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Olive #3
The Olive Harvest: A Memory of Love, Old Trees and Olive Oil
'The stars shimmer like spilled handfuls of glitter. The day is beginning to rise with a faint mist. As I turn my head, ghostly halos, auras of light, appear and disappear and I cannot tell if it is caused by my lightheadedness or is a freak of nature. The silence is truly awesome. Not a bird, not a whisper of wind, not a breath of life. Only the two of us, a most implausible pair, standing shoulder to shoulder gazing upon an awakening heaven'. Returning to their home after an extended absence Carol and her husband Michel are looking forward to summer together on the farm. A shocking blow leaves Carol alone. The future is uncertain. THE OLIVE HARVEST takes us beyond the perimeters of her olive groves to where hunters, poets, bee-keepers, boars and gypsies abide. In search of the language of troubadours, the dark and sometimes barbarous heart of Provence is revealed. Nature and the generosity of the South of France's harvests offer a path to joy and an abundant resolution.
352 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
64 people are currently reading
474 people want to read
About the author
Carol Drinkwater
44 books439 followersCarol Drinkwater is an Anglo-Irish actress, author and filmmaker.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 74 reviews
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March 31, 2021A Bummed Life
This is the 3rd in “The Olive Farm” series, the first bookI loved dearly. The second book I loved a little less, and this one was a bummer until the last chapter or two. It isn’t the same as saying that sequels are seldom as good; it is more that her life changed from being what I called a “charmed” life, to one where she encountered serious problems in her life. I had been caught up in her happiness, in the farm life, in her workers, and I had picked up this series because I wanted to a peaceful read. So, the first book was peaceful, and the second one, while containing some problems, did as well. This one threw me for a loop. I felt so bad for Caorl, bad that she was even losing some of her workers. One had to go back to Africa; the other, I don’t remember. But then all was well by the end of the book. Had I known that this was to happen, I would not have suffered along with her.
While it is nice that Carol wants to share her life with us, and while it it is true that things change, and not always for the better. I wanted an escape book. Yet, I can listen to my own friends’ sorrows and do so willingly, but this book didn’t do it for me. I will not rate it because this is my personal feeling, even though all ratings from people are personal. And I am now resading her fourth book and enjoying it¬--so far.
This is the 3rd in “The Olive Farm” series, the first bookI loved dearly. The second book I loved a little less, and this one was a bummer until the last chapter or two. It isn’t the same as saying that sequels are seldom as good; it is more that her life changed from being what I called a “charmed” life, to one where she encountered serious problems in her life. I had been caught up in her happiness, in the farm life, in her workers, and I had picked up this series because I wanted to a peaceful read. So, the first book was peaceful, and the second one, while containing some problems, did as well. This one threw me for a loop. I felt so bad for Caorl, bad that she was even losing some of her workers. One had to go back to Africa; the other, I don’t remember. But then all was well by the end of the book. Had I known that this was to happen, I would not have suffered along with her.
While it is nice that Carol wants to share her life with us, and while it it is true that things change, and not always for the better. I wanted an escape book. Yet, I can listen to my own friends’ sorrows and do so willingly, but this book didn’t do it for me. I will not rate it because this is my personal feeling, even though all ratings from people are personal. And I am now resading her fourth book and enjoying it¬--so far.
February 2, 2022
I enjoy brutally honest memoirs, especially when the author risks not being seen in a good light, so I give 5 stars for Carol Drinkwater sharing all her truth, the good, bad and the ugly. I must admit I was frustrated with her many times while reading and also a bit shocked/amazed, I wanted to tell her to take it easy and not start a new project while she has so much stress going on or not to sweep something under the mat so easily when it needs to be dealt with. Her character is so different to mine, I would hate to deal with so many problems all at once, and she almost seemed to be saying "bring it on!". Also the end of the book seemed a tiny bit contrived in so far as everything suddenly seemed so hunky dory with everything miraculously coming together and resolve itself.
The book is well-written and easy to read, I read it as a relaxing beach read while on holiday. I actually started this one before the first one in the series, so I'm going to go back now and read the 1st one next. I would actually read this again some time in the future when I've forgotten a lot of it (my memory's not great lol) because I did really enjoy it, and would also love to read more from this author. I've seen a few youtube videos of hers which were interesting too (seeing her home, etc). I believe she's also directing a new Olive Route series of films!
The book is well-written and easy to read, I read it as a relaxing beach read while on holiday. I actually started this one before the first one in the series, so I'm going to go back now and read the 1st one next. I would actually read this again some time in the future when I've forgotten a lot of it (my memory's not great lol) because I did really enjoy it, and would also love to read more from this author. I've seen a few youtube videos of hers which were interesting too (seeing her home, etc). I believe she's also directing a new Olive Route series of films!
February 11, 2021
Ms Drinkwater manages to create a series that is part travelogue, part memoir, yet wholly beguiling even on the third 'installment'
March 20, 2012
Quite a different tone from Carol Drinkwater's first two books. Clearly she wrote this at a rough time in her life, but as always her descriptions of her surroundings and her love of the landscape comes through her personal turmoil. As always, I highly recommend her books to anyone looking to escape for a while.
March 19, 2011
There are 5 books in this series by Carol Drinkwater (also an actor, who played in All Creatures Great and Small as James Herriot's wife for the first 3 years of the series). They are autobiographical, enchanting, and informative. I'm enjoying them immensely. This is book 3 of the series.
July 27, 2018
One of my dad's - read while on holiday in his house. Drinkwater is a good writer - cut her skill writing numerous children's books and then the Olive Farm series - 7 is there? Her publishers are very happy.
October 5, 2024
De recensie belooft meer dan de 383 pagina's die het boek geeft.
Relatieproblemen, werkproblemen en een olijfgaard
Relatieproblemen, werkproblemen en een olijfgaard
December 10, 2023
I enjoyed this sequel as well, but it deals with some sad topics which I won't give away.
Now I look forward to read the 6th and last of the Olive Farm autobiographies by Carol Drinkwater, "Return to the Olive Farm".
Now I look forward to read the 6th and last of the Olive Farm autobiographies by Carol Drinkwater, "Return to the Olive Farm".
December 9, 2018
A very readable but unusual memoir of one year in the life of Carol Drinkwater and her husband Michel Noll, on their olive farm in France. It's gruelling as a result of unforeseen events. Neither partner could have seen what was coming. It's from Carol's eye view, which makes it very effective personal writing. I found it very interesting and quite different.
August 7, 2020
This is is a review of the first three books in the series.
Being immersed in the life of a British actress leading a challenging ‘escape to the French countryside’ life for about 900 pages in summertime was holiday time well spent. I read all three books in one flow and I enjoyed every book, every chapter and every page. I engaged with the author and her story more and more while getting to know her from her writing and her experiences. As a reader you really share her moments of happiness and sadness, both big and small, like all the discoveries she makes in het garden and in mediterranean France. Carol’s stories are larded with many interesting (horti)cultural, linguistic and gastronomic pieces of background information which makes reading the stories enriching and inspiring in many ways.
I wish I had made notes of all the interesting things I learned about plants and animals, and French food and culture in particular. Isn’t that the perfect reason to reread the books? But first I will continue reading the rest of the series to find out how life continues at Carol’s and Michel’s olive farm.
Being immersed in the life of a British actress leading a challenging ‘escape to the French countryside’ life for about 900 pages in summertime was holiday time well spent. I read all three books in one flow and I enjoyed every book, every chapter and every page. I engaged with the author and her story more and more while getting to know her from her writing and her experiences. As a reader you really share her moments of happiness and sadness, both big and small, like all the discoveries she makes in het garden and in mediterranean France. Carol’s stories are larded with many interesting (horti)cultural, linguistic and gastronomic pieces of background information which makes reading the stories enriching and inspiring in many ways.
I wish I had made notes of all the interesting things I learned about plants and animals, and French food and culture in particular. Isn’t that the perfect reason to reread the books? But first I will continue reading the rest of the series to find out how life continues at Carol’s and Michel’s olive farm.
January 7, 2019
The journey continued a must read
In this book the author continues her “olive” series but with a twist. After having taken the reader in a Mediterranean journey in her first two books she takes you to her home and farm in this book. Here you will learn about her trials and tribulations both from a farming business view and on the personal side. Again a wonderful read which is hard to put down and leaves the reader yearning for more.
In this book the author continues her “olive” series but with a twist. After having taken the reader in a Mediterranean journey in her first two books she takes you to her home and farm in this book. Here you will learn about her trials and tribulations both from a farming business view and on the personal side. Again a wonderful read which is hard to put down and leaves the reader yearning for more.
September 8, 2025
Coming in in the middle of the movie.
I prefer to read a series (fiction or non-fiction) in order, but sometimes that's not possible. This one is the third in the series and sometimes I was lost.
