Field Days – by Jonah Raskin
June 7, 2009
The Facts:
Jonah Raskin is a Professor at Sonoma State University. He is also the author of several books. Field Days is the most recent of these. While he was born on the East Coast, Raskin has lived in Sonoma for much of his life. This book is available through University of California Press. The list price is $24.95.
Gabe’s Take:
Of course grapes are the first thing that come to mind when most think of Sonoma agriculture. But there is also an increasing number of small farms growing produce and selling it locally either at farmers markets, to local restaurants or on site at their own property. Jonah Raskin spent a year working at one particular farm and speaking to people at a host of others.
Field Days – A Year of Farming, Eating and Drinking Wine in California is a fascinating look at the ever growing small farm movement in general and in Sonoma specifically. What Jonah Raskin describes particularly well is how he threw himself into the local farm world for a year. He seems to have put aside any notions he had going in and simply gave himself over to the local farming life. He does this by literally working at a farm and becoming part of the landscape. Over the course of Field Days it’s clear that a change overcomes him and he is not only researching the local food movement but embracing it. Still and all he manages to maintain his stance as a reporter first and his words remain objective.
What I really like about Field Days is the fact that while he concentrated a large portion of his efforts at Oak Hill Farm it wasn’t his only experience. He visited other farms, interviewed other workers and owners and shopped locally at a host of different places. Still Oak Hill was his baseline and as a reader it was quite interesting to see how he measured the other experiences against it. Raskin also spent time shopping at farmers markets and even places like Whole Foods, examining how a “natural” supermarket such as that still differs greatly in principle and execution from shopping at a local stand where the produce was likely grown on site or perhaps a few miles away.
This being a book based in Sonoma, grapes and of course wine come up. They’re not the focus here but instead come into play a handful of times to help fill out the local Sonoma farming picture that Jonah Raskin is drawing.
If everything about Sonoma fascinates you as it does me, Field Days is an excellent book that provides a really interesting and genuine look at a particular subject. Or if it’s the local food movement that you’re interested in, Field Days will provide a great look at small farms in a specific area. In any case this is a very entertaining read.
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