justamouse Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 This book you recommended on the board today- Radical Homemakers I am shouting to high heaven. this book should be read by every woman in this country. Everything that I have researched myself and thought--she is putting into words. And the funny thing is-I know one of the women that is interviewed-but I never knew she had done this. :001_smile: it is so important-*Especially* as a mother of girls. Dd 16 will be required to read it. I come from a fundamentalist background that says women are to be the helpmeet of the husband and that is done in the home. But I moved on from that place, and as a third wave feminist really struggled with raising my plethora (which kept me from working outside the home) and teaching my daughters things like needlework. I mean, I'm teaching them this stuff for my own reasons (make do or do without, use it up or wear it out) and because I see scads of young women who cannot fix their own shirt, cook their own food, be as independent from consumerism as life might need them to be. But to know how the two meshed-homemaking skills and feminism--I mean, I struggle with these things all the time. Each time I teach my daughters and sons one more household task (cooking, baking, washing) I ask myself if I am raising them to be nothing more than intelligent servants? This book is much needed for me. It answers my questions and is keeping me strong in my decisions. There is no dichotomy between the two. And I will use this information to teach my girls WHY these things are important- and the answers are not just to be good wives. (the whole feminist perspective on this and the history lesson is amazing.) If anyone wants to pick it up and have a discussion on it, I would love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen in PA Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 That looks great! Thanks for the link! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBG580 Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 I read this several months ago and I am still going back and rereading portions! It is in a pile in the baby's room where I nurse and I pick it up more often than not for another read. I love Sharon Astyk's blog, Causabon's Book, as well. Radical Homemakers and CB seem to go hand in hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 I have really been wanting to read this book, but no local libraries have it. Maybe it's time for an ILL... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Tutor mentioned this book last spring in one of the Book-a-week threads (the post is here). I thoroughly enjoyed Radical Homemakers which I then mailed to another WTMer in the hope that lots of my boardie pals would get their hands on it. Very worthwhile reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Oh, sounds very, very interesting! I think of myself in that way as well. Interesting that it is recommended by the lady who wrote YMOYL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staceyobu Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Wow. This looks really interesting. I may buy it tonight... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bugs Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Cool - I am now 16th in line with five holdable copies at my library! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simka2 Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 Thankyou!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dayle in Guatemala Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 It's going on my Kindle tonight! Can't wait to read it!!! Thank you.:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted February 22, 2011 Author Share Posted February 22, 2011 I read this several months ago and I am still going back and rereading portions! It is in a pile in the baby's room where I nurse and I pick it up more often than not for another read. I love Sharon Astyk's blog, Causabon's Book, as well. Radical Homemakers and CB seem to go hand in hand. Oh thanks for the surf material! I have really been wanting to read this book, but no local libraries have it. Maybe it's time for an ILL... Yes, you must. Really, IT IS that good. I cannot pry myself away. I came down only to walk the dogs an check this thread. :D It's going on my Kindle tonight! Can't wait to read it!!! Thank you.:001_smile: You'll be up all night! Just a warning! Thankyou!!!! You will love it. I think you'll have the same reaction that I did. Cool - I am now 16th in line with five holdable copies at my library! Tell me what you think! Tutor mentioned this book last spring in one of the Book-a-week threads (the post is here). I thoroughly enjoyed Radical Homemakers which I then mailed to another WTMer in the hope that lots of my boardie pals would get their hands on it. Very worthwhile reading. Man, I'll have to check this thread tomorrow. Gotta get back up there to read. Oh, sounds very, very interesting! I think of myself in that way as well. Interesting that it is recommended by the lady who wrote YMOYL. What's YMOYL--taking a stab at it--Your Money Or Your Life? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 I love Sharon Astyk's blog, Causabon's Book, as well. Radical Homemakers and CB seem to go hand in hand. Sharon Astyk has two blogs: Causabon's Book and The Chatelaine's Keys. Links for those too impatient to google! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyofsixreboot Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 It sounds like the author has put into words what my friends and I have figured out. Knowing how to cook or do repairs are life skills and both our boys and girls need to know how to do them. I've had people ask why I stay home when I could make a good salary. Good to know I'm part of a 'movement'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen in VA Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 My library has it - I'm first in line! I read the reviews at amazon and got reminded of this article by Nancy Pearcey: http://www.arn.org/docs/pearcey/np_familyinamerica.