dairy farm. Financially, she comes up short on her obligation to the farm owners and ends up becoming an employee to pay them back.

Jim and “Diz” Brassard are the farm owners. Each of them hard workers, toiling arduously with the land, their equipment, their workloads, to keep their farm afloat. The author makes farm life clear - taking it day by day, facing each challenge as it comes, and many will come; many outside of their control.

Ann comes into her own in this novel. She finds her place. She finds her why. All the characters were well-developed, and the descriptions led me to truly feel life on Brassard’s Farm.

Overall, there’s deep meaning here. Much to be explored. A sense of peace to be obtained without ever leaving your home. I visited my aunt and uncle’s farm frequently growing up, and it brought back many of those memories. So much to see and do, so much work to be done, and so much joy to be found; all from the earth.

Thank you to my friend, Fran, for another treasured recommendation!

Thank you to Daniel Hecht, Blackstone Publishing, and Netgalley for the ARC. On Brassard’s Farm is available now!

I am a vegan and I dislike dairy farmers so at first I did not think this book would be for me. However the authors story is so well crafted and endearing that the book did grow on me.
Ann Turner has a series of disasters in her life so she moves to remote area of Vermont where she buys a small plot of land on a dairy farm and lives in a tent. She is trying to make it on the land but soon comes up short on her financial obligation to the farm owners and ends up becoming an employee to pay them back. The owner of the farm drives her very hard and she has much to learn about hard labor.
Jim and “Diz” Brassard are the farm owners. Each of them struggling to keep their small farm going through illness, bad weather and farming problems. The farmer is gruff, quiet and a hard taskmaster.
Ann finds her place on the farm and through the hard labor day after day she turns into a new person. All the characters were well-developed, and the descriptions lead the reader to feel the realities of life on Brassard’s Farm. This is a starting over story, a story of small family farms and the reality of farming.
Thank you for the ARC which did not influence my review.

Ann takes what is left of herself and buys some remote land in Vermont. The land was once part of the Brassard’s Farm, a dairy farm ran by a couple and their hired hand, Earnest. This was an impulse buy for Ann, as her original plan didn’t pan out. Ann finds herself living in a tent and cooking over a camp stove. It’s scary living out on her own, under the stars, but Ann wanted to leave her old life behind and start anew.

She’s bought the land with some inheritance money that she had received from her aunt and when the rest of the monies didn’t come through, Ann finds herself working at the farm to pay off her debt. It’s hard work, harder than she thought. Every evening she struggles to make her way up the hillside to her land, to finish out her day, so she can repeat the process again the next day. Ann begins to find a rhythm to her daily life, finding both physical and mental strength as she helps around the farm. Slowly, she becomes a part of the inner workings of the other individuals who make up Brassard Farm. The farm becomes a part of Ann, she finds comfort and pride in her surroundings.

As I read this novel, I was immersed into the Vermont landscape. The green, rough terrain and vast beauty of the trees and brush, were at my side. As Ann cooked out on her camp stove, I imagined the smells and sounds as they trickled down through the hills. The wildlife ran free, they ate their fill and slept where they wanted, for they didn’t need humans to make their lives comfortable. The endless cycle of being a dairy farmer made me tired, it was the relentless upkeep and organization that filled their lives. The fear of the unknown, the fear of no control and the fear of tomorrow were always looming over their head. It all seemed too real yet it was something I hadn’t stopped to think about. It was called home for many but for me, this was an adventure. I was allowed an opportunity to view a life that I would never lead.

I received a copy of this novel from NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

On Brassard's Farm by Daniel Hecht has all the elements I love, rambling along in its self-awareness with nature and hard work as its guide.

Ann reaches a point in life when she loses everything and everyone she loves in rapid succession. As her only living relative, her brother isn’t necessarily gone from this earth, but Ann has no idea where he is – he’s as lost as she feels. She begins to wonder if he’s alive.

With nothing to lose other than her inheritance, Ann buys 40 acres of wooded land from a dairy farmer. No longer able to make a living as a teacher, she’s without income, but doesn’t seem to obsess about it. When she makes a grave error, Ann indebts herself to this farmer. This begins her life as official manure mover and cow milker.

I was frustrated by wastrel Ann at first but fascinated with her situation. She pitches a tent on her newly acquired land, but makes no move to improve it, or grow anything to feed herself. I fully expected her to at least try to grow some vegetables or something.

Eventually, she improves her situation with a pseudo outhouse and an outdoor kitchen. But I’m still horrified that building some sort of structure to get through winter is never on her mind. Ann is troubled by her life so far, but I kept hoping she’d gain some survival instincts.

The farm and the people who work the farm become Ann’s family and salvation. None of it is easy or predictable, and some of it is too mystical to believe in the moment, but overall, I was enthralled by her journey to self-preservation, and eventually, love.

Living within the woods we discovered while camping, I could easily understand Ann’s love of the forest. It felt familiar, as if I was part of the book while enjoying my own little paradise, even though it was just for a week or two instead of Ann’s lifetime. I couldn’t have picked a better book to relax with during our quiet vacation.

On Brassard's Farm is a great novel for those who love the land and its creatures. There are plenty of wildlife stories, people anecdotes, and farm wisdom to explore. I’m anxious to discover Daniel Hecht’s backlist and future endeavors. If you’re headed into the woods, On Brassard's Farm is entertaining fireside reading. It made my homestead yearning grow.

Review by Dorine, courtesy of TheZestQuest.com.