What do you think?
Rate this book
The Farm
A timely debate on women's rights and abortion. A unique and nostalgic study of Southern America following World War II. A dramatic mother/daughter conflict. In The Farm , Olaf “Ollie” Weber, a wounded Nazi prisoner of war, escapes a POW camp in Tennessee intent on assassinating President Truman. Ginger “Snaps” Wright accidentally helps Ollie elude prison guards, and when confronted, he rapes and impregnates the wannabe actress, who must then choose between Hollywood and motherhood. Finally, after years of shortages and suffering, it's time to dream big, and the Wright family, “Snaps,” her mother Mary Lou, Uncle, and sisters Millie and Anne face tumultuous societal and economic changes. But the family must also grieve the loss of Millie’s hero husband, Stanley, and help her find a way to find new meaning in her life. A battlefield medic, Stanley was one of the eighty-four victims of the Nazi war crime; the Massacre at Malmedy. The Farm is an exciting new story from the author of the critically acclaimed literary historical novel Gettysburg by Morning
- GenresHistorical Fiction
260 pages, Hardcover
Published November 21, 2023
2 people are currently reading
3143 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 9, 2024
There was much to like about this book. The action is set mainly on the farm where Mary Lou and Brother live, the older members of the Wright family with Mary Lou's daughters, Millie, Annie and Snaps, whose real name is Ginger. The novel focuses mainly on Snaps but we learn about the lives of the other characters throughout the narrative as well.
O'Brien presents an environment where the women are required to work really hard to ensure the farm endures without men and as a result, that they all survive. They think of ways to make money in a time where everything is scarce and people are trying their hardest to make the best of a difficult life. There is loss, which is be expected at war time, although still a shock but there is a sense that life goes on, shown in the lives of all the characters, where there is a natural stoicism, maybe born of the farming life that they lead.
But not all of the daughters are content to live a life as a farmworker or indeed to stay in the rural community and become a farmer's wife. Snaps has ambitions to become a performer and has talent as well as looks.
Unfortunately, Snaps has an enormous setback which arrives unexpectedly and the latter part of the book deals with her coming to terms with this change in her circumstances and her thwarted ambition.
The book leads well through the action and it is well-written in terms of clarity: all of the characters are distinct and O'Brien shows their personalities through dialogue and their interaction with others as well as writing about their aspirations. I especially liked the way the Wrights were keen to adapt to keep going.
If I am honest, for me, the book needed vigour. I liked the characters and could recognise the difficulty of the hardships in their individual lives but, for me, my investment was not as deep as it has been for characters in other books and for me as a reader, that matters.
That being said, I wished them well and wanted to find out where the action of the book would lead me and to what conclusion. The ending is satisfying in that regard and I was not hesitant about reading it. The narrative flowed and the story was engaging throughout.
Worth a read.
O'Brien presents an environment where the women are required to work really hard to ensure the farm endures without men and as a result, that they all survive. They think of ways to make money in a time where everything is scarce and people are trying their hardest to make the best of a difficult life. There is loss, which is be expected at war time, although still a shock but there is a sense that life goes on, shown in the lives of all the characters, where there is a natural stoicism, maybe born of the farming life that they lead.
But not all of the daughters are content to live a life as a farmworker or indeed to stay in the rural community and become a farmer's wife. Snaps has ambitions to become a performer and has talent as well as looks.
Unfortunately, Snaps has an enormous setback which arrives unexpectedly and the latter part of the book deals with her coming to terms with this change in her circumstances and her thwarted ambition.
The book leads well through the action and it is well-written in terms of clarity: all of the characters are distinct and O'Brien shows their personalities through dialogue and their interaction with others as well as writing about their aspirations. I especially liked the way the Wrights were keen to adapt to keep going.
If I am honest, for me, the book needed vigour. I liked the characters and could recognise the difficulty of the hardships in their individual lives but, for me, my investment was not as deep as it has been for characters in other books and for me as a reader, that matters.
That being said, I wished them well and wanted to find out where the action of the book would lead me and to what conclusion. The ending is satisfying in that regard and I was not hesitant about reading it. The narrative flowed and the story was engaging throughout.
Worth a read.
March 1, 2024
There have been countless novels about life in the United States in the immediate post WW2 period, and keep them coming I say.
As interesting as this subject matter is, it needs a master story teller like Randy O’Brien to bring such a story to life and keep the reader turning the page.
The story begins when we meet German SS soldier, Olaf, wounded and in a field hospital. His surgeon is an African American, Harold Jones. This is where a fanatical member of the master race has to face the reality of his ingrained prejudice with a jolt. Nice touch, I thought.
The story is also about a southern girl who dreams about being an actress.
Set largely In Tennessee, the author captures the attitudes of the day perfectly. There are good guys and bad guys, violence, love and lust, a lot of unpleasantness, but for all that it is at its heart an uplifting story that ends on a hopeful note.