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBG580 Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 A piece by Sharon Astyk in response to an article written about Radical Homemakers: http://scienceblogs.com/casaubonsbook/2010/07/myths_of_incompetence.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayne J Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 I love this book intensely! I read it last year and have been dying for someone to discuss it with! It confirmed so many things that I had been thinking and made me feel "normal" a little bit. Well, maybe not normal, but not alone, LOL. I am in love with the idea of the home as the unit of production, not the unit of consumption. This has been an issue that bothered me ( I despise being refered to as a "consumer") for a long time. So, what did you like best/take from the book? What, if anything, are you changing? What rang false for you about the book? :bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 My mother's one of the people mentioned in the book :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted February 22, 2011 Author Share Posted February 22, 2011 Sharon Astyk has two blogs: Causabon's Book and The Chatelaine's Keys. Links for those too impatient to google! Ohh thank you! This Impatient One loves you for linking. :D It sounds like the author has put into words what my friends and I have figured out. Knowing how to cook or do repairs are life skills and both our boys and girls need to know how to do them. I've had people ask why I stay home when I could make a good salary. Good to know I'm part of a 'movement'. You know, I felt that way too-about finding that I'm apparently part of a tribe I didn't know about. :p Especially coming back from a NYC weekend with some upscale family that talked about all of the Louboutain shoes they bought and didn't wear. I mean, I don't love them less, but I felt like a cactus is a rose patch. My library has it - I'm first in line! I read the reviews at amazon and got reminded of this article by Nancy Pearcey: http://www.arn.org/docs/pearcey/np_familyinamerica.htm Thanks for the link! I'm so happy your library has it! A piece by Sharon Astyk in response to an article written about Radical Homemakers: http://scienceblogs.com/casaubonsbook/2010/07/myths_of_incompetence.php (quoted from the article) I'm sorry, but any idiot can grow a basil plant. Any idiot can make pickles. Any idiot can bake a loaf of bread. Any idiot can repair a seam. You may not like these things. You may find it frustrating and difficult to master the skill set, and you may hate being bad at them for the time that it takes to get good. Trust me, I'm right there with you. You may not choose to do them because you may find other ways to live ethically in the world than doing them yourself. But you do not get to pretend that they are just too hard for you. You do not get to pretend that you are just not the kind of person who loves picking cucumbers, and that the people who do it for you do it from love and joy. You do not get to pretend that those people are not fully real, you do not get to erase the environmental, personal and economic harm you do in the system because you don't want to do something. Willful incompetence and the framing of these issues as trivial ones of personal taste and choice masks the real and deep issues that underly our "personal choices." Hayes makes very clear in her book what these issues are - and offers an out. Holler seems to have missed that part of the book, along with the part that talks about domestic equity. There's never any mention of the possibility that her husband could have made some yogurt or planted a basil plant. He's there only as the inadequate breadwinner, making it hard for her. But that's not the kind of marriage - or the kind of homemaking Hayes is proposing, nor what I propose when I talk about creating a real home economy. It is a full participant project - and both of you can grow the basil, or even do it together. Holler gets a pass here from most people because she's free to fail - we've managed to conceal the environmental costs of our "personal choices" so well that we don't really think very clearly about them. We carry a cloth bag and crank up the a/c at the same time. These are, after all, just statements of who we are - we're both environmentally conscious and terribly heat sensitive. Holler can lament how hard the work is to find a coffee table on Craigs List or scrub the potties at her coop preschool - because we are not required to think about who will scrub the toilets at a school she sends her kids too where all she has to do is drop a check. We are not required to ask whether the wood in the Crate and Barrel coffee table came from tropical rainforests being deforested, or whether the people who assembled it were treated fairly or even adults. If we care about those things, those too are just personal choices of ours - we're identifiable as having a set of cool values, being part of the cool environmentalist crowd. But we could just as easily choose to be the kind of person who cares, but doesn't do jack - and that's ok too. There's no real hard moral choices here, no right, no wrong, no good, no bad in this view. Of course, that's a lie. But it is a common and persuasive lie. Wow, Yeowch-but it's true. Even my Louboutain wearing cousins grow some of their own food. It's the Old Skool Italian in them that knows a good tomato and basil. :D I love this book intensely! I read it last year and have been dying for someone to discuss it with! It confirmed so many things that I had been thinking and made me feel "normal" a little bit. Well, maybe not normal, but not alone, LOL. I am in love with the idea of the home as the unit of production, not the unit of consumption. This has been an issue that bothered me ( I despise being refered to as a "consumer") for a long time. So, what did you like best/take from the book? What, if anything, are you changing? What rang false for you about the book? :bigear: The bolded, I'm saying Amen to. And I felt as if I was finally not alone, too. It's like the third wave manifesto. What I liked best was that it reconfirmed what my intuition and research had been showing me--which makes me trust my intuition even more. What am I changing? I'm not halfway though yet-but I am changing first by not being apologetic for my choices and my reasons. When I read more on the practical application side, then maybe I'll make more changes. The weird thing is that a lot of this is the way I grew up. Gardening, sewing, preserving. So to have a garden is the norm for me. To remake clothes is the norm. But I still want. I get bad cases of the wants. And I really struggle with contentment. Contentment isn't a gift that some people are born with, it's a character trait to develop. Mine has not fully developed yet. :-) My mother's one of the people mentioned in the book :D Ohhhh share! You don't have to name names, but wow, that is awesome. Is she still pursuing this lifestyle? Has she made any more changes? How do YOU like it? Also, the price of cotton has skyrocketed, and my sewing skills are getting a workout remaking shirts I've been buying from the salvation army. I'll be posting some tutorials. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayne J Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 I'll be watching for the tutorials! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 I put in the ILL request this morning--I should have it next week! :) (Meanwhile, I'm doing my bit by raising 8 baby chicks in my livingroom for my mom, whose chicken coop has just one lonely chicken in it now.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted February 22, 2011 Author Share Posted February 22, 2011 I put in the ILL request this morning--I should have it next week! :) (Meanwhile, I'm doing my bit by raising 8 baby chicks in my livingroom for my mom, whose chicken coop has just one lonely chicken in it now.) *sniff* I miss my chickens! And I loved hearing all of the peeping when they were babies. Tell them I love them, for me? :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 It's in my amazon cart. (I'll have to take your word for it that it's worthy of ownership as there is no possibility of getting it from my library.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted February 23, 2011 Author Share Posted February 23, 2011 It's in my amazon cart. (I'll have to take your word for it that it's worthy of ownership as there is no possibility of getting it from my library.) There is no fluff in this book-really. I'm amazed at the lack of fluff. And I'm actually thinking of buying a hard copy, too just to pass out to non e-reader friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Oh my goodness, this book is popular! There are a load of holds at my library, but I'm sure I'll be thanking you all when I actually get to read it 3 months from now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyofsixreboot Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Not one of the three library systems I frequent has it or is it even available for ILL. Well, hmph! I guess on just go on homemaking on my own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted February 23, 2011 Author Share Posted February 23, 2011 Not one of the three library systems I frequent has it or is it even available for ILL. Well, hmph! I guess on just go on homemaking on my own. Request it. They can buy it for you-esp when you say how popular it is. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yslek Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Cool - I am now 16th in line with five holdable copies at my library! Wonder if we're in the same library system...I'm #17 in line. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennifersLost Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 I bought this yesterday on your recommendation and am reading it now in between editing chapters of an audio book. It's got me really thinking about how I organize my life, and it's very timely for several reasons in my business. I either need to force my book group to read this or get it on audio to listen to with my husband because I feel like I need to discuss particulars with someone. We already fall into this category as a family in that my husband and I both work from home, we are expanding our gardening and will "put by" food this year. But we've both also faced big issues with our own companies coming up against huge corporate companies in the past few years and seen how the corporate culture of cheap mass consumption is really harming people's ability to make a living wage. Anyway - I look forward to all of you reading the book and starting some good discussions here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughing lioness Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 On my list. can't wait to get ahold of it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 *sniff* I miss my chickens! And I loved hearing all of the peeping when they were babies. Tell them I love them, for me? :001_smile: Done. :) They are growing very fast--we got them yesterday, and they grew overnight, and just now I looked at them and they've grown again. :001_huh: The peeping is indeed adorable, but last night when they were all asleep snuggled up with each other was even more so! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted February 23, 2011 Author Share Posted February 23, 2011 I bought this yesterday on your recommendation and am reading it now in between editing chapters of an audio book. It's got me really thinking about how I organize my life, and it's very timely for several reasons in my business. I either need to force my book group to read this or get it on audio to listen to with my husband because I feel like I need to discuss particulars with someone. We already fall into this category as a family in that my husband and I both work from home, we are expanding our gardening and will "put by" food this year. But we've both also faced big issues with our own companies coming up against huge corporate companies in the past few years and seen how the corporate culture of cheap mass consumption is really harming people's ability to make a living wage. Anyway - I look forward to all of you reading the book and starting some good discussions here! I so hear you about battling large corporations--or worse, the regulations that we have to follow because of them and how crippling it is to the small businesses. I mean, I feel good about what we do and who we are, but I want to dig deeper. And I'm going to start some discussions, soon. I just keep coming up with more and more questions. I'll be back later with some. :001_smile: On my list. can't wait to get ahold of it! I really can't wait to hear what you think. I love reading your opinions. Done. :) They are growing very fast--we got them yesterday, and they grew overnight, and just now I looked at them and they've grown again. :001_huh: The peeping is indeed adorable, but last night when they were all asleep snuggled up with each other was even more so! You know, I'm going to have to subversively get chickens. I don't think I can live the rest of my life without them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Well, you really ought to thank whichever of the WTMers recommended the book to me. :001_smile: I loved Radical Homemakers except for Ms. Hayes' views on government assistance programs. If someone has a graduate degree but chooses to play Ma Ingalls that's fine- just don't expect a handout from the U.S. taxpayers. Either support yourself and your family on your homestead's income, or suck it up and get a regular job. Ms. Hayes advocates mooching off those who pay into the system and that absolutely infuriates me. :cursing: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted February 23, 2011 Author Share Posted February 23, 2011 Well, you really ought to thank whichever of the WTMers recommended the book to me. :001_smile: I loved Radical Homemakers except for Ms. Hayes' views on government assistance programs. If someone has a graduate degree but chooses to play Ma Ingalls that's fine- just don't expect a handout from the U.S. taxpayers. Either support yourself and your family on your homestead's income, or suck it up and get a regular job. Ms. Hayes advocates mooching off those who pay into the system and that absolutely infuriates me. :cursing: :001_smile: I thank them, too! I thought she eloquently reasoned why assistance programs like that build stronger communities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 (edited) :001_smile: I thank them, too! I thought she eloquently reasoned why assistance programs like that build stronger communities. I read the book when it first came out, and I thought so as well. I enjoyed the book a lot, but I didn't really learn anything new...radical homemaking has been my life for a very long time, including being politically motived, plus many years of raising chickens & worms, gadening (even when I lived on the edge of town on a small lot), composting (what they chickens don't eat) etc. I think it's wonderful when smart people can put it all together and make it look attractive. That's something Amy D was not able to do. She was not cool enough, not sexy enough...or something. Edited February 23, 2011 by LibraryLover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 We recently moved back to the US and I had to buy a new washer/dryer since I haven't owned one in a few years. I found that sales clerks were willing to make all sorts of interesting statements to me about washing machines. My favorite was the guy who told me that detergents didn't do anything other than make lots of suds (I managed not to vent to him that detergents don't actually make lots of suds, but that they do change the surface tension of the water, allowing it to more easily penetrate the fabrics and clean them. DH laughed when I told him that and told me he loved it when I talked like an old boilers officer.) The point being that there is some knowledge and science behind the daily life that is part of operating a home. It is easy to be played the fool if you don't have this background and understanding. I know many families who are willing to either have their cub scout sons be out of uniform, tuck important rank patches into plastic holders or pay $3+ per patch to have someone else do the sewing. (I can turn out a full uniform shirt worth of patches in one good movie.) Looking forward to finding the book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 I thought she eloquently reasoned why assistance programs like that build stronger communities. I support helping out those who are low-income because of circumstance not those who could earn a decent income and simply choose against it. An able-bodied individual with a graduate degree should not be eligible to receive Medicaid or food stamps or whatever simply because she hates the corporate life and wants to play at being a farmer. It's not fair to burden the system unnecessarily. 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 comes to mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 My library has it - I'm first in line! I read the reviews at amazon and got reminded of this article by Nancy Pearcey: http://www.arn.org/docs/pearcey/np_familyinamerica.htm I liked this article enough that it's been saved to my harddrive for several computers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted February 24, 2011 Author Share Posted February 24, 2011 I support helping out those who are low-income because of circumstance not those who could earn a decent income and simply choose against it. An able-bodied individual with a graduate degree should not be eligible to receive Medicaid or food stamps or whatever simply because she hates the corporate life and wants to play at being a farmer. It's not fair to burden the system unnecessarily. 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 comes to mind. I think I got a totally different message from the book than you did. I'll leave it at that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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