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A Call to Farms: Reconnecting to Nature, Food, and Community in a Modern World
Our industrial food system is failing—hope lies with a new generation of farmers.
Within the decade, 400 million acres of American farmland—nearly half of all farmland in America—will become available as an older generation of farmers retire. The farmers stepping up to steward this land will be faced with issues like rising land costs, soil erosion, dietary health epidemics, food inequality, and more. A Call to Farms is an investigative travelogue of these new American agrarians who are modeling what a better, more sustainable future could look like.In this optimistic narrative, journalist Jennifer Grayson introduces readers to farmers across America turning to practices both ancestral and cutting-edge that preserve the environment and make healthy, fresh food accessible to all. From a 1-acre “market garden” in Oregon to a Japanese American no-till farm in Connecticut, to a master gardener combatting food apartheid in South Carolina, these narratives are a must-read for those interested in American foodways and reimagining our agricultural system.
Within the decade, 400 million acres of American farmland—nearly half of all farmland in America—will become available as an older generation of farmers retire. The farmers stepping up to steward this land will be faced with issues like rising land costs, soil erosion, dietary health epidemics, food inequality, and more. A Call to Farms is an investigative travelogue of these new American agrarians who are modeling what a better, more sustainable future could look like.In this optimistic narrative, journalist Jennifer Grayson introduces readers to farmers across America turning to practices both ancestral and cutting-edge that preserve the environment and make healthy, fresh food accessible to all. From a 1-acre “market garden” in Oregon to a Japanese American no-till farm in Connecticut, to a master gardener combatting food apartheid in South Carolina, these narratives are a must-read for those interested in American foodways and reimagining our agricultural system.
224 pages, Hardcover
Published July 9, 2024
11 people are currently reading
2429 people want to read
About the author
Jennifer Grayson
2 books2 followersJennifer Grayson is a journalist and the author of UNLATCHED: The Evolution of Breastfeeding and the Making of a Controversy (HarperCollins), which won the Society of Environmental Journalists Rachel Carson Environment Book Award and a Nautilus Book Award. She has been featured on more than three dozen media outlets, including MSNBC, NPR, WGN-TV, and has written for the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, USA Today, and the Huffington Post, where she penned the long-running “Innovation Earth” and “Eco Etiquette” columns.
Her new book, A CALL TO FARMS: Reconnecting to Nature, Food, and Community in a Modern World — for which she undertook a regenerative farmer training program in Central Oregon at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic — was published by Countryman Press/W. W. Norton on July 9, 2024. She lives in Los Angeles with her TV comedy writer husband and two daughters.
Her new book, A CALL TO FARMS: Reconnecting to Nature, Food, and Community in a Modern World — for which she undertook a regenerative farmer training program in Central Oregon at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic — was published by Countryman Press/W. W. Norton on July 9, 2024. She lives in Los Angeles with her TV comedy writer husband and two daughters.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
December 20, 2024
Texting my landlord immediately to see if I can plant vegetables in her yard 🤠 LOVED THIS. So encouraging yet honest. Really cool stories. I want to grow things!!!!
August 16, 2024
I had really high hopes for this book after reading the book jacket. Unfortunately it didn’t deliver the way I hoped. I have no doubt the author worked very hard to put this out for us, and I don’t think she’s a bad writer. However, I felt like the book read like an extended op-ed article for espousing the author’s politics rather than reading like a farmer centric book as advertised. The author centers each chapter on a particular farmer or farm related idea, but ultimately the book is the author expressing her opinions rather than making the farmers the heroes of the story. I wouldn’t mind her expressing her opinion if she had given more voice to the farmers over her own. Some parts of the book were very interesting, but ultimately it was tough for me to finish. To the author, Thank you for putting yourself out there and writing a book. I know it’s easier to be a critic like I am now, than to produce something. Unfortunately, I felt let down by this one.
