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Accidental Shepherd: How a California Girl Rescued an Ancient Mountain Farm in Norway
In May 1972, Liese Greensfelder arrived in the small Norwegian town of Øystese to startling Johannes, the farmer who hired her for the summer, had just been hospitalized after a stroke. Could she please watch over his place for a month or so, until he got back on his feet? Twenty years old and with no farming experience, Liese was dropped off the next day at a centuries-old mountain farm at the end of a dirt road high above the magnificent Hardanger Fjord—with 115 sheep, two cows, one calf, a draft horse, and a Norwegian herding dog to care for.
Although her employer had alienated his neighbors, they welcomed the American newcomer and offered her help. As "a month or so" stretched to a year and Liese struggled, she joined this tight-knit enclave of farmers, learning their stories and history, adopting their dialect, and growing familiar with the grass-based farming practices that had sustained them for generations.
From moments of levity to soul-battering challenges to the yearnings of a young woman awash in a sea of masculinity, Accidental Shepherd is a candid account of Liese's year in a remote farmhouse. Confronted with dangers and obstacles for which she was utterly unprepared, she tells a story of remarkable resilience and records the fascinating but rapidly vanishing traditions of the community that took her in.
Although her employer had alienated his neighbors, they welcomed the American newcomer and offered her help. As "a month or so" stretched to a year and Liese struggled, she joined this tight-knit enclave of farmers, learning their stories and history, adopting their dialect, and growing familiar with the grass-based farming practices that had sustained them for generations.
From moments of levity to soul-battering challenges to the yearnings of a young woman awash in a sea of masculinity, Accidental Shepherd is a candid account of Liese's year in a remote farmhouse. Confronted with dangers and obstacles for which she was utterly unprepared, she tells a story of remarkable resilience and records the fascinating but rapidly vanishing traditions of the community that took her in.
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Published June 3, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
November 28, 2024
It's 1972 and Liese, who is 20 years old and living in California, applies to a program through which young people can work on a farm in Norway. When she arrives, she learns that the farmer, Johannes, has had a stroke. He asks her to take over farm duties for a few weeks while he recuperates, even though she only has a rudimentary knowledge of the language and has never worked on a farm. The neighbors are kind and helpful to Liese, but they have been disrespected by Johannes for years. He is more disabled than he is willing to admit, and Liese's time on the farm keeps being extended. This book provides a fascinating look at Norwegian rural agriculture, and a heartfelt account of a young woman's remarkable once-in-a-lifetime experience. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this advance copy.
October 22, 2024
I love the title of this book! It describes exactly what Liese became when she bit off more than she could chew and ended up running a farm and tending sheep by herself for one unintended year. Yes, she had help from kind and confident neighbors, many who became lifelong friends, but the ultimate burden of keeping the animals alive and the farm running fell on her shoulders. This is an autobiographical look at one year in the author’s life and is told with much skill and candor, extolling the joys, while also sharing the stress and difficulties she faced. I found it to be a thoroughly enjoyable and educational read and would highly recommend it to anyone who would like to take a peek into a life that is foreign to most of us. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to enjoy this book.
January 7, 2025
Today’s review is brought to you by University of Minnesota Press and NetGalley. Accidental Shepherd is the story of Liese Greenfelder goes to Norway to assist on a sheep farm for the summer. The owner had a stroke and is unable to care for himself, let alone his farm. Liese agrees to step in and gets a crash course in agrarian life.
She goes into detail about the labors of farm life. Lambing, weeding the garden, the heifer’s first heat, filling the silo, milking the cow, the particular style of haying this community does. She doesn’t spare any of the gory but important details.
Aiding a sheep in labor when a lamb gets stuck, dealing with sick and dead animals, assisting the butcher with the young rams that became meat, her emotional attachment to the cow in her care sent to slaughter. As a meat eater, it’s good to be reminded where our food comes from.
Animal husbandry requires a balance between caring about the animals but also being practical about profits for your business. A farmer I saw on TikTok said he abides by the ‘one bad day’ rule. The animals in his care will be well cared for until their one bad day when they’re sent to become meat. From my indoorsy perspective, this seems like the best way to have that balance of caring without burning out.
Overall, the narrative has a cozy, relaxed pace. We seen Liese bond with her neighbors and find her footing as a farmer. If you’ve ever been curious about an agrarian life, this is a great peek into it.
Because the community is so rural and insular and the farm work so all encompassing, it’s easy to forget this was 50 years ago. Greenfelder’s attention to detail makes this feel like a recent recollection rather than a vividly remembered part of her youth.