A skilled writer understands the importance of showing, not telling. Nowhere is that more evident than in the final words of the novel. What a cracker of an ending.
This novel is five star from cover to cover. Well done Mr O’ Brien.
As interesting as this subject matter is, it needs a master story teller like Randy O’Brien to bring such a story to life and keep the reader turning the page.
The story begins when we meet German SS soldier, Olaf, wounded and in a field hospital. His surgeon is an African American, Harold Jones. This is where a fanatical member of the master race has to face the reality of his ingrained prejudice with a jolt. Nice touch, I thought.
The story is also about a southern girl who dreams about being an actress.
Set largely In Tennessee, the author captures the attitudes of the day perfectly. There are good guys and bad guys, violence, love and lust, a lot of unpleasantness, but for all that it is at its heart an uplifting story that ends on a hopeful note.
A skilled writer understands the importance of showing, not telling. Nowhere is that more evident than in the final words of the novel. What a cracker of an ending.
This novel is five star from cover to cover. Well done Mr O’ Brien.
August 17, 2024
The Farm's initial setting is WWII on the Western Front in Europe during the last major German offensive campaign, the Battle of the Bulge. The story tells how wartime events forever change the lives of the Wright family, who live on a Tennessee farm near Camp Forrest.
Camp Forrest was a prominent U.S. Army training base during WWII, and it became a prisoner-of-war camp in 1942 for German and Italian POWs. Through a twist of events, the story focused on the Wright family by examining women's rights and mother/daughter relationships in rural Southern America after WWII.
On a personal note, I found this book engaging since I grew up in this area of Tennessee. My father was in the army at Camp Forrest and fought in the Battle of the Bulge. I was aware of the camp containing POWs, but it never occurred to me that an escape might have happened. This book is a must-read addition to one's reading list.
Camp Forrest was a prominent U.S. Army training base during WWII, and it became a prisoner-of-war camp in 1942 for German and Italian POWs. Through a twist of events, the story focused on the Wright family by examining women's rights and mother/daughter relationships in rural Southern America after WWII.
On a personal note, I found this book engaging since I grew up in this area of Tennessee. My father was in the army at Camp Forrest and fought in the Battle of the Bulge. I was aware of the camp containing POWs, but it never occurred to me that an escape might have happened. This book is a must-read addition to one's reading list.
November 27, 2023
One of the things I like about reading historical fiction set during WWII is that you can always learn something new. While this is true for The Farm, parts of the book reads more like a documentary than a novel. The storyline and characters felt one-dimensional. This was not a book I could get into and get to know the characters. I felt on the outside looking in. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend The Farm to others. Thanks to author Randy O'Brien, Addison & Highsmith Publishers, and NetGalley. I received a complimentary copy of this ebook. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
Read
December 31, 2024Author Randy O’Brien finds a new twist for historical fiction in his most recently published novel, The Farm. Having grown up in the same setting as the book’s protagonist, O’Brien brings an authentic voice to the generations of rural Tennesseans portrayed throughout the book, which lends credence to the events that take place throughout the plot.
While a plethora of novels have portrayed life in the US as well as abroad during World War II, O’Brien deftly merges both perspectives by describing what might have happened when a German soldier was captured and sent overseas to a prisoner camp near Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The fish-out-of-water POW, desperate to escape, succeeds in doing so only to find his actions come at the ultimate cost.
While the German escapee and the rural Tennessee POW camp provide the novel’s unique twist, O’Brien thematically centers the story around a young farm girl with whom the German encounters and attacks, and who later bears his child. The story intentionally weaves many current moral and ethical issues such as rape, unwed motherhood, and abortion into the plot, and in doing so, demonstrates how deeply embedded such issues are in the fabric of our culture today.
O’Brien’s The Farm is an intriguing read with colorful characters and a unique plot, and should provide many opportunities for discussion among readers and lovers of historical fiction.
While a plethora of novels have portrayed life in the US as well as abroad during World War II, O’Brien deftly merges both perspectives by describing what might have happened when a German soldier was captured and sent overseas to a prisoner camp near Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The fish-out-of-water POW, desperate to escape, succeeds in doing so only to find his actions come at the ultimate cost.
While the German escapee and the rural Tennessee POW camp provide the novel’s unique twist, O’Brien thematically centers the story around a young farm girl with whom the German encounters and attacks, and who later bears his child. The story intentionally weaves many current moral and ethical issues such as rape, unwed motherhood, and abortion into the plot, and in doing so, demonstrates how deeply embedded such issues are in the fabric of our culture today.
O’Brien’s The Farm is an intriguing read with colorful characters and a unique plot, and should provide many opportunities for discussion among readers and lovers of historical fiction.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews