In 1974, the author and her husband decided to leave the life they had been living in Europe and move to a small farm in Northern California with their two young boys. The book tells of the hard but satisfying work that made up their new life. They had to learn an amazing variety of skills to grow and raise all of their food; cooking on a woodstove, baking bread, making cheese, preserving fruits and vegetables, tanning hides, raising, slaughtering and butchering animals. That life also involved politics when starting an environmental organization which took on the U.S. government, a lumber giant, and Southern Pacific Railroad. Plus there were three years of homeschooling for the boys. In their efforts to live the simple life they encountered a colorful array of eccentrics: the old timers, the dope growers, the loggers, the ranchers, the successful, and those plagued by bad luck. It was an amazing experience of learning, laughter, and accommodation to the land and weather. The author is now at work on a book about her world travels and further adventures.