Provence is the Garden of Eden. Heaven on Earth. We all know that. We should, God knows. We've been told often enough. Of course, in the winter, it drizzles continuously and mold grows on the walls of your romantic farm house and your clothes never feel dry and you get foot fungus. In the summer, it's hotter than the hinges of hell. The insects drive you crazy. The herds of wild boar defy every fence or wall known to man and ravage your crops.
If you're depending on a good grape harvest to keep you going financially, there are no grapes to harvest. In times of drought (the norm) the raging wildfires make the air hard to breathe and put humans and animals in constant danger. Life is lived on high alert or not at all.
Every Frenchman worthy of the name knows all about grape vines and will cheerfully tell you how you screwed up and (for a price) set things right for you. You irrigated too much or too little. You trimmed too much or too little. You sprayed too much or too little or (Mon Dieu!) didn't spray at all. Your trees are too old or too young. You have root rot, yellow leaf, or some insect infestation that no one knows the name of, but it's REALLY, REALLY bad.
Still, you're sharing your life with the wonderful natives of Provence - God's noblemen. And you're living in France, everyone's dream. Naturally, French laws and regulations are draconian. They might be waived (or ignored) for natives, but not for YOU, sucker. The author mentions the friendliness of one couple as a welcome change. "As a foreigner, it is not uncommon to be greeted by surliness, suspicion, or financial trickery."
Frenchmen are demon hunters and anyone (human or pet) venturing out during hunting season (an elastic term for the natives) risks death by bullet. Of course, each group insists fiercely that THEY obey all regulations strictly in order to keep their hunting licenses intact and to make hunting sustainable. It's just the guys in (anyplace-but-here) who slaughter indescriminately and give hunters a bad name.
The author is an Irish actress/writer married to a Frenchman (I suppose) who makes documentary films. They spend part of the year apart and the summers on their olive farm in Provence. Now it looks like they may be spending the rest of their lives apart.
The harvest is non-existent and the caretaker's grandiose ideas are eating up their slender budget. Efforts to get the required government rating to sell their olive oil are dragging along with many unexpected delays. Then they have a wreck while visiting the French Riviera. Michel suffers a major brain injury. When he "recovers" he's not the same and his business is sinking rapidly.
With commendable (if puzzling) patience his wife puts up with his absence, his lack of communication, and his apparent desire to end the marriage. She keeps trying to remind him of the good times. Is it working at or will he stay isolated forever?
While waiting to see if her husband is ever coming home, she travels to the nearby region of Camargue, one of the most historic places on earth. Those cowboys on their splendid white horses, carrying the traditional wooden tridents to move the cattle along are too romantic for words. If one of them gets sporty and blinds your sheepdog with his trident, they may not look so romantic, but that's France. C'est la vie and too bad for the mutt.
Can you tell I'm not a Francophile? Can you tell I'm not an adoring wife who's willing to give her straying husband all the time he needs because she loves him so much? And she doesn't mind struggling along with all the problems (new and old) that come up, with no idea of WHAT THE HELL IS GOING TO HAPPEN and how she can manage by herself. I would. Personally.
It's a well-written, entertaining, if sometimes disturbing book. It did NOT give me the urge to sell up and head to sunny Provence. Home's fine for me, thanks. Not at all sorry I bought and read it, but I probably won't be reading the rest of the series. Just not my cuppa vino.
I prefer to read a series (fiction or non-fiction) in order, but sometimes that's not possible. This one is the third in the series and sometimes I was lost.
Provence is the Garden of Eden. Heaven on Earth. We all know that. We should, God knows. We've been told often enough. Of course, in the winter, it drizzles continuously and mold grows on the walls of your romantic farm house and your clothes never feel dry and you get foot fungus. In the summer, it's hotter than the hinges of hell. The insects drive you crazy. The herds of wild boar defy every fence or wall known to man and ravage your crops.
If you're depending on a good grape harvest to keep you going financially, there are no grapes to harvest. In times of drought (the norm) the raging wildfires make the air hard to breathe and put humans and animals in constant danger. Life is lived on high alert or not at all.
Every Frenchman worthy of the name knows all about grape vines and will cheerfully tell you how you screwed up and (for a price) set things right for you. You irrigated too much or too little. You trimmed too much or too little. You sprayed too much or too little or (Mon Dieu!) didn't spray at all. Your trees are too old or too young. You have root rot, yellow leaf, or some insect infestation that no one knows the name of, but it's REALLY, REALLY bad.
