Would YOU marry a farmer? This six million dollar question is posed by Lorna Sixsmith in her similarly titled new book.
Through the pages she wittily answers many questions for would-be farmers' wives, which may leave you firmly believing an Irish farmer is the ideal husband after all.
Today I'm thrilled to be part of Lorna's virtual book tour, to help launch her new publication.
Lorna kindly gave me an advance copy of her book to review and is providing an additional copy for one lucky reader of Irish American Mom to win.
Table of Contents
An Irish Book As A Christmas Gift
A good book is an ideal Christmas gift. Over the next week I'll share some titles, that are just perfect for your loved ones who are interested in all things Irish.
And these Confessions of an Irish Farmerette make a perfect gift.
But now back to those farmers....
Although I may be a city girl, I spent many days, weeks and months of my childhood with my two grannies on their farms in County Cork. My farming experience, milking cows and bringing in the hay, helped me truly appreciate Lorna's humorous take on Irish farming life.
For those girls set on finding a farming husband this book has it all. Lorna first explores the question of whether or not farmers are a good catch.
She includes a wonderful look back on marriage practices in years gone by, the dowry system and the ancient art of matchmaking.
Old newspaper advertisements from eligible men and women seeking a partner with land are thoroughly entertaining. Some of these snippets date back to the 19th century.
The Irish Press printed the following appeal on the 16th October 1946.
"Farmer, age 30, 40 acres, own farm, no encumbrance, would like to correspond with farmer's daughter, age 25-30, good strong girl with view to above."
I love the fact this potential suitor made no effort to hide the fact he needs a "good, strong girl." No pretty weaklings need apply.
Next Lorna guides us through the process of finding a good farmer, with plenty of tips on types of farming, finding a farmer to date, and the language of farming.
How To Find An Irish Farmer To Marry
But finding a farmer is just the first step. Many pitfalls await for budding agricultural relationships. Rest easy, Lorna has plenty of advice including how to pick the right color wellington boots for a date, how to enjoy a romantic tractor ride, and the signs you are destined to be a farmer's wife.
This book isn't just for girls hoping to meet the man of their dreams in wellies. Anyone already living the good life as a farmer's wife will appreciate Lorna's honest take on agricultural life.
I laughed when Lorna discussed appropriate etiquette for attending the cattle mart. My own grandmother was widowed at fifty years of age, and shortly afterwards received a marriage proposal at none other than the cattle mart.
Barely out of mourning, she tactfully declined. Refusing her potential suitor's romantic propositions must have been difficult while "examining the hind quarter of a fine bullock."
How To Stay Married To An Irish Farmer
In the final section, Lorna offers solid advice on how to stay married to your farmer, once you have tied the knot.
She explores the challenges faced such as lack of vacations, or romantic dates, how to feed contractors when you have only two eggs in the cupboard, bringing dinners to the field, and how to be mistress of your own domain.
Now if you believe you would never marry a farmer, let alone set foot on a farm, this book may still hold a chuckle or two for you.
It offers wonderful insight into our Irish farming ancestors' way of life. I highly recommend this book as a must-read guide, for anyone interested in rural Irish life, both past and present.
The Giveaway
One lucky winner will receive a copy of Would You Marry a Farmer by Lorna Sixsmith.
To enter just leave a comment on this blog post by noon on Saturday, December 14th, 2013. Any comment will do but if you need inspiration why not tell us a little bit about any farming experiences you may have.
A winning comment will be chosen randomly. Remember to leave your e-mail so that I can contact you should you win. Your e-mail won’t be published or shared, just used to contact our lucky contestant.
Winners will be announced on Saturday December 14th, so Lorna can get the winners’ prize in the mail. Christmas delivery may not be possible, but it should arrive by the the New Year.
How To Buy This Book
If you are interested in purchasing a copy of this book, just pop over to Lorna's blog Irish Farmerette. The cost is € 17 which is approximagely US$20.27 or US$27.02 inclusive of postage.
A big thank you to Lorna for sponsoring this giveaway.
More Irish Books
If you're interested in other books set in Ireland or featuring the Irish in America, here are a few more recommendations to check out...