September 11, 2024
The average age of a farmer in the US is 58 and rising. While the cost of farmland (and housing in general) has skyrocketed. This situation makes it hard for older farmers to get out and young people interested in farming to get in. In A Call to Farms Jennifer Grayson looks at several different small farms that are finding ways to grow food and create business ventures for young farmers. While she doesn't directly address the issue of how current farmers could partner with young, hopeful farmers to preserve farm land, this book explores several very unique farms that show what you can do on a smaller property and/or with a unique business idea. She tends to throw in personal opinions quite a bit but it's not so much that it gets in the way of the farm stories. A few times she's a little disparaging to farmers who either "ghosted" her or canceled at the last minute. But it's not clear did they have a genuine emergency or were too busy to fit in an interview or if she jumped the gun by flying across the country too quickly. Other than that she does showcase some unique situations and I like her overall message that many smaller farms could definitely replace our current monoculture "go big or go home" agriculture. She also does a good job of highlighting more diverse farmers - women, people of color, and even an indigenous tribe working to grow food for their tribal community. These people are often left out of the current monoculture/big ag as well. Overall I liked it and I really liked the focus on smaller, regenerative farming as being the solution to our food systems failures.
Some quotes I liked:
"What we have right now is a precious spark of enthusiasm for reclaiming gardening wisdom. The National Gardening Association reported that more than 18.3 million Americans started gardening in 2021 alone. 'There's a huge resurgence of people who are really excited to provide for their needs and to feel empowered,' Natalie [Bogwalker of Wild Abundance] said. 'People are starving for it, and for good reason. I think COVID really allowed for that to blossom.' In other words, the pandemic was a collective initiatory experience - one that prompted so many of us to consider alternative paths for our very precious lives." (p. 53)
"What's also seldom noted is what really led to the rationing and food shortages that prompted the US government to propagandize World War II's Victory Gardens: the incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans, who until that moment constituted two-thirds of the West Coast's farmers (growing 40 percent of California's vegetables alone). This chapter in our nation's history was shameful even before the evidence emerged that internment was orchestrated by the US government as an agricultural land grab for corporate agribusiness. Victory Gardens were the decoy." (footnote on p. 54)
"But there was a more insidious reason it was easy to find farmland to rent in Connecticut, a state with some of the highest property taxes in the country. '[Property owners] want a tax break,' said Jonathan [Kirschner of Ambler Farm], glossing over a fact understood by every farmer and wealthy investor but unperceived by a general public that has romanticized the profession of farming: Farmland owners are privy not only to numerous tax exemptions and deductions but also a sizeable property tax discount in most states. In Connecticut, $15,000 in farm sales or expenses wins you a property tax abatement of up to 50 percent. Not surprisingly, Jonathan had recently been approached by folks in town who wanted their land farmed, with no lease payment necessary." (p. 73)
"If you, too, are an introvert, I think it's important to know: Yes, humans evolved for social connectivity; yes, many ancestral societies farmed communally, and that model has tremendous potential in the modern agricultural world. But if you're drawn to the happy hermit path of regenerative farming, Alex and Yoko [of Assawaga Farm] are a great example of how to be successful." (footnote on p. 103)
[On intentional farming communities that sound amazing but are VERY pricey] "Serenbe (i.e., the Nygren family) owns the land. The farm manager may be well compensated, but it's a hired position, one that changed hands several times even before I arrived. The farm's interns receive a $1,000 monthly stipend and free housing, but I'm guessing when their internship is over they won't stay in a community where a one-bedroom condo lists for $500,000 and most houses are over $1 million. Even Serenbe's farm animals, I realized, are superficial, reserved for a petting zoo while the farm grows only vegetables. This despite the fact that livestock integration would not only build soil but also a more diversified local diet for residents who, when I was there, shopped for meat, dairy, and staples at chain supermarkets in the outside suburbs...But as with Serenbe, the Kiawah River agrihood - replete with twenty miles of waterfront, an on-site Auberge hotel, and $1 million to $6 million homes - is likely not within the reach of most farmers." (p. 166-67)
Some quotes I liked:
"What we have right now is a precious spark of enthusiasm for reclaiming gardening wisdom. The National Gardening Association reported that more than 18.3 million Americans started gardening in 2021 alone. 'There's a huge resurgence of people who are really excited to provide for their needs and to feel empowered,' Natalie [Bogwalker of Wild Abundance] said. 'People are starving for it, and for good reason. I think COVID really allowed for that to blossom.' In other words, the pandemic was a collective initiatory experience - one that prompted so many of us to consider alternative paths for our very precious lives." (p. 53)
"What's also seldom noted is what really led to the rationing and food shortages that prompted the US government to propagandize World War II's Victory Gardens: the incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans, who until that moment constituted two-thirds of the West Coast's farmers (growing 40 percent of California's vegetables alone). This chapter in our nation's history was shameful even before the evidence emerged that internment was orchestrated by the US government as an agricultural land grab for corporate agribusiness. Victory Gardens were the decoy." (footnote on p. 54)
"But there was a more insidious reason it was easy to find farmland to rent in Connecticut, a state with some of the highest property taxes in the country. '[Property owners] want a tax break,' said Jonathan [Kirschner of Ambler Farm], glossing over a fact understood by every farmer and wealthy investor but unperceived by a general public that has romanticized the profession of farming: Farmland owners are privy not only to numerous tax exemptions and deductions but also a sizeable property tax discount in most states. In Connecticut, $15,000 in farm sales or expenses wins you a property tax abatement of up to 50 percent. Not surprisingly, Jonathan had recently been approached by folks in town who wanted their land farmed, with no lease payment necessary." (p. 73)
"If you, too, are an introvert, I think it's important to know: Yes, humans evolved for social connectivity; yes, many ancestral societies farmed communally, and that model has tremendous potential in the modern agricultural world. But if you're drawn to the happy hermit path of regenerative farming, Alex and Yoko [of Assawaga Farm] are a great example of how to be successful." (footnote on p. 103)
[On intentional farming communities that sound amazing but are VERY pricey] "Serenbe (i.e., the Nygren family) owns the land. The farm manager may be well compensated, but it's a hired position, one that changed hands several times even before I arrived. The farm's interns receive a $1,000 monthly stipend and free housing, but I'm guessing when their internship is over they won't stay in a community where a one-bedroom condo lists for $500,000 and most houses are over $1 million. Even Serenbe's farm animals, I realized, are superficial, reserved for a petting zoo while the farm grows only vegetables. This despite the fact that livestock integration would not only build soil but also a more diversified local diet for residents who, when I was there, shopped for meat, dairy, and staples at chain supermarkets in the outside suburbs...But as with Serenbe, the Kiawah River agrihood - replete with twenty miles of waterfront, an on-site Auberge hotel, and $1 million to $6 million homes - is likely not within the reach of most farmers." (p. 166-67)
July 10, 2024
This book will change lives
I had pre-ordered this book for myself and some family and friends because we are all saddened and frustrated by what has happened to our food system in the US, our regional farms, and the collective health of this nation. Yes, I was expecting an in-depth look at these issues by an award-winning environmental journalist. What I was not expecting was this amazing diary of her personal journey to the as-yet unsung pioneers of a movement that may eventually change the way we as a nation farm, eat, and live/thrive. THIS is how the world recovers from unfathomable mistakes like genetic modification of food and glyphosate poisoning of land (and thus, populations). It starts with all different kinds of people, for so many personal reasons, heading back to the land the way our forefathers and -mothers did. That their stories are often inspirational and fascinating yet sometimes frustrating or even difficult to read because of the obstacles encountered, only makes the accounts more human. They are all beautifully related by a talented, lyrical, and highly intelligent writer who also joins the ranks of pioneers in the regenerative farming movement, just by her decision to bring all of these vastly different lives, motivations, and stories to the attention of the rest of us. A Call to Farms is not a book, it is a thoughtfully and skillfully painted portrait of the people--and nation--we can once again be, healthfully feeding and nurturing as we did for untold generations, while benefitting from an honest and noble lifestyle choice.
