The Exmoor Files

by Liz Jones

Liz Jones lived the perfect urban life. The immaculate Georgian townhouse in a leafy London square. The glamorous career where she would hob nob (not the right word: these people don't eat biscuits) with models and movie stars and fashion designers. The Italian wardrobe stuffed with designer bags and shoes. The much younger novelist husband. But then it all goes horribly wrong. She discovers her husband has been having numerous affairs (with women who are younger, dimmer, slimmer) and realises that her pursuit of perfection has never made her happy, and probably never will. And so she decides to start all over again, burying herself alive in the middle of the bleak, unforgiving wilderness that is Exmoor National Park. She buys a wreck of a farmhouse, with an original stable block, 46 acres, an ancient wood and a lake. She rescues a nervous and abused but breathtakingly beautiful racehorse, nursing the dream that she will be able to ride her thoroughbred bareback on the beach, spend her days wafting through flower-filled meadows, harvest her own organic produce and generally live out the rural dream. The reality, of course, is much, much harder. 'The Exmoor Files' is a funny, honest, often brutal real-life account of what it is like to start all over again in an alien environment. It is about discovering that you cannot find peace just by moving somewhere peaceful. It is about mourning for a relationship and letting go of the life you thought you deserved. And most of all it is about how Liz and her racehorse finally learn to trust, and to love, and to live, again.

272 pages, Hardcover

First published August 6, 2009

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Hailstones · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book found in the charity shop near Exmoor. I had heard a lot about this woman and wondered why she had become so disliked. As many have said before, it is clear she can write well but apart from her love of animals, the constant vulgarity of naming labels, face creams, treatments, 'organic carrots' for animals etc., was too much and I struggled to read it with constant brand names I had no idea existed but nor was I interested either.
The reality of living in the country does seem to bother many who move to the real rural west country with frequent complaints of poor internet, lack of mobile signal, perpetual dampness, wind and rain, noisy church bells (or clocks) the distance to shops and so on, echoes all that this writer has described but to admit to feeding rats with organic mashed banana???? There is a right mix of ludicrously rich folk but many more who can barely live on their income so to boast about this sort of spending is not going to endear her to the folk in one of the poorest areas of the country.
I wanted to like this book and this woman because of her passion for rescuing animals but could not because she came across as quite ridiculous, even with the way she apparently allowed her ex to treat her, even when they had divorced. Intelligent she may be but savvy, she is not.
For her part in this story I would have given just one star but for the animals, I gave it two.
PS ... The farm is NOT in the centre of Exmoor and nor was she isolated. Having read a few forums that discussed this book, there are a lot of people who say she makes a lot of her stories and tales up simply to sell. Knowing the location, I wonder how much of the other elements in this book are just written just for effect. Many people read her columns apparently so she is doing well out of it!

[Caroline Southgate · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit too much about the animals and their habits on the farm for me than a proper story. The end was a bit of a downer when she kept thinking she loved her old life and all the things that were not good about the farm.

[CiderandRedRot · Rating 2 out of 5]

Liz Jones - you know, that woman you really hate from the Daily Mail, who is possibly insane and has made a career out of saying dumbass things that makes you wonder what world she lives in, yes, her - moves to the country and discovers that it is not an Anthropologie/Boden catalogue populated by charmingly-attired, ruddy-cheeked farmers and fluffily groomed animals who wander around needing a cuddle, but actually a place where people live, work and often don't have much money or worry about using the right eyebrow gel and sometimes it smells and the meat isn't organic! Heavens!

Hoping for a bit of festive season hate reading, I was actually pleasantly surprised by this book. Give Jones her due: yes, she's a batfuck mentalist, but it's an entertaining read* - sometimes for the wrong reasons - and she has an honest, dramatically OTT love for animals. Not being terribly clued up on raising horses and sheep, I found some of the things she had to say regarding rescue animals and the various charities designed to help abandoned and abused racehorses to be enlightening and depressing in equal measure.

However, taking everything she has to say with a sackful of organic Himalayan pink rock salt from Selfridges...for all her ridiculous coddling behaviour of her animals - and yes, I could relate to some of her emotions even as I cringed at her daft exuberance - this is the perfect tome to illustrate 'people who have an idea of how the country is who run away there and then discover that it's a real place not a pretty Liberty's window dressing'.

So the woman is an insufferable, moronic idiot, but she can write. Part of me suspects that after her death her work will prove to be an epically plotted piece of performance art, after which I will happily declare her a genius.

*I kept having to steal this book back from my sixty-something father whilst I was reading it. It was a weird cross-generational shared read, but fair dues Jones.

[Vera · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you can put up with the endless names of brands popping up everywhere, you might find this book okayish. I can relate to the author's love for animals, but there is a limit to how much I want to know about horse husbandry. Still, it is sometimes funny, and is a heartbreaking tale of loneliness and growing old.

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

So Liz Jones is a pretty controversial writer and has said some vile and offensive things over the years but I can't resist a tree change story.

This was a surprisingly engaging read. Yes she's quite self absorbed and the brand dropping is infuriating but I was entertained by her stories of rural life and her many animals.

[Amba Morgan · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I love her love for animals, there is very little about this book that really grabs me. I'm not sure I could read another of her books, not with all of her complaints told.

[Michele MERSCH · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had bought this book during one of our family trips to London as I really liked the synopsis : starting all over again, horses, moving to the countryside - these statements were really appealing to me, though I din't know the author at all.

I started reading the book this summer but I was tempted on putting it away several times (wich only occurred two more books till now).

I finally finished it after all in August when we where on our Summer holiday.

Instead of reading about a career woman managing her life on her own, it became clear that it's the biography of a desperate lonely ageing woman, who hates men, woman, mothers, pregnant women, neighbours, the countryside, children, babies......and many more.

I really feel pity for her.
I may not be rich, I may not be famous, nor glamorous nor 'petite' and sexy.

I am a mother of three, overweighted and live in a boring rural village ....but at least I AM LOVED !

My book review comes really late, as I was not sure if I should write about this biography at all.

My conclusion: not to be recommended (unless you take the author not too serious or important).


More reviews on my blog: www.awesomefamilyblog.com

[Nancy Gates · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is fun Liz Jones, the pre-bankruptcy Liz Jones. Actually, this book provides plenty of foreshadowing as to how she wound up bankrupt. As it turns out, a rural utopia can be plenty expensive.

As Liz's fortunes have declined her wit has turned ever more sour -- it has been painful to watch her slide in her weekly columns for the Daily Mail. I kind of hope she re-reads this book, though I know it will be painful to see what she -- ultimately -- lost, to remind herself that she was once a very positive, fearless woman. I like Liz Jones a lot. I hope she can rediscover her bravery and perseverance and good humor.

[Penny · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the chapters and descriptions of rescuing and rehabilitating the horses and the dog she found. I hated how rude she was about her ex husband and yet she kept writing about him, it felt very much like a personal diary of a teenager. She isn't very self aware or likeable, but I really did like the background story of leaving London and buying a farm in a beautiful part of the world

[Sam Rae · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm a country living girl so reading what a townie vegetarian thinks of being in the country wasn't a good idea. Nice she helped some animals but found I disliked the author the more I read, very self absorbed and shallow, vain, materialistic etc.

[Lucy Moule · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don’t feel this book even deserves 1 star! She does not come across as a very nice person just vacuous and self obsessed. She seems to hate rural life and everyone who lives there and some of the things she says about horses are not correct!!

[Caroline Byrne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointing. The author came across as horribly shallow & with a less than realistic attitude towards her horses.
Way too cutesy for my taste, I’m not convinced she’ll last long in the country!

[Suzanna Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fairly entertaining read on a winters evening

[Joe Culleton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A pleasant read

Wonderful story teller. Lovely easy rhythm and so relaxing to read. So tender when writing about her horses, sheep, cats and dogs and chickens.

[Bernadette Meehan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love love love all Liz Jones writings. I have read all her books and a lot of her articles. She is so self deprecating and honest. Please write more books Liz. I can’t get enough 😟

[Katie Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liz Jones doesn't exactly come across as likeable in this at times but that is more down to her own inability to like herself than anything else. I had no knowledge of her or her newspaper column and just picked this up by chance. As a standalone book it is a bit incongruous, I think it would read better if you had already read some of her other output. However it did make me think about the endless searching we all seem to be engaged in and what it actually is we are searching for. Not sure Liz Jones found it here though.

[Janice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Candid and amusing, Liz Jones builds a new life in the country with her beloved animals. With honest and outspoken opinions of all the people in her life this book is a better than a good bitchy gossip with a friend.

[Fi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found the author annoyingly shallow, her only saving grace appears to be her love of animals; I only kept reading to see if Exmoor worked its magic on her, & glad to say that it appears to have done so - in part, at least

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brave, bonkers, or both? You decide! Funny, sad, and heartfelt. Good read if you love animals.

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't say I'm a big fan of the author, but I admire her love for animals - which definitely shines through in this.

[Jenny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Indeed too much brand name dropping and too much horse stuff. Otherwise fairly entertaining.