Media Reviews
"A masterful picture of endurance and loyalty, all with a social conscience. Sensitive to the nuances of class, Claire Boyles's keen eye asks us to reexamine our relationships to land and legacy and to home and place…This novel has a rough-edged beauty that will knock you out." ―Nina McConigley, author of How to Commit a Postcolonial Murder
"An achingly believable story about land, love, and heartbreaking choices, written by one of the best chroniclers of the contemporary American West." ―Michelle Nijhuis, author of Beloved Beasts: Fighting for Life in an Age of Extinction
"In this gorgeous debut novel, Claire Boyles writes about the West and generations of women who work small farms there. Appraisals is not only mesmerizing and honest, it feels necessary for the times we are living in." ―Ann Hood, author of The Stolen Child
"Appraisals is as rich and thick with life as freshly turned soil. It is about home and what grows there, both with ease and with effort. It is full of grit and fear and faith, and I loved it so much." ―Ramona Ausubel, author of The Last Animal
"At once luminous, heartbreaking, and joyous, Appraisals is a gripping novel about a woman-led organic farm in oil and gas country. Drawn from true-life stories of economic oppression in rural America, this is a book for anyone who loves fresh vegetables and fruits, wants to prevent environmental collapse, and cares about family farmers." ―Sarah Vogel, author of The Farmer's Lawyer
"Appraisals is a beautiful book, wise in the knowledge of the riches of country.…The land, the farm, and the family are all part of this lovely novel, which tracks the life of four generations in one magnificent place." ―Roxana Robinson, author of Leaving
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Reader Reviews
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Virginia B. (Gray, ME)
Appraisals Appraisals by Claire Boyles is a novel set in the farmlands of Colorado from 2008 to 2010. It is written from the perspectives of Flora (a 90 year old grandmother and great-grandmother), Maggie (an organic farmer), and Fish (her husband who chooses a different path).
I love a story about strong women and this did not disappoint with three generations of compelling characters with believable interactions in the various times of their lives. Teenage daughter Ozzie's rebellion and disagreements with her parents were authentic. I found myself rooting for them despite their flaws. Their passion for the environment, the struggles for water rights, the issues of land development by the wealthy, and large corporations were all themes that resonated. The political conflicts in a small town rang true while Fish struggled with conflicted loyalties.
The story was beautifully written and flowed seamlessly. I especially enjoyed the passages describing the hard work involved in being an organic farmer and the vivid descriptions of the river wildlife and the produce displayed at the farmers market. At times, I could picture myself sitting on the front porch of the farmhouse enjoying the company of these characters.
This atmospheric book was a joy to read.
Stephanie K. (Glendale, AZ)
Appraising Appraisals Appraisals by Claire Boyles brings heartfelt tears as the reader lives through the harsh realities of farm life with three generations of women. The emotions and events depicted are as heartrending as they are expected and realistic. Knowing several past and present farmers among family and friends made it easy to drop into this story of organic farming versus industrialized ruination of the land. Since the Industrial Revolution but quickening at a maddening pace, is the "us against them" mindset of people trying to wisely steward their land. Although in novel form, this story of unrelenting hard work and bitter disappointments shows the resilience and fight still inherent in an agricultural lifestyle. Despite the heartache depicted, Appraisals also contains genuine suspense amid a gritty, country-style humor.
Nancy_Lay
Real Life Appraisals "Appraisals" by Claire Doyle's follows a decade or so in the life of four generations of strong farming women. The writing is wonderfully evocative, filled with the vivid colors, the smells, and the feels of farming life. It was easy to imagine myself in the garden or at the farmers' market. The characters are finely drawn and fully formed and I was drawn into their passions and their problems. As a woman from suburbia, I did have some trouble with the amount of technical information - from pump types to roll pipe to irrigation hoses to flare stacks. "Appraisals" is a glimpse into the difficulties and conditions faced by small family farms. I came away impressed by the wonderful writing.
Randi_H
Appraisals by Claire Boyles Appraisals is a beautifully written multigenerational novel that explores family, land, and survival in rural Colorado. Following a family's attempts to farm across generations, the story captures both the promise and hardship of agricultural life. Financial pressures and environmental challenges constantly test the family's resilience, forcing each generation to make difficult choices.
What I appreciated most was how Boyles examines the bonds that hold families together - and the fractures that can pull them apart - without offering easy answers. The characters feel true, shaped by both their love for one another and their connection to the land.
The writing is gorgeous. Boyles brings the Colorado landscape vividly to life, creating a sense of place that is as compelling as the family's story itself. Thoughtful and moving, I suspect Appraisals will stay with me for a long time.
Dorothy_M
A book for our time APPRAISALS
CLAIRE BOYLES
What do you do if the one thing you want to do with your life is the thing that comes between you and the people you love?
Maggie is a dedicated - perhaps obsessive - organic farmer whose goal in life is make a success of the small farm where she raises vegetables, flowers, chickens, turkeys and pigs. She is convinced, incorrectly, that her family shares her ambition.
This is 2008 when the heavy loans banks encouraged farmers to take out are costing them their farms and this is Colorado where who gets to use the limited water supply is contentious at best. Maggie, as a woman farmer, has trouble being taken seriously, certainly when looking for funding. In addition there are gas and oil drills on what used to be farmland, wealthy Californians who can afford to buy up the land and who want to develop it, and when you are a farmer, there is always the weather.
Claire Boyles brings all of this together in the story of the Brandt family. She looks at what people will do to hold on to their dreams, however impossible they seem. She asks how much you can compromise your values and still be who you are? The story is told from the view of each of the four family members and Boyles is skilled enough to make you identify with all of them. The descriptions of the unending work required to run a farm are spot on as are her descriptions of the beauty of the land and the joy of growing your own food and food to share with your community.
I highly recommend this book but I should say I grew up on a farm and was predisposed to be sympathetic to the difficulties small farmers deal with.
Linda_Hunter
All About Farming and its Enemies Appraisals by Claire Boyles
This book fascinated me because it was the personal account of something I knew little about, and that is the struggle of two farming families and why it was so difficult. I knew theoretically, but not so personally. Flora and her granddaughter, Maggie, are about to lose their farm in 1912 because of the bank appraisal that included a balloon payment that they didn't have. Flora's husband was an optimist, but Flora knew they were in trouble. Maggie's mother died when she was born.
By 2008, Maggie, who loves farming is now married to Fish who knew little about farming, but he worked in an environmental business, and he knew why Maggie chose to do small organic farming, paying close attention to the environment, especially the water, since they were in Colorado where water is scarce. As you know, city dwellers need a lot of water, and Maggie barely gets enough. Their daughter, Ozzie, is in her teens, and is influenced by her mother. She helps her with the work of the farm that includes vegetable crops, chickens and turkeys. Before long, it's clear that they too are having financial difficulties, and the bank's appraisal isn't too positive. Fish decides to take a job with an oil company that is wanting to frack in the neighborhood. Yes, conflict occurs.
And that's not all. Developers want to buy up land and use more water, creating serious issues for small farms.
If you have any interest in these issues, they are well presented and memorable.
...4 more reader reviews
