The Farm

By Joanne Ramos

Book Overview

NATIONAL BESTSELLER - Life is a lucrative business, as long as you play by the rules.

Skimm Reads Pick - People Book of the Week - Longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize - " Joanne] Ramos's debut novel couldn't be more relevant or timely."--O: The Oprah Magazine

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Time - Glamour - Real Simple - Good Housekeeping - Marie Claire - Town & Country

Nestled in New York's Hudson Valley is a luxury retreat boasting every amenity: organic meals, personal fitness trainers, daily massages--and all of it for free. In fact, you're paid big money to stay here--more than you've ever dreamed of. The catch? For nine months, you cannot leave the grounds, your movements are monitored, and you are cut off from your former life while you dedicate yourself to the task of producing the perfect baby. For someone else.

Jane, an immigrant from the Philippines, is in desperate search of a better future when she commits to being a "Host" at Golden Oaks--or the Farm, as residents call it. But now pregnant, fragile, consumed with worry for her family, Jane is determined to reconnect with her life outside. Yet she cannot leave the Farm or she will lose the life-changing fee she'll receive on the delivery of her child.

Gripping, provocative, heartbreaking, The Farm pushes to the extremes our thinking on motherhood, money, and merit and raises crucial questions about the trade-offs women will make to fortify their futures and the futures of those they love.

NOMINATED FOR THE NAACP IMAGE AWARD

"So many factors--gender, race, religion, class--may determine where you come down on the surrogacy debate. . . . Ramos plays with many of these notions in her debut novel, The Farm, which imagines what might happen were surrogacy taken to its high-capitalist extreme. . . . The stage is set for lively book chat."--The New York Times Book Review (Editors' Choice)

"A thrilling read."--New York

"Grippingly realistic."--Entertainment Weekly

"Brilliant."--New York Post

"A provocative idea, and Ramos nails it . . . Crisp and believable, this smart debut links the poor and the 1 percent in a unique transaction that turns out to be mutually rewarding."--People

"Wow, Joanne Ramos has written the page-turner about immigrants chasing what's left of the American dream. . . . Truly unforgettable."--Gary Shteyngart, New York Times bestselling author of Super Sad True Love Story and Lake Success

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1984853759
• ISBN13: 9781984853752
• Release Date: May 2019
• Publisher: Random House
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 1.23 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.0" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

3.75 stars

THE FARM by Joanne Ramos Jane, an immigrant from the Philippines, is struggling to make ends meet while caring for her infant daughter, Amalia. At the encouragement of her cousin “Ate”, Jane applies at a ritzy facility called, Golden Oaks. At Golden Oaks, women are selected to be surrogates for the über wealthy. Their sole purpose, as “hosts” is to adhere to the strict rules, take advantage of the luxurious accommodations, and pop out healthy babies. In exchange they’re given an exorbitant amount of money which they use to change their lives. While the synopsis leans toward dystopian science fiction, it’s not entirely that. This is more of a commentary on our reality. We get a glimpse into the “business” of surrogacy through the perspectives of four different women; Jane, Ate, Mae, and Raegan. Their views are influenced/clouded by their backgrounds and economic status. I really appreciate the diversity of the characters. Almost all the women are POC and come from varying socioeconomic backgrounds. Their stories explore the inequalities between class and race, capitalism, the immigrant experience, feminism, and motherhood. It raises questions about ethics, society, privilege, what it means to be a mother, and what defines a family. While this has a promising start and brought up many thought-provoking topics, I felt it only just skimmed the surface and the ending didn’t really resolve the issues. In short, this was good and I liked it, but I didn’t love it. Rating: 3.75/5 ⭐️