A superior exploration of the consequences of the hollowing out of our agricultural heartlands.-- Kirkus Reviews In the tradition of Wendell Berry, a young writer wrestles with what we owe the Places we\'ve Left behind.
Ultimately, she comes to an uneasy conclusion for herself: one can cultivate habits and practices that promote rootedness wherever one may be, but: some things, once lost, cannot be recovered..
She brings readers face to face with the damage and brain drain Left in the wake of our pursuit of self-improvement, economic opportunity, and so-called growth.
Avoiding both sentimental devotion to the past and blind faith in progress, Olmstead uncovers ways modern life attacks all of our roots, both metaphorical and literal.
And she explores the ranks of Emmett\'s newcomers and what growth means for the area\'s farming tradition.
She looks at the stark realities of farming life today, identifying the government policies and big agriculture practices that make it almost impossible for such towns to survive.
As part of her own quest to decide whether or not to return to her roots, Olmstead revisits the stories of those who, like her great-grandparents and grandparents, made Emmett a strong community and her childhood idyllic.
Part memoir, part journalistic investigation, Uprooted wrestles with the questions of what we owe the Places we come from and what we are willing to sacrifice for profit and progress.
Grace Olmstead, now a journalist in Washington, DC, is one who left, and in Uprooted, she examines the heartbreaking consequences of uprooting--for Emmett, and for the greater heartland America.
Those who stay are Left to contend with thinning communities, punishing government farm policy, and environmental decay.
Those who leave go in search of greener pastures, better jobs, and college.
In the tiny farm town of Emmett, Idaho, there are two kinds of people: those who leave and those who stay.
A superior exploration of the consequences of the hollowing out of our agricultural heartlands.-- Kirkus Reviews In the tradition of Wendell Berry, a young writer wrestles with what we owe the Places we\'ve Left behind