Still, you're sharing your life with the wonderful natives of Provence - God's noblemen. And you're living in France, everyone's dream. Naturally, French laws and regulations are draconian. They might be waived (or ignored) for natives, but not for YOU, sucker. The author mentions the friendliness of one couple as a welcome change. "As a foreigner, it is not uncommon to be greeted by surliness, suspicion, or financial trickery."
Frenchmen are demon hunters and anyone (human or pet) venturing out during hunting season (an elastic term for the natives) risks death by bullet. Of course, each group insists fiercely that THEY obey all regulations strictly in order to keep their hunting licenses intact and to make hunting sustainable. It's just the guys in (anyplace-but-here) who slaughter indescriminately and give hunters a bad name.
The author is an Irish actress/writer married to a Frenchman (I suppose) who makes documentary films. They spend part of the year apart and the summers on their olive farm in Provence. Now it looks like they may be spending the rest of their lives apart.
The harvest is non-existent and the caretaker's grandiose ideas are eating up their slender budget. Efforts to get the required government rating to sell their olive oil are dragging along with many unexpected delays. Then they have a wreck while visiting the French Riviera. Michel suffers a major brain injury. When he "recovers" he's not the same and his business is sinking rapidly.
With commendable (if puzzling) patience his wife puts up with his absence, his lack of communication, and his apparent desire to end the marriage. She keeps trying to remind him of the good times. Is it working at or will he stay isolated forever?
While waiting to see if her husband is ever coming home, she travels to the nearby region of Camargue, one of the most historic places on earth. Those cowboys on their splendid white horses, carrying the traditional wooden tridents to move the cattle along are too romantic for words. If one of them gets sporty and blinds your sheepdog with his trident, they may not look so romantic, but that's France. C'est la vie and too bad for the mutt.
Can you tell I'm not a Francophile? Can you tell I'm not an adoring wife who's willing to give her straying husband all the time he needs because she loves him so much? And she doesn't mind struggling along with all the problems (new and old) that come up, with no idea of WHAT THE HELL IS GOING TO HAPPEN and how she can manage by herself. I would. Personally.
It's a well-written, entertaining, if sometimes disturbing book. It did NOT give me the urge to sell up and head to sunny Provence. Home's fine for me, thanks. Not at all sorry I bought and read it, but I probably won't be reading the rest of the series. Just not my cuppa vino.
December 19, 2021
The third book in The Olive Farm series, first published in 2004. It covers a tumultuous period of Drinkwater's life. A serious car accident in the Alpes Maritime, when a drunk driver crashes into her car, leaves her husband Michel seriously injured and hospitalised. When he is finally discharged his mood has changed, depressed and withdrawn. He heads off to Paris to save his business saying that he doesn't know when or if he will return. Carol is left alone and traumatised and having to cope with all the rigours of Appassionata: damage by wild boars, poor olive harvest, lack of irrigation and newly located bee-hives on their land. She is alone and the future is uncertain.
Drinkwater however manages to remain resolute, fending off the threat of divorce from a husband who has lost his way. Carol ventures beyond the farm to explore other aspects of Provençal life. She remains persistent in sharing her experiences with those she loves - and paves a path to joy, when Michel regains his lust for life and his love for Carol. Their love for their olive farm overcomes everything when they finally receive, after seven years of toil, their AOC certificate for top quality extra-virgil olive oil production.
It's intoxicating and heartwarming. I love this series.
Drinkwater however manages to remain resolute, fending off the threat of divorce from a husband who has lost his way. Carol ventures beyond the farm to explore other aspects of Provençal life. She remains persistent in sharing her experiences with those she loves - and paves a path to joy, when Michel regains his lust for life and his love for Carol. Their love for their olive farm overcomes everything when they finally receive, after seven years of toil, their AOC certificate for top quality extra-virgil olive oil production.
It's intoxicating and heartwarming. I love this series.
October 28, 2022
This is the third book by this author that I have read. I didn't realize they came in an order so I have read books #4 and #5 first and now I think this is #2 or #3. The other 2 were about her travels around the Mediterranean in search of the oldest olive tree and the history of olive trees. This book was about her olive farm Appassionata in the south of France. In this book she and her husband are involved in an auto accident in which he receives a head injury and decides they need to separate for a while. It is kind of like reading somebody's diary about their farm and marriage. It was only OK. I think I am going to forego reading any more of her series.
