4.5. Deliciously lyrical. ( )

Anyone who's interested in our nation's food supply, organic gardening or farming, or the effects of urban sprawl should read this book. So should anyone who likes to read memoirs, anyone who lived in the Twin Cities from the 1970s to the present, and anyone who just likes good writing. If you're actually thinking of becoming, or already are, an organic farmer, you must read it.

Atina Diffley, who with her husband Martin ran Gardens of Eagan in Dakota County (Minnesota) until a few years ago, has written a book that evokes in the reader a series of emotions from inspiration and awe to outrage and back again. She begins with her childhood as the daughter of hardscrabble farmers, and goes on to her escape into a job working for an elderly woman who became a mentor in her process of being true to herself. An unhappy first marriage ends in Minneapolis, and having met and fallen for Martin, she takes her infant daughter to Ireland, rents a tiny house and plot of land, and proceeds to plant, forage, and regain her inner strength before returning to make a life with Martin. The book includes, almost as afterthought, much hard-won wisdom about women's lives and relationships.

Twin Citians will recognize that Diffley Road, named for Martin's family who were among the first settlers of the area, is one of the main drags of the southeastern suburb of Eagan. Martin had already begun organic farming there when he and Atina married, but he only owned the house and an acre or so -- the majority of the farmland was owned by elderly relatives. The time came when the land was sold to developers A map included in the picture section shows that I actually know some very nice people who bought one of the houses that now occupy the land.

Before we learn about the development, we have learned about the way Martin, and soon Atina and their two children, know seemingly every inch of the land. They know it practically -- where the land drains well or poorly, where the frost comes early or late, what soil is good for what crops -- and they also know it with their hearts. The sale and destruction of the farmland is not just an economic problem for the Diffleys, but a wrenching dislocation, almost an exile.

For a few years, the Diffleys carry on by renting organic farmland scattered around the county, and finally find the right property to buy -- a derelict farm with a nearly derelict farmhouse. Resettling in Eureka Township, transitioning the abused land to organic farming and repairing the house, they're doing even better than before. Then, Koch Industries (yes, THOSE Kochs) want to put an oil pipeline right through the middle of their farm. (Rosemount, another Dakota County city, is Refinery Central for the region.) I had not been aware of this, since it happened shortly after we moved away, but anyone who visited a co-op grocery in the Twin Cities during that time would have been asked to write letters to the state in Gardens of Eagan's favor. The letters helped, but it took much more -- the Diffleys (with some difficulty) hired a lawyer and Atina spent nearly all her time researching and writing the evidence against Koch's plan. Finally, and amazingly, Gardens of Eagan won.

I'd recommend this book to anyone, really. And there's even a recipe for kale with toasted sesame oil at the back! ( )

This book is a testament to how one family can make a difference. Packed with information on what goes into creating an organic farm and the multitudes of benefits for everyone involved. The chapters on the pipeline legal battle were gripping. Being from Minnesota, Atina is one of my local heros! ( )