The Olive Farm: A Memoir of Life, Love, and Olive Oil in the South of France

The book arrived 4 days ahead of estimated arrival in good shape. I am very pleased. Thank you

An interesting journey where the author and her betrothed find an abandoned, crumbling olive farm to the successful renovation that is fraught with obstacles, this is an engaging take of how two people with zero knowledge of rebuilding a ruin manage with love, family, friends, and neighbors. All of which takes place in the South of France during, one guesses, the late 80s - early 90s when life was much different than today.

The reader is transported to the South of France by the author's expert descriptions! I am enjoying this book very much because it is a fun story, but educational at the same time. You learn about customs, food, olive trees, life, and love. I highly recommend it!

Outstanding .writing and a great story. I highly recommend this book.Carol Drink water is c!early a multi talented actress and writer and her insights into her many careers is a real treat.

This is a beautifully written book. It’s nuanced descriptions put you right there to experience it in depth! I’m grateful since I can’t be there right now. In fact, it lit me to study up on my French again! The world is a Virus mess right now but maybe I’ll still get back to France.We'll see what Book 2 holds! At least I can enjoy vicariously.

I found this book on Kindle, thought it was worth a try and was immediately drawn in by this well-written account of finding and then falling in love with an old olive farm, forgotten and neglected for many years. Finished it, raced to the Kindle store to purchase the other books in this trilogy only to find out that the Olive Farm is the only one available on Kindle at this time. I am so disappointed. I loved the writing style it brought Carol Drinkwater's struggles and victories into my own life. Her love of her partner, her family, her farm and the animals who share their lives are heartwarming. Though I requested that the publisher offer the books on Kindle, I doubt I'll be able to wait and will end up buying the paperbacks instead. Anxious to immerse myself once again into life at Appassionata.

Excellent book, and very readable. The author has the talent to write so that paragraphs can be read in one scan. If you have ever seen an old building in the French countryside and thought "We could fix that up and live here?", this is your book. It's a bit different to Peter Mayle's book A Year in Provence, with more focus on growing Olives and the challenges of doing it all while still doing one's day job (in other countries no less ) and with little funds to do it.

This was a great and well written read. Just wished I remembered a bit more from my high school French class!

Such an absolute joy to read! This was purchased after watching Richard E. Grant’s programme Write Around Europe. He visited Carol’s Olive Farm and, afterwards, I immediately downloaded this book and enjoyed every second of the journey I was taken on with this memoir. I am truly, truly sad that it has ended!

This is a most enjoyable read. It’s insightful, following Drinkwater's journey through her first years in Provence. I particularly enjoyed her quest to understand olive farming and the history of the olive tree. I can highly recommend this memoir.

This is the first of several books about her olive farm. It is autobiographical, well written and interesting. I have enjoyed reading it.

I read one book by accident and liked it so much I vowed to read them all. So this is the first. But now I actually live in Provence. I would like to pop round and see Appasionata.

I read this years ago when she first wrote it but enjoyed it again recently after watching her programme on TV. An interesting account of the purchase of Appassionata in Provence and how she and her husband brought it back to life and how they raised the money. Would recommend.