historical non fiction Archives - fundinmentalfundinmental

To Purchase the 1st edition Hardcover from me, for $25 (S&H included), email me at sherryfundin69@netscape.net

MY REVIEW

Bruce Brown did a fantastic job of sharing the plight of farmers from coast to coast in the United States, even throwing in some bits about the UK. I do remember hearing some of this when I was younger, but never really understood how devastating their plight was. The farmers desperation and feelings of nothing left to lose caused them to do some tragic things, sometimes taking others with them as they left this world.

I own a hardcover of Lone Tree: A True Story Of Murder In America’s Heartland by Bruce Brown.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos — 4 Stars

SYNOPSIS (from cover)

On December 9, 1985, Iowa framer Dale Burrr killed his wife of four decades at close range with a shotgun, then administered the same fate to his banker and to his neighbor, and, as the police closed in, committed suicide. This seemingly sudden and bewildering homicidal outburst shocked the nation and shook much of the Midwest.

Through the story of the lives of these four people, Bruce Brown examines the major themes of the American farm crisis: the farming family, the crisis in farm debt, the transformation of the farming community, and the changing life of the farmer himself. Simultaneously, Brown located this contemporary story within and impeccable research historic context, beginning with the enclosures acts of thirteenth century Great Britain, through the panic of 1893, the great American Depression, and other periods of intense agricultural ferment.

Lone Tree is a story about America changing and about how people deal with change. It is a nuanced exploration of the fabric of our culture. It asks how to make sense of events that lead perfectly normal people to commit horrendously abnormal acts. The result is a work of journalism with all the impact and sheer narrative excitement of a novel, a story rich enough to be compared to the novels of Dreiser, the plays of Arthur Miller, an American tragedy compelling not only because of it inherent drama, but also because of the lesson we must draw from it or face forfeiting our futures.

ABOUT BRUCE BROWN

Bruce Brown is the author of Mountain in the Clouds. His articles and rviews appear in the New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Audubon, and elsewhere.He lived and works on a farm that his grandfather bought near the Canadian border in Washington State. He passed away in 1980.