The Rural Voice, 2001-07, Page 36Book Review
Letters from the Country still charm
By Deborah Quaile
McArthur & Company has
recently released an omnibus of
Marsha Boulton's three Letters from
the Country books in one thick
hardcover of witty and captivating
rural escapades to savour.
More than .130 of her best-selling
tales are inside. written by the woman
who traded high heels for Wellies 20
years ago and encountered the most
amazing adventures along the way.
Whether she is scooping up baby
chicks with a soup
ladle. foiling mailbox murderers, or
planting two acres of pickling
cucumbers by hand, Boulton
maintains a keen sense of observation
and affection for her rural landscape.
The tales are arranged seasonally,
from spring to winter, and should
evoke chuckles from anyone who has
a hint of rural life in them. In the
tradition of Garrison Keillor, Peter
Mayle and James Herriot, this
collection of short stories inspires as
it informs. Who could have imagined
that a blow dryer would become one
of Boulton's indispensible farm tools,
or that a chance encounter in a local
tavern resulted in the founding of the
World's Largest All -Female
Marching Kazoo Band? Whether
serving as
midwife to her r
pregnant
ewes, judging
the snowmobile
chili contest, or
analyzing the
questionable IQ
of turkeys,
Boulton propels
the reader into
her hilarious
world, often with
the most tender
consequences.
Boulton confesses that she had no
idea what she was doing when she
traded her city magazine career in for
the move to the country.
"The closest I had ever been to a
sheep," she admits, "was the Pure
Lelfers
from 11.'
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32 THE RURAL VOICE
Wool tag on a sweater. In fact, I only
decided to raise sheep because they
looked small enough for me to handle
and they only have front teeth on
their lower jaw, so they couldn't
bite."
Her work at Maclean's magazine
involved "interviewing celebrities,
actors, writers, musicians, poets and
politicians... I had cocktails with
Sophia Loren and Cary Grant... I
never stood in line at film festivals.
Plus, the magazine gave me a
clothing allowance. Most mortals
would be happy with that, but I felt
that I was missing something."
So her move to the country was
admittedly an extreme case of
impulse buying. One morning she
was visiting rural friends, the next
she was in the back of a big Buick in
the clutches of a real estate agent,
signing'a mortgage on a yellow brick
Victorian farmhouse and the
accompanying 100 acres of land near
Mount Forest.
Boulton has an uncanny ability of
plucking the most unusual incident
and retelling it with a strong dash of
wry wit. Her words are well chosen,
and each tale is polished to a brilliant
little nugget that provokes laughter or
sensitive consideration.
Letters from the Country first
received the Stephen Leacock Medal
for Humour in 1996, and all three
books in the series have been
bestsellers.
Marsha Boulton is the only person
listed in "Who's Who of Canada"
who states her occupation as
Shepherd/Author. Boulton raises
sheep at Lambs' Quarters Farm in
southwestern Ontario, where she also
pens bestselling anecdotal
Just a Minute Canadian history
books. She has been a contributor to
CBC Radio's "Fresh Air" for more
than a decade, and likes to quip that
she can often be found "out standing
in her field" with partner and fellow
bestselling author Stephen Williams.0
Letters from the Country Omnibus,
by Marsha Boulton, Toronto:
McArthur & Company, 2001. $24.95
H/C, 595 pgs. ISBN 1-55278-196-8