A Book of Country Things

by Walter Needham, June Barrows Mussey

For those of us who yearn for simpler times, this is a book that reminds us how difficult the simpler things could be. Dictated from the memoirs of Walter Needham's grandfather, it gives brief and colorful descriptions of carpentry, farming, animal husbandry and domestic sciences, and is an accurate picture of life in New England in the 1800s. Library Journal describes it as "wise in the self-sufficient ways of country in the last century." (Library Journal)

Genres: History

166 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1965

Reviews

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this quaint little book at a thrift store. It's not a long read as the print on the pages is narrow but amply accompanied by a large number of uncredited drawings. This was published in 1965 based on a Vermont man's memories of his grandfather who died in 1917 so Gramps was really an old timer. Walter Needham, his grandson, was a grandfather himself at the time he provided his recollections. This book may be more interesting to those from Vermont with its local history and how things were done. Although this book provides a good introduction as to how people got by then, it's not a step by step manual but only introduces topics that would have to be pursued elsewhere. The chapters are organized around areas of Vermont rural life in the 1800s such as sugaring, tools, animals, from the woods, and finally Indians. This does not show an idealistic simpler time but the hard work needed to use and make do in a world with very few consumer goods. It was not book knowledge but knowledge of the seasons, plants, and animals requiring a keen eye for understanding how things worked.

[Donna Kremer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve always liked hearing or reading about the olden days, maybe because I grew up in an old cobblestone farmhouse with a big red barn that might have been painted “Buttermilk red” that “couldn’t fade, any more than a dead man could die…”.

I wish I could’ve been the one listening to Walter Needham. What a privilege to have his stories recorded! Why didn’t I write down all the stories my grandma told me, or those I heard about Popeye who lived in the woods down the road from me as a kid.

[Madison Gillen · Rating 5 out of 5]

My friend gifted me this book because she knows I read “old nonfiction books”. So I gave it a try and I was pleasantly surprised. The author skillfully compiled the stories of his neighbor in a clear and informative manner. It really provides a lens into frontier American history. I really liked how the tasks and processes of Gramps were mostly easy to follow, even though I have zero experience working with my hands. I’m excited to let my parents borrow this book!