True Cow Tales: Literary Sketches and Stories by Farmers, Ranchers, and Dairy Princesses

By Sara Lindsay Rath

Book Overview

For the love of Bessie, grab a glass of milk, pull up a comfy chair, and partake of a cow tale or two These 40 stories by farmers and ranchers in the U.S. and Canada will open your eyes to what really... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1608440613
• ISBN13: 9781608440610
• Release Date: August 2009
• Publisher: Dog Ear Publishing
• Length: 228 Pages
• Weight: 0.62 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.0" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Viewpoint of a Former Farm Girl

The writiing styles in any anthology are mixed. True Cow Tales is no exception. Some of the writers show true professionalism, while others are still developing. However, even inexperienced writers have good stories to tell, so you will surely enjoy "True Cow Tales," especially if you have an agricultural background. You will smile at the mix of personalities in featured cows. I also enjoyed the section about Dairy Princesses with their likenesses carved in real butter at the Minnesota State fair. What a thrill it was for those who earned their unusual title. "True Cow Tales" is C. R. Lindemer's first attempt at editing and publishing an anthology. Her own story is exceptionally well written, and the entire book shows promise of more and better things to come. I look forward to a sequel, and I do believe there will be one.

Should be required reading for all ex-urbanites...

"Cows are the foster mother of the human race," Wis­consin's Governor William Dempster Hoard once said. He even had a notice posted in his barn: "Remember that this is the Home of Mothers. Treat each cow as a Mother should be treated." True Cow Tales is a very authentic collection of stories from a variety of authors - several of whom are Wisconsinites. It's filled with all sorts of down-home lore and encounters that only a farmer or a farm-kid would gather from day-to-day experience, but usually not share with anyone except friends and family. Editor, Christine Lindemer is one of those insiders who has managed to collect a set of well-written and engaging narratives from the farm that reveal many of those small secrets contained within the hearts of rural America. The book is a collection of stories by 40 farmers, ranchers, and dairy princesses across the U.S. and Canada. It includes a short chapter of `cow poetry,' some photos and a number of illustrations. But after reading True Cow Tales, I am struck by the fact that this book also contains snapshots of a time that no longer seems to exist. The works of several Wisonconsinites, including poet August Derleth, are included in the book. A man from Watertown, WI, has two stories in the book. A woman from Edgerton, WI, has a wonderful poem in the anthology. Stories like Diane Popenhagen's "Roland's `Sugar'" deliver a powerful picture of rural life, up before the sun when the cold cuts through multiple layers of well-worn work clothes, walking methodically to the barn, getting those frozen fingers revived by warmth of hand-milking a herd of cows. The warm memories and the tragedies are all here, some farms lost, some trophies won. This book should be required reading for every newcomer who migrates from the city to live in once-rural Door County. There was a time not that long ago when these stories were the daily occurrences taking place up and down the county highways of the peninsula. Now, sad to say, this book is a historical collection of fading artifacts - ones that should indeed be remembered. This original review first appeared in Door County Style Magazine online at [...] of which I am the editor and publisher.

Vivid adventures with cows!

A rich, lively array of real adventures with cows and other farm creatures in the true, personal voices of dairy farmers, ranchers, their spouses, children, friends, relatives, neighbors, and dairy princesses. In fact, we sometimes hear the cows' voices as well! Genuine stories--some funny, some sad, some exciting, some surprising, some outrageous--but all genuine, all true tales--as the title says. This book is a fine tribute to American dairy farms, hard-working farm families, and the fascinating culture of cows.

A fun read

This book transported me back to my childhood. Although my grandparents did not have cattle on their farm, I had plenty of friends that did. Being born in Nebraska put me in the middle of the dairy cattle farming. It was so refreshing to dwell on each and every story in this book This is a book of stories about cows, the farmers who owned them, the children who showed them at fairs, the ranchers, the dairy queens (we are not talking hamburgers) and the 4-Hers. There is nothing like setting around an old general store and listening to the farmers tell the tales of the best dairy cow, the birth of calves or the old mean bull. That's the memories this book brought back. This book teaches children the relationship between butter, milk, and cheese and the dairy cow. I could not help but laugh at some of the predicaments the younger children get themselves into while working with their dairy herd. The pictures are magnificent. If you enjoy reading about the good old days and animal stories, then pick up a copy of True Cow tales. I will save this book for my grand-kids to read. The farms of the past are not the same as the farms of today and this book is a great opportunity for the younger generation to learn a bit of history.

Nostalgic, warm, fun and full of memories

True Cow Tales has stirred up happy memories from my childhood, and of people who are no longer with me, but were such an important part of my life. I think that says a lot about the book. Let me start by saying that I do not live on a dairy farm. I have never lived on a dairy farm. But I do have a connection. Don't we all, though, really? Doesn't everyone have some connection to the world of farming, if we go back far enough in history? I would be willing to bet that the majority of our ancestors, those brave hearty folks who made their way across the prairies, were farmers. As for me, my connection goes back to my grandparents. Both of my parents and their multiple brothers and sisters grew up on farms in Minnesota, farms which continue on to this day, passed on through the generations. My own memories of summer stays at my grandparents' and uncle's farm are so sweet and are some of the best of my whole life. I can still remember that satisfying feeling of completing a hard-day's work, pulling weeds out of the soybeans, painting barns, or working in the garden. This was sweaty, honest, sometimes very dirty work, but boy oh boy did I ever sleep well those nights, and food never tasted so good afterwards. How about those wonderful fresh vegetables served at dinner every night, fresh applesauce, strawberries, freshly baked bread, all in a big kitchen full of people. And then there were the stories, so many stories to be told. The kind of stories that you can hear only if you sit quietly and listen. Because the storytellers are not always the most boisterous of people, sometimes they are soft-spoken. This is what I see while reading the stories in True Cow Tales. It brings me back almost 40 years to my grandma's kitchen and the red and white checked tablecloth. This is not just a book with a bunch of stories about cows (though it certainly is full of stories about cows!) What makes each story special is the storyteller. I am sure that these are all tales that were told, time and time again, around those farmhouse kitchen tables. Tales told by good, solid, hard-working life-loving people, to their kids, grandkids, friends, and now to all of us. Perhaps we can't pull up a chair at any of their kitchen tables and listen to the stories first-hand, but we can hear the stories by opening the book to any page at all and starting to read. Why not take a break from this world of computers, IPODs, cell phones, TV and all of the other plug-ins of modern daily life, and delve into some stories about a way of life that truly was our heritage? What could be more wholesome to the core than a story about good honest hard work and beloved animals? And what animals are more sweet and yet so understated than cows? They exude gentleness and giving, though I do understand that they are not pushovers--I have heard stories told by my uncles about being kicked by certain unhappy cows... ouch. What a great book to share with family and friends who have roots in