I had pre-ordered this book for myself and some family and friends because we are all saddened and frustrated by what has happened to our food system in the US, our regional farms, and the collective health of this nation. Yes, I was expecting an in-depth look at these issues by an award-winning environmental journalist. What I was not expecting was this amazing diary of her personal journey to the as-yet unsung pioneers of a movement that may eventually change the way we as a nation farm, eat, and live/thrive. THIS is how the world recovers from unfathomable mistakes like genetic modification of food and glyphosate poisoning of land (and thus, populations). It starts with all different kinds of people, for so many personal reasons, heading back to the land the way our forefathers and -mothers did. That their stories are often inspirational and fascinating yet sometimes frustrating or even difficult to read because of the obstacles encountered, only makes the accounts more human. They are all beautifully related by a talented, lyrical, and highly intelligent writer who also joins the ranks of pioneers in the regenerative farming movement, just by her decision to bring all of these vastly different lives, motivations, and stories to the attention of the rest of us. A Call to Farms is not a book, it is a thoughtfully and skillfully painted portrait of the people--and nation--we can once again be, healthfully feeding and nurturing as we did for untold generations, while benefitting from an honest and noble lifestyle choice.
January 23, 2025
Nonfiction- gardening/ farming. This was an interesting and informative book, though a little hard to categorize. It is a journalist profiling several different small farming operations in the US, showing the various ways they meet the challenges of affordability, sustainability, and cultural or religious relevance. The farmers profiled included several different perspectives, such as a Native American trying to grow food for the tribe, a Jewish woman trying to get over the idea that farming was not a Jewish career, a Black farmer who tried to teach other black farmers what she knew, and even one who turned from drug addiction to growing food as healing. There were several different states and climates represented, from the Arizona desert to the Carolinas and the PNW and more.
Overall it was both hopeful to see young people trying to farm, with regenerative methods to restore the soil and biodiversity. However it was equally frustrating to see how hard it was for these farmers to actually make a living or even own their land. Small farms may very well be the answer we need, but they also have to survive.
Overall it was both hopeful to see young people trying to farm, with regenerative methods to restore the soil and biodiversity. However it was equally frustrating to see how hard it was for these farmers to actually make a living or even own their land. Small farms may very well be the answer we need, but they also have to survive.
August 31, 2024
I pivoted to a life of deep involvement with regenerative agriculture about six years ago. At the time, it felt like a reckless jump, almost a late middle age crisis, but it turned out to be amazingly rewarding. There would have been much more ease of transition back then if I had had this superbly researched book, and its portfolio of real world stories, in front of me. Human scale regenerative farmers and permaculturists are in many ways the heroes this world needs right now, and this whirlwind tour of many different ongoing projects offers not just inspiration, but plenty of hard tack information to take further steps.
August 20, 2024
A good book, but not what I expected. I'm more interested in progressive, sustainable agriculture on a large scale. It would have been good for the author to visit young farmers who are managing many acres, large equipment, yet selling food instead of commodities. Through these farmers, I hope there will be positive, significant environmental improvements.
March 1, 2025
i love the idea of the book - visiting farms around the country, talking to farmers and hearing their perspectives, documenting this movement back to a more earth centered way of life. but the author often falls short in areas of depth and tact. still, it remains a beautiful gateway to farms and organizations that are working at the moment, people and places to watch grow and to be inspired by.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 10, 2025
Thought this book would be more of a how-to book rather than a quick survey of how hard farming is becoming for those trying to get into the business. Grayson does a decent job explaining the challenges of farming. Could the book have benefited from some decent tutorials for aspiring farmers/gardeners to try in their own setting? Absolutely.
October 1, 2024
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and would highly recommend it to anybody, whether they have an interest in farming or not. It was a captivating read and the stories and personalities of each of the farmers that were interviewed by the author were inspiring and educational.
July 23, 2024
I enjoyed this a lot but I found myself wanting more and more about each person! Why was it so short
October 28, 2024
A quick read about independent farmers. Focuses on the need for community, connection to food, getting back to our roots and transforming the environment in the process.
December 6, 2024
Both inspiring and dispiriting, this book is an interesting overview of a variety of different kinds of small farms and in some cases, small farm communities, around the country today.
December 24, 2024
Now I want to go live in the woods and grow my own food. Time to do more reading on sustainable agriculture!
January 6, 2025
I enjoyed her frank interviews with new farmers and her look at her ancestral farming traditions.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews