Voices from the Farm: Adventures in Community Living

by Rupert Fike

In 1971, at the height of the counter-culture movement, several hundred hippies drove their school buses into southern Tennessee and founded America's largest, modern-day intentional community, The Farm. In its heyday, the community was home to over 1,500 optimistic young people and the young-at-heart. Their purpose for coming together was a quest for personal growth and an alternative lifestyle that could help raise the standard of living for impoverished people around the world while conserving the planet's resources.

Living in community created lasting bonds among former and current members that are still strong today. The Farm remains a vibrant, working environment for change. Why has it lasted so long? Discover the answers as members past and present recount some of their more memorable experiences.

This revised edition includes many never-before published classic images from The Farm's early years.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir

259 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[Miya (severe pain struggles, slower at the moment) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super interesting stories about the infamous Farm. What an different way of life. A whole different perspective of living and loving...health, food, everything. I enjoyed it!

[David Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Voices From The Farm: Adventures in Community Living edited by Rupert Fike (Book Publishing Company 1998) (307.7714) (3432).

In the late 1960's, peace, love, and communal living were the watchwords of the day. I never met a hippie that didn't want to “move back to the land, farm, raise chickens and stuff.” The particular hippies that moved to “The Farm” in rural Manchester, Tennessee actually pulled it off for a time. In its heyday in the 1970's close to fifteen hundred men, women and children lived communally. Life eventually got in the way, and the Farm as it was originally envisioned was retired.

This book is a collection of stories and reminiscences from some of the original homesteaders. There are some great tales contained herein. My rating: 7/10, finished 3/27/20 (3432). I purchased a used PB copy in excellent shape from McKay's Books for $2.00 on 3/10/20. PPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP

[Naomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Realistic accounts of the highs and lows (and logistical challenges) of communal living in the 1970s. Earnest, funny, and at times understandably bitter. An important read for those interested in communal living.

[Roberta · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the early 70's, I visited this spiritual intentional community, a counterculture settlement of hippies, in Summertown, Tennessee, whose teacher and "head man" was Stephen Gaskin. It was an experience I'll long remember--picking vegetables under the hot sun, eating soy ice cream,soy burgers, soy everything! Skinny dipping in their lake, sharing the 2-holer outhouses, meditating in a field on Sunday with 500 others with long hair nourished by soy protein. This book is a collective diary of many different people's personal memories of being residents of The Farm, which began in 1971 and grew to a population of 1500. After many changes, it is still in existence as a small community of several hundred supported by twenty small high-tech businesses. The Farm was originally based on "The Teachings," a mix of religious ideas from many different religions--many of them Eastern--about living with and loving others. Mixed with these were practices of encounter group psychology where residents confronted others with honesty and where attention to the "vibes" was paramount. Some of the writers are better than others. And the stories stretch from inspiring to crazy. Their ideals led to wonderful charitable projects such as teaching the uses of soybeans to feed the hungry in Guatemala and running an 24/7 ambulance service in the Bronx, as well as taking in young women with unintended pregnancies, providing a midwife for the births, and keeping the babies if they couldn't. But as The Farm grew in numbers of people and projects, problems, of course, arose. Communal living, especially on a large scale, is not easy. I thought the book was frank, showing many sides of the community. Overall, I found it an interesting read which I would give 3 and 1/2 stars if I knew how to make that happen!

[PJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short book (wish it was longer), offering a chorus of varying accounts of life on The Farm (a large hippie commune started in the early 70s in rural Tennessee, they were over 1,000 strong and nearly self-sufficient for many years). I would've liked a lot more stories and details, but otherwise a fine read.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun read if you're interested in hippies, communal living and intentional communities. Each chapter is a different person's story about their time on "The Farm" a gigantic commune in Tennesee staterted by a few hundred Bay Area hippies. Groovy man.

[Nicolette Froelicher · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was an ok book. It took me longer to get through this book than I thought. It's a really short book but I just had a hard time getting through it. Some of the stories in the book are really good and some are a little boring.

[Amelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is about hippie/commune life.Very interesting read. I actually got the visit The Farm when I was a teen.

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super interesting book filled with numerous personal accounts of actual residents experiences on the farm over the past 30+ years of its existence.

[Selene Colburn · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://wordblur.typepad.com/readers/2...

[Christi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really interesting

[Delynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

FASCINATING.

Don't read this for the quality of writing, read it for the personal narratives and stories.

If this is the kind of thing that sounds interesting to you, I promise that it will be!

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

A candid look at the history of one of America's most famous intentional communities. We need more communes!

[Suzanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential reading if you're interested in the communal movements of the 1970s. Also particularly interesting after having read "Arcadia", by Lauren Groff.