About John Seymour
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About Mr. Seymour:John Seymour is the most important author on self-sufficiency of the 20th Century. He has written many popular books on the subject, most of which are long out of print now. The Fat of the Land was his first such book, published in 1961, revised in 1974. Except for a few hopelessly doctrinaire books by utopians, this was the first modern narrative on self-supporting country life. It still stands out as perhaps the most alluring. Born in England in 1914, Mr. Seymour began an adventurous lifestyle when he departed for Africa at age 20. His mother was from the United States, and he dreamed of one day becoming a cowboy! Traveling all over Africa, he managed farms, worked in a copper mine, was a fishing boat skipper for a year. He fought in the grueling Burma campaign in WWII. He returned to England as he had left it: penniless. He then lived for some years on a Dutch sailing smack. About that time Mr. Seymour began writing professionally. On achieving some recognition for his books about Africa and India, and on sailing, he began his career as a radio personality for the BBC. Some years later he began working with television, his specialty was documentaries. But the setting for The Fat of the Land was during his early days in radio. This remarkable book is always joyful and uplifting, despite its very sad beginnings. Having lost everything in a boating disaster, he, his wife Sally, and their toddler Jane "accidentally" moved to an abandoned, remote homestead. There they learned how wonderful life was when urban pressures were far off. Theirs was not a primitive and humiliating threadbare survival, but a heartwarming, happy life of love and liberty. They ate very well indeed. They spent time with their children (two of which were born in that house!). They took travel holidays, sometimes for months on end. And all without a whole lot of money or reliance on anyone but themselves! The best thing of about FAT OF THE LAND is the delightful, often painfully funny chronicle of what readers need to know in order to attain the same happy life for their own families:
His book reassures those intent on living in the country and their friends and family who think they've gone mad. "Required reading for anyone who loves the country but is fearful or hesitant at the thought of leaving the city."--Nathan Griffith |
Copyright © 2001 Cobblemead Publications
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