January 20, 2026
A very enjoyable book and one that I would recommend albeit very sad in parts. I think that the lifestyle of Carole Drinkwater must have been extremely hard. To live in the foreign country with a foreign language would be hard to begin with, but to take on projects about which one has no previous knowledge would double this difficulty. She is obviously a very gracious woman and when her husband Michel left her, she showed no anger but just wanted to help him in anyway she could. Quite a wonderful woman, or is she really just keeping the anger that she felt out of the book? I will not spoil it by saying what the end result of the relationship was, but this was a fascinating third addition to the olive tree series.
December 28, 2023
I enjoyed this volume much more than the second, maybe because it had more of a travelogue emphasis;, as the summary says, it "takes us beyond the perimeters of her olive groves to where hunters, poets, bee-keepers, boars and gypsies abide." I was also fascinated by the changes to her husband as a result of a car accident head injury. It all felt like a story I wanted to keep reading yet was ready for it to end when and as it did. Very satisfying.
April 8, 2024
Such a beautiful and brutally honest memoir. Carol can evoke every emotion under the sun with her writing skills. This story of love, loss and trauma was so touching and so different from The Olive Farm but still incredible. Not everything is perfect but this is life. Excited to read the rest of the series and discover more. Yearning for a summer at the olive farm none the less!
Love from Ireland
Love from Ireland
July 25, 2024
This is actually a 3.5 rating. I have read the previous 2 and liked them a lot, it just that this one deals with a lot of ups and downs in life on the olive farm. Very well written, as she is very articulate especially with descriptions of where she is in her surroundings. Lovely pictures of the night sky etc.
August 4, 2024
Ik heb de eerste twee boeken niet gelezen dus misschien ligt het daar ook een beetje aan. Maar het hoofdpersonage kan ik me niet zo goed in verplaatsen en heeft veel last van zelfmedelijden. Er zitten ook echt veel stukjes side story in die gewoonweg niets toevoegen of niet afgemaakt worden. En op het einde is alles opeens goed. Zonder enige vorm van uitleg. Would not recommend.
September 13, 2020
Na een lange afwezigheid keren Carol en haar echtgenoot Michel terug naar hun huis in Zuid-Frankrijk. Ze zien uit naar de zomer die ze samen op de boerderij willen doorbrengen. Maar door een schokkende gebeurtenis blijft Carol alleen achter. De toekomst is onzeker.
November 14, 2022
Great
I loved this book as much as the others in this series. Some of the happenings safer their car accident gave me pause, but I read on. What happened exactly to Michel is not really understood. Read this series, it's terrific.
I loved this book as much as the others in this series. Some of the happenings safer their car accident gave me pause, but I read on. What happened exactly to Michel is not really understood. Read this series, it's terrific.
August 4, 2024
I do enjoy Carol Drinkwater books but this one got a bit slow going half way through. It was the part about the hunting of the wild boars I didn’t enjoy. Seemed to drag on. Enjoyed the story again once I got past that bit. Pleased with the ending.
September 3, 2024
The Olive Harvest
This is a memoir of love, old trees and olive oil. Carol Drinkwater has written this with heart felt meaning and shows her immense feelings of gratitude for nature and people. A book to give much enjoyment as you turn the pages.
This is a memoir of love, old trees and olive oil. Carol Drinkwater has written this with heart felt meaning and shows her immense feelings of gratitude for nature and people. A book to give much enjoyment as you turn the pages.
December 22, 2024
I have a new, deeper appreciation for Carol Drinkwater. Her strength, perseverance, and willfulness to make life loving and deep despite current circumstances were on full display in every page, every event.
May 5, 2025
A really enjoyable partial autobiography.
Another very well written story about Carol and her olive farm. An interesting diary of a novice farmer's attempts to beat every obstacle organically. I have really enjoyed the book, and look forward to the next instalment.
Another very well written story about Carol and her olive farm. An interesting diary of a novice farmer's attempts to beat every obstacle organically. I have really enjoyed the book, and look forward to the next instalment.
February 4, 2026
Oh, I am enjoying these books so much. This is my fourth and I have the rest on order from my local Waterstones. Drinkwater is a wonderful companion and takes us through a difficult time in her marriage, and with the farm too, when she is forced to question everything she has ever known.
July 6, 2018
I have read and loved all of her Olive books.
March 21, 2019
I read and enjoyed all three volumes of Carol Drinkwater's and enjoyd them so much. Inspiration for our own life in Italy harvesting our own olives.
July 5, 2020
Really lovely account of running an olive grove and of her figto save her marriage and settle more into the area. Learned a lot about bees.
December 7, 2020
A lovely memoir of love regained and life on a farm in Provence.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 74 reviews