The Planter of Modern Life

I couldn't put this book down. In this wonderful biography, Stephen Heyman pulls the curtain back so those of us who practically idolized this bigger-than-life soil spokesman can finally understand the complicated man behind the legend. -- Joel Salatin, founder of Polyface Farm and author of Folks, This Ain't Normal A brilliant, engaging read about the life of a literary icon and, until now, unrecognized founder of the organic movement. -- Dan Barber, chef of Blue Hill at Stone Barns and author of The Third Plate If Stephen Heyman had written Louis Bromfield's life as a novel, readers would have found the tale too tall to believe. -- Deirdre Bair, author of Parisian Lives The astounding tale of Louis Bromfield, a rare and accomplished figure who has vanished from collective memory, despite his importance to issues ranging from organic food to the ephemeral nature of fame. An engaging and fascinating book on many levels. -- Mark Kurlansky, author of Cod and Salt This is more than a sparkling biography, it's a botanical adventure story of a full, plant-based bohemian life, following the journey of a modern Johnny Appleseed from Ohio to World War I France to Hollywood to our dinner plates. -- Michael W. Twitty, author of The Cooking Gene Mesmerizing. Abounding in wit, insight, elegance, and narrative talent, The Planter of Modern Life is at once terribly entertaining and subtly illuminating-rather like Bromfield himself, a man at ease in the most rarified Parisian gatherings and bumping along on a tractor on his Ohio farm. This original, ardent visionary of the American environmental future still has much to teach us. -- Victoria Johnson, Pulitzer Prize finalist for American Eden