The Heron Nest
W. Bert Foster
Read by Bellona Times
Pleasant family drama set in early 1900's or late 1890's upstate New York. The Herron clan, led by heroic, inventive, handicapped older brother Billy, has fallen on hard times due to one of the depressions that occurred before the Great one of the 30's. He manages to charm their way out of the tenements and into the country where he and his younger siblings farm their way to success, albeit on a small, Waltons-esque scale. Features many detailed gardening tips. Minor quibble with a sub-plot involving borderline incest but all in all, an inspirational work for the get-er-dun generation. - Summary by BellonaTimes (7 hr 42 min)
Chapters
The End of All Things | 18:07 | Read by Bellona Times |
Rack and Ruin Villa | 15:28 | Read by Bellona Times |
Bone Labor | 17:20 | Read by Bellona Times |
Getting Into Harness | 20:12 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Sowersbys | 13:43 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Plebeian Onion | 19:25 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Great Conspiracy | 17:39 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Snare of the Fowler | 11:34 | Read by Bellona Times |
At Work in Earnest | 18:18 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Hen That Lays the Golden Egg | 17:29 | Read by Bellona Times |
Getting the Best of Dame Nature | 22:34 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Threatening Cloud | 17:54 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Bolt from the Cloud | 23:20 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Transplanting | 22:22 | Read by Bellona Times |
In The Grip of the Gale | 25:47 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Christmas Spirit | 23:03 | Read by Bellona Times |
Clearing The Way | 21:16 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Road Makers | 20:32 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Old Man of the Sea | 19:12 | Read by Bellona Times |
Uncle Calvert | 20:21 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Fat's in the Fire | 20:48 | Read by Bellona Times |
No | 13:29 | Read by Bellona Times |
The Fire Fight | 25:47 | Read by Bellona Times |
Yes | 16:32 | Read by Bellona Times |
Reviews
Gardening and Love
Linda Givler
If you enjoy gardening as I do, there are neat little lessons in this book. I don't know how people in such unfortunate circumstances, as in this book, continue on. Billy apparently had access to a great library (the book doesn't say where he got his gardening knowledge), which was the savior of the Heron family. Their are many suggestions here on how to live a kind and honest life while suffering in horrible poverty. We also learn that good people survive hardships while mean, dishonest people may not. I only wish that life was more similar to this book. Ah, there has to be romance, right? Those stories are expertly woven into the family survival story and are quite sweet. This reader, at first, seemed annoying, but as I grew accustomed to his pace, I rather enjoyed listening to him.
Nice story but
Janelle
Great story until I reached the part with the borderline incest, as mentioned in the book's description. I wish the author had taken the plot in a different direction as it spoiled the story for me. It was just weird. The narrator was a little difficult to listen to as his reading was stilted. But he has a good voice.
A Gardening Book with a Bit of Melodrama
Phxjennifer
I agree with another reviewer; the author loves the minutiae of gardening and 'making do'. It's a prepper's delight with lots of hints on living off the land, and a realistic assessment of how much physical labor is involved. Still, I enjoyed it as a product of its time and milieu.
A Romantic Novel Centered around Gardening
Dragonflyer
This is a very nice solo reading, more about gardening and farming than romance. As I enjoy gardening and farming, the book was a pleasure to me, but if a reader is not interested in growing vegetables and raising chickens, it would be tedious.
A LibriVox Listener
Very homey, little house on the prairie kind of book.