Overall, I enjoyed my time with this book. Animal husbandry sounds fun but too many people forget the messy reality. This memoir has all sides. 4/5
She goes into detail about the labors of farm life. Lambing, weeding the garden, the heifer’s first heat, filling the silo, milking the cow, the particular style of haying this community does. She doesn’t spare any of the gory but important details.
Aiding a sheep in labor when a lamb gets stuck, dealing with sick and dead animals, assisting the butcher with the young rams that became meat, her emotional attachment to the cow in her care sent to slaughter. As a meat eater, it’s good to be reminded where our food comes from.
Animal husbandry requires a balance between caring about the animals but also being practical about profits for your business. A farmer I saw on TikTok said he abides by the ‘one bad day’ rule. The animals in his care will be well cared for until their one bad day when they’re sent to become meat. From my indoorsy perspective, this seems like the best way to have that balance of caring without burning out.
Overall, the narrative has a cozy, relaxed pace. We seen Liese bond with her neighbors and find her footing as a farmer. If you’ve ever been curious about an agrarian life, this is a great peek into it.
Because the community is so rural and insular and the farm work so all encompassing, it’s easy to forget this was 50 years ago. Greenfelder’s attention to detail makes this feel like a recent recollection rather than a vividly remembered part of her youth.
Overall, I enjoyed my time with this book. Animal husbandry sounds fun but too many people forget the messy reality. This memoir has all sides. 4/5
May 5, 2025
Loved this book. I was transformed into the world of shepherding and farming in the fjords of Norway.
September 1, 2025
Lovely book! I feel that I enjoyed it a lot because of the geographical connections I have to the book. It was really interesting to hear about Liese’s experience taking on so much animal husbandry when she didn’t have much experience with it before. I thought this was a pretty sweet book overall and I’m glad I got to learn more about the Hardanger region.
June 24, 2025
Mostly I enjoyed this deep look into how farmers in isolated areas of Norway worked with their animals and land and one another in the early 1970s. Greensfelder was young and brave and foolhardy enough to try to keep up with them all, and mostly she seems to have done well; she might not be responsible for the somewhat over-the-top subtitle of the book... Because of the title I thought there was going to be a little more, well, sheepiness in the book than there was - the sheep were mostly much less of a worry for her than the black heifer or the exceedingly cranky, even nasty man who tried to micromanage her for a year from his perch in a hospital. I imagine this way of life is mostly gone, and with more technology and less backbreaking manual labor that's probably a good thing.
I could have done with a little less of the 20 year old's affairs of the heart, but I suppose as she looked back from a distance of fifty years, those were an important aspect of the year she spent in the small community.
Apparently she has been back to visit more than once, but somehow we don't find out who ultimately came into possession of the farm after the owner died, if there was anything left of it. That's somewhat of a pity, but given his behavior at the end of her stay I can understand why she might not want to even mention him again.
Entertaining read, not very sheepy when it comes right down to it.
I could have done with a little less of the 20 year old's affairs of the heart, but I suppose as she looked back from a distance of fifty years, those were an important aspect of the year she spent in the small community.
Apparently she has been back to visit more than once, but somehow we don't find out who ultimately came into possession of the farm after the owner died, if there was anything left of it. That's somewhat of a pity, but given his behavior at the end of her stay I can understand why she might not want to even mention him again.
Entertaining read, not very sheepy when it comes right down to it.
February 18, 2025
Thank you to the author, University of Minnesota Press and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My apologies for the delay in posting, I had several familial health challenges to contend with in the past months.
This is the memoir of a young woman from California, who is at a bit of a loss on what she wants to do with her life, and signs up to help a farmer in the remote Norwegian countryside. When she arrives at her destination, she finds out that the farmer has had a stroke and will be in hospital for an unspecified time. She takes up the challenge of caring for his livestock and his extensive gardens, and one thing leads to another. The neighbors help her find her footing, and as she comes to grips with the immense challenges she blossoms. I found it an engrossing read, even though it's set in the 1970s - the isolation and the extremely difficult conditions, not to mention the eccentricities of the farmer - reflect the time, and the book is rounded out by photos and a short bit about what happened after this period of the author's life.
This is the memoir of a young woman from California, who is at a bit of a loss on what she wants to do with her life, and signs up to help a farmer in the remote Norwegian countryside. When she arrives at her destination, she finds out that the farmer has had a stroke and will be in hospital for an unspecified time. She takes up the challenge of caring for his livestock and his extensive gardens, and one thing leads to another. The neighbors help her find her footing, and as she comes to grips with the immense challenges she blossoms. I found it an engrossing read, even though it's set in the 1970s - the isolation and the extremely difficult conditions, not to mention the eccentricities of the farmer - reflect the time, and the book is rounded out by photos and a short bit about what happened after this period of the author's life.
January 21, 2025
Liese Greensfelder’s memoir was a joy to read. She did an excellent job pulling readers into the arduous occupation of traditional farming. This book covers the year-long life cycle of a farm in rural Norway, sparing no detail in describing the lifecycle of the farm’s animals. I found myself getting emotional in a way that I did not expect multiple times throughout this memoir. I really connected with Liese’s love for the animals in her care, and the kindness she shared with her rural community.
At times this book is infuriating as Liese is met with numerous hurdles – many of which stem from the farm’s patriarchal owner. Her grit is admirable, and it is easy to be a champion for her story. I think this memoir should be required reading for anyone considering a farmstay abroad.
A huge thank you to NetGalley University of Minnesota Press for providing me with an ARC. I am very excited for this book to find its audience!
At times this book is infuriating as Liese is met with numerous hurdles – many of which stem from the farm’s patriarchal owner. Her grit is admirable, and it is easy to be a champion for her story. I think this memoir should be required reading for anyone considering a farmstay abroad.
A huge thank you to NetGalley University of Minnesota Press for providing me with an ARC. I am very excited for this book to find its audience!
January 26, 2025
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.
"Accidential Shepherd" isn't your typical travelogue. It's a quirky, insightful journey into the unexpected – a Californian woman trading the sun-drenched coast for the rugged beauty of a forgotten Norwegian mountain farm. Greensfelder, armed with more enthusiasm than farming knowledge, embarks on a hilarious and heartwarming adventure, navigating cultural clashes, grappling with stubborn goats, and discovering a profound connection to the land and its history.
This isn't just a story of rural life; it's a meditation on identity, belonging, and the enduring power of human connection. Greensfelder's wry humor and self-deprecating wit shine through, making the reader feel like they're right alongside her, mud-splattered and bewildered, yet utterly captivated by the magic of this off-the-grid existence.
"Accidential Shepherd" isn't your typical travelogue. It's a quirky, insightful journey into the unexpected – a Californian woman trading the sun-drenched coast for the rugged beauty of a forgotten Norwegian mountain farm. Greensfelder, armed with more enthusiasm than farming knowledge, embarks on a hilarious and heartwarming adventure, navigating cultural clashes, grappling with stubborn goats, and discovering a profound connection to the land and its history.
This isn't just a story of rural life; it's a meditation on identity, belonging, and the enduring power of human connection. Greensfelder's wry humor and self-deprecating wit shine through, making the reader feel like they're right alongside her, mud-splattered and bewildered, yet utterly captivated by the magic of this off-the-grid existence.
April 21, 2025
Accidental Shepherd by Liebe Greensfelder is the true story of a twenty-year-old California girl who, in 1972, signed up to become a farmhand through a program that sent students around the world to accomplish this. She was assigned to a help on a mountain farm in Norway.
Upon arriving, she found out that the owner of the farm had just had a major stroke, and she (with no farming experience) would be in charge of the entire farm (livestock, gardens, haying, etc) on her own. Thankfully, the neighbors were great teachers and helpers.
Having grown up in farm country (not on a farm myself), I found it fascinating to read about the “old ways” of farming which she had to use, as well as the strong connections between the farming families. The work was brutal, the weather challenging, and the story fascinating and amazing!
Upon arriving, she found out that the owner of the farm had just had a major stroke, and she (with no farming experience) would be in charge of the entire farm (livestock, gardens, haying, etc) on her own. Thankfully, the neighbors were great teachers and helpers.
Having grown up in farm country (not on a farm myself), I found it fascinating to read about the “old ways” of farming which she had to use, as well as the strong connections between the farming families. The work was brutal, the weather challenging, and the story fascinating and amazing!
August 10, 2025
Really enjoyed this first-person memoir of a young American woman with no training who winds up way over her head, trying to run a small Norwegian farm in the 1970s. I experienced the sense of being an overconfident and under-experienced teenager all over again. She doesn't make herself out to be wonderful or terrible, just young, energetic, and foolish. She tends at first to romanticize farming, but soon realizes this is a life full of contradictions, frustration, and tough choices, as well as great beauty and tenderness. I often find memoir is painful to read, but this is engaging and realistic, by a person who was lucky enough to experience an entirely different way of life, and who appreciates her luck, her neighbors, and herself.