The Fairly Stillwart Chronicles
Thanks for following my recipes and ramblings.
Slán agus beannacht,
(Goodbye and blessings)
Mairéad -Irish American Mom
Pronunciation - slawn ah-gus ban-ock-th
Mairéad - rhymes with parade
P.S. I did not receive any payment for this post, but simply received an advance copy of the book for review purposes. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did.
Here are some more recipes and ramblings you might enjoy...
Books
- Old Ireland In Colour - Exploring Ireland's Past Through Images
- The Irish Cookbook Giveaway
- What Is It About Ireland That You Love?
- The Hungry Road By Marita Conlan-McKenna
Symbols of Ireland
- Ireland's Arched Bridges
- Old Irish Boreens
- Celtic Christening Gowns As Family Heirlooms
- What Is A Shillelagh?
Sinead
Thanks for letting us know about this book. As an Irish farmer's wife I would love to read another woman's viewpoint about the ups and downs of rural life.
Mariana
I come from a family of farmers and I'm studying agriculture engineering. I've worked with cows a couple of years ago.
Aimee
I'm so glad she got her book published!! I've enjoyed checking in on her blog every once in awhile. I grew up on an (American) farm and loved every minute of it. This sounds like a very entertaining book. 🙂
Deirdre
My mother whose grandparents were Ballygar farmers never wanted to marry one and rushed off to Dublin to become a nurse she then had one propose to her while chasing her round the ward!
She declined his offer 🙂 ! But she was quite the beauty in the fifties so I don't blame him.
mary morrissey
A blast from the past...we had a dairy in a back yard and the milk would be cooled in a big tank overnight. So if we ran out of milk ww just popped out for a gallon of milk! One night i had to cross the yard in the dark and dad hadnt mentioned an electric fence he had strung accross!!! Gallon went to the sky as i was lifted out of it...just as well this was before i filled it:)
Peggy Miller Hopes
I don't live on a farm but my husband can plant and grow one heck of a garden and I do pretty well with my herbs. We've joked over the years that with raising 4 hungry boys that we should live on a farm and raise cattle as well, it'd sure have helped with the milk expense.
Peggy
JennaM
My husbands parents have a farm and we spend lot of time there on summer 🙂 I love that place!
Catherine Farrell
This sounds like a wonderful book! I am not a farmer's wife or daughter, and no one in either my husband's or my family has a a farming background. We do live in a fairly rural area of Pennsylvania and one of my sons is planning to become a farmer. He is studying Agroecology in college and intends to put it to good use. I hope someday he finds a wonderful girl who will share his love of out-of-doors, hard work, and a fulfilling life on a farm.
Lisa
I recently moved in with my boyfriend who's a farmer. I'm still struggling with the four am wake ups!
Lorna
Loving all the comments - thank you for your lovely review Mairead and best of luck to everyone in the competition.
That happened to me once too with the electric fence!! - I think it is a hazard of farming 😉
Keri
I grew up on a hobby farm and now my husband, kids, and I have a petting zoo with horses from mini to draft and in between, ponies, a mule, donkeys, sheep, goats, alpacas, pot belly pigs, rabbits, chickens, ducks, and a turkey. Of course we have cats and dogs too plus my son's Gecko.
Allison
I love how Lorna wrote this book. Being a farmers wife Farming all over the world is a hard job. Some people are not sure what rural women do and their role.
Candy musselman
I married into the farming world , it is a whole other world that is like no other . One of my fondest memories which happens to be the grossest, when we were dating my farmer and i were messing around and he pushed me over the edge litterly into a large liquid poopy hole ! I couldn't believe he would do that , he did help me out but not until I helped him in 😉
Irish American Mom
Candy - Congratulations - you are the winner of this book. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Best wishes,
Mairéad
Lorna
thank you again for the lovely review Mairead. Congrats to Candy and the book is on its way to her today. Many thanks for all of your comments everyone, I really enjoyed reading them.
Irish American Mom
Thanks to you too, Lorna, for sponsoring this post. Wishing you every success with your book. I'm already looking forward to your next book.
All the best,
Mairéad