Some of the content was interesting but the focus on a middle class woman losing her security and having to navigate poverty felt underwhelming.

Oh if only I were as brave as this author! I thoroughly enjoyed learning about her journey into realizing her dreams of living a more rural lifestyle. I found a lot of the story regarding their atrocious finances quite stressful to read about, but eventually there are goats and everyone knows that goats make everything better!

I'm originally from a small town in Appalachia and when I picked up this book I was hoping to find some kind of connection to a woman who lost everything but found herself in her new rural cabin home. My hopes were ripped apart in the first chapter.

Was I supposed to feel sympathy for the author or empathize with her situation? If so, I didn't. I feel sympathy for the people who did their best to survive the recession and lost everything despite living frugally and making hard decisions. The author and her husband did no such thing. They had three children in private school, three mortgages on their home, and were over-extended on debt just because they weren't honest with each other and didn't want to confront the hard decisions. So, she is willfully blind to their economic issues and her accountant husband doesn't file their taxes for multiple years leading to a $100,000 debt to the IRS.

This isn't a family that lost everything because the economy crashed and burned. This is a family that lost everything because of their own poor decisions and lack of personal accountability. The author would repeatedly make statements acknowledging that she should have known or she should have gotten a job or she should have done more but then would just move on. There was never a moment in the book where I felt like she really learned anything or took any genuine responsibility.

I wish I had DNF'd the book but I suffered until the end. It didn't get better. Just skip it.

This book is about one woman's journey in dealing with the consequences of living above her means. The narrative itself is well crafted, and the story is an interesting and sometimes funny tale. However, the story begins to feel repetitive after awhile because it doesn't seem like the author ever really learned from her mistakes. At that point, the story fell a bit flat for me.

At first when I saw this book, I could not guess what it could possibly be about. Everything. It's about everything.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I didn’t expect to like it as much as I did. But McGaha doesn’t lapse into “woe is me, poor little middle class girl” mode. she makes it clear that they fucked up and this is what followed. She doesn’t hipster rhapsodize about getting back to the land, and I love all the bits about her family.

I couldn't prioritize this one in my giant reading pile enough to see it through. I was confused at the premise and not drawn in to the story... I stopped reading after about 40 pages.

I am drawn to memoirs about people who leave their regular lives in order to start a farm, move to another country, etc. This is Jennifer McGaha’s personal story about doing just that. It starts with a comfortably middle class family living in a beautiful home who overextend and make some poor money choices, end up deeply in debt and completely broke. They move into a ramshackle house in the country that is owned by some relatives and therefore has low rent. It comes with a plethora of problems (including snakes) and some “new normal” experiences with chickens, goats, gardening, and home improvement. Much of this tale is entertaining and fascinating, but I didn’t agree with some of her choices (moving away for a time) because I thought they were incredibly self-centered. The author never takes responsibility for her part in the fiasco, and seems content to whine and blame everything on her husband. Although she tells a great story overall, I didn’t love her attitude throughout. It is worth reading to live vicariously through their cautionary adventures.

This was a very interesting memoir about a couple that had to go from a well to do middle class life to living in a run down cabin in the North Carolina Appalachian mountains not too far from Asheville.
During the 2008 recession, they lost a lot of money and on top of that the author finds out that her husband had not been paying taxes for a few years. Their house went under foreclosure, and with no money except what they made from part time jobs, they had to move to the cabin mentioned above. The cabin had a lot of problems, from structural to being invaded by critters, but the setting was gorgeous with a waterfall right outside their door and wonderful land to hike on.
The author is a very good writer and the book kept me very interested throughout. She tells us about their lives before the move and also once they moved to the cabin how it affected them, their marriage and their children most of whom had already gone off to college.
Trying to figure out how to survive, they started first with chickens, then on to goats and I must say you learn a lot about how to care for these animals and what it is like to own them. She learns to make cheese and yogurt and even soap from the goats milk.
Another fun part was the way she gave us recipes for different meals, drinks desserts, etc
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and her writing, which is very relatable.
I would like to thank NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS for the ARC of this book

Intrigued by the title, I chose this book with only a passing glance at the marketing blurb. I assumed Flat Broke with Two Goats: A Memoir of Appalachia was in the genre of books by and about people who had willingly left the city or suburbs to pursue their dream of homestead living. It's not -- and that's what made it so much more interesting.

Jennifer McGaha and her husband had lived in the Asheville, NC area their entire lives. In the years leading up to the 2008 financial collapse they had overextended themselves -- a "dream" home they couldn't really afford, 3 kids in private school, European vacations, etc. On top of this, McGaha's husband hadn't been paying the couple's income taxes for years. After a reckoning, the couple's home went into foreclosure and they were put on a payment plan with the IRS. Having very limited options, they moved to a semi-finished cabin in the Appalachian hills owned by a family member.

McGaha is a talented writer. The book is full of honesty. It's a story of her time in the woods, but it's also a story of a marriage, owning up to one's failures, foregiveness, how we define "home," and why some people can move cross-country for work and others choose not to.

4+ stars

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks for a galley of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I fell in love with this kind of memoir when I read Hit By A Farm and this is one of the most satisfying reads of someone trying to make it in the farming community I have ever read.

This book is a well-written and entertaining memoir of a family living above their means and losing "it all" during the 2008 crash. They decide to regroup by moving to an old, broken down farm. But the book is not depressing at all. The author and family dig deep, overcome numerous setbacks and problems and come to a greater appreciation of what truly matters in life. An inspiring read. I