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
October 8, 2025
"Accidental Shepherd," by Liese Greensfelder is the perfect "fish out of water" story – an inexperienced 20-year-old Californian who unexpectedly finds herself running an antiquated Norwegian mountain farm in the early 1970s. Her trials and tribulations result in a strong sense of community with her neighbors, bridging the gap of language and culture. Relying on letters she wrote home at the time, Greensfelder reconstructs the thoughts and emotions of her idealistic, hard-working younger self. I can relate, as my first experience overseas was at the same impressionable age, also a Californian. However, working in a German town library was a lot different from keeping a flock of sheep alive.
April 6, 2025
As a 2nd generation Norwegian-American and getting on in my years I am more intrigued than ever about my "home" country. Leise Greensfelder has written a fascinating and charming account of her year, as a 20-year old American student interested in international agriculture, managing a rural sheep farm with only the help of neighbors and friends. What was intended to be a summer internship turned in to a year-long adventure when her mentor was stricken with a stroke, almost immediately after Liese's arrival in Norway, and recovered sufficiently to return to his farm almost one year later. Great look into rural Norwegian life in the early 1970s
July 31, 2025
Liese had no idea what she was getting herself into when she accepted a job on a ancient sheep farm in Norway. It got even stranger when she learned the man she was supposed to help was in a hospital after suffering a stroke. He offered her the job of caring for the farm alone while he was in hospital. So now this girl with no agricultural knowledge is manager of a farm of sheep, a couple of cows, and a horse. There is no indoor plumbing, wood stoves in several rooms keep things from freezing, but not warm. Still she soldiers on, falling in love with the countryside, the animals and best of all her neighbors who save her from disaster time after time. Tough girl!
August 1, 2025
Interesting read, if somewhat forgettable overall. I liked the descriptions of her neighbors' character and personality. I did not like the onetime physical intimacy with a fiftysomething man (the author was in her twenties). She had no plans to marry him, wasn't even in love with him, and knew she was manipulating him because she led him on even while knowing she did not and would not love him—the age issue is just the cherry on top. And she had a one night stand with another man as well. Both closed door. But both do not belong in a book about sheep and farmsteads.
March 28, 2025
A true story of a young girl's work to keep a mountainous Norwegian farm going while the owner recovers from health issues. With no indoor plumbing and only wood stoves, she successfully cares for the animals, garden, and harvest with the help and guidance of neighbors and friends. I loved this book.
September 28, 2025
While reading this memoir brought back memories of some of my own idealistic pursuits as a young woman. I admired her dedication to the animals in her care despite the selfishness of her incorrigible boss. I enjoyed seeing her transformation from novice to accepted equal by her neighbors in this isolated, unyielding, beautiful landscape.
December 3, 2025
This is an incredible book about an incredible woman. I could barely put it down. The story of how she took over a full on farm with no knowledge at all of how she was to manage is a remarkable one and made me feel completely lazy as she listed her daily chores. I loved the way she gave us an account of her feelings and relationships, with no holds barred; her life was filled with challenges both physical and emotional. The photographs of the countryside at the end are beautiful. Note- I attended high school with the author , but we were not friends although I knew who she was as she was striking in appearance. I am recommending this to everyone I talk to!
June 20, 2025
I enjoyed this, it was interesting. Very up my alley though. I enjoy Norway, memoirs, and grew up on somewhat of a hobby farm that was homesteaded by immigrant Norwegians long ago. This book isn't particularly riveting, but she is a decent writer and the story doesn't drag on too long.
August 13, 2025
A good read. True story of a 20 year old girl wanting to learn farming and about animal husbandry. She finds herself in total charge of an antique farm and finds owner has a stoke. She is in total charge.
October 21, 2024
Netgalley loan - publisher requested review no sooner than 30 days prior to release.
October 31, 2024
very interesting autobiography about an interesting person. would recommend this work. 4 stars. tysm for the arc.
February 13, 2025
One of my favorite books of all time. Fresh, informative, adventurous, and so rewarding. Liese does a wonderful job of giving us a privileged view into this remote and timeless world. I wish the book was twice as long!
September 26, 2025
So great.
October 21, 2025
gotta love a good farming memoir
October 24, 2025
While I appreciate that this is a true account of what happened, some of the choices and outcomes were very frustrating and I am not talking about the ones out of liese’s control.
November 28, 2025
This was super interesting and impressive that Liese was so tough. I enjoyed it a lot.
January 29, 2025
Not so long ago, I would have had a good laugh on learning that people of a mountainous country five thousand miles from my home had invented a word for "stuck on a mountain ledge." If I'd been told that I would soon be scrabbling up a boulder-strewn peak in that very country to rescue animals in just such a predicament, I'd have shaken my head in disbelief, for I knew almost nothing about Norway and I'd never touched a sheep in my life. (loc. 60*)
In 1972, without experience determined to make a living out of working with small farms in developing countries, Greensfelder arrived in Norway to spend a few months gaining that initial experience. She expected to do a fair amount of scutwork, but the farm was small (run by a single farmer), so she figured she'd get to do a wider variety of tasks than if she worked on a large, commercial property.
She wasn't wrong: The day she arrived, she learned that the farmer had suffered a serious stroke and would be in hospital for at least a month. There were animals to care for and weeding to be done—and nobody else to take responsibility. Could she run the farm until his health improved?
Greensfelder didn't have a farming background. She didn't speak Norwegian—let alone the rural dialect spoken in Øystese. But she did speak Danish, thanks to a high-school year spent abroad, and neither she nor the neighbors wanted to see the farm fail. And so she agreed to stay on for a month, which became three months, which became a year, and learn on the fly, under the patient tutelage of the local community.
Deeper down, I realized that at Hovland I was a blank slate, judged by the work I was doing and my interactions with neighbors over these past few weeks. No one could fault me for whatever errors I'd committed in the past. Instead, my neighbors were supporting, helping, and instructing me, because no one wanted Johannes's farm—or the new girl who was running it—to fail. (loc. 998)
I tempered my expectations for Accidental Shepherd, simply because it can be hard to write about an experience that happened decades ago—too often writers end up with a list of things that happened rather than a fleshed-out set of scenes and themes. But this was an unexpected gem: Greensfelder remembers her experience vividly, and it ends up being so complete a story. Maybe if she'd known when she arrived what she was in for, she would have turned and run (but then—maybe not), but my gosh, how much she was able to learn and accomplish in a year.
The heroes of the story are the neighbors, who wanted to see Greensfelder succeed: in the early days, they came by daily to set Greensfelder up for the day's work and to help her complete the tasks she could not yet do on her own; as time went on and Greensfelder both held her own and became better able to communicate in their Norwegian dialect, they folded her into their community. While I imagine that some of the rough edges of the story have been smoothed by time, her appreciation and the mutual respect she developed with the locals sings through loud and clear.
I'll be looking for copies for my mother and my aunt when this is published. Recommended for memoir lovers and people curious about odd adventures and people who dream of running away to Norway and people who like armchair-farming.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.
*Quotes are from a review copy and may not be final.
In 1972, without experience determined to make a living out of working with small farms in developing countries, Greensfelder arrived in Norway to spend a few months gaining that initial experience. She expected to do a fair amount of scutwork, but the farm was small (run by a single farmer), so she figured she'd get to do a wider variety of tasks than if she worked on a large, commercial property.
She wasn't wrong: The day she arrived, she learned that the farmer had suffered a serious stroke and would be in hospital for at least a month. There were animals to care for and weeding to be done—and nobody else to take responsibility. Could she run the farm until his health improved?
Greensfelder didn't have a farming background. She didn't speak Norwegian—let alone the rural dialect spoken in Øystese. But she did speak Danish, thanks to a high-school year spent abroad, and neither she nor the neighbors wanted to see the farm fail. And so she agreed to stay on for a month, which became three months, which became a year, and learn on the fly, under the patient tutelage of the local community.
Deeper down, I realized that at Hovland I was a blank slate, judged by the work I was doing and my interactions with neighbors over these past few weeks. No one could fault me for whatever errors I'd committed in the past. Instead, my neighbors were supporting, helping, and instructing me, because no one wanted Johannes's farm—or the new girl who was running it—to fail. (loc. 998)
I tempered my expectations for Accidental Shepherd, simply because it can be hard to write about an experience that happened decades ago—too often writers end up with a list of things that happened rather than a fleshed-out set of scenes and themes. But this was an unexpected gem: Greensfelder remembers her experience vividly, and it ends up being so complete a story. Maybe if she'd known when she arrived what she was in for, she would have turned and run (but then—maybe not), but my gosh, how much she was able to learn and accomplish in a year.
The heroes of the story are the neighbors, who wanted to see Greensfelder succeed: in the early days, they came by daily to set Greensfelder up for the day's work and to help her complete the tasks she could not yet do on her own; as time went on and Greensfelder both held her own and became better able to communicate in their Norwegian dialect, they folded her into their community. While I imagine that some of the rough edges of the story have been smoothed by time, her appreciation and the mutual respect she developed with the locals sings through loud and clear.
I'll be looking for copies for my mother and my aunt when this is published. Recommended for memoir lovers and people curious about odd adventures and people who dream of running away to Norway and people who like armchair-farming.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.
*Quotes are from a review copy and may not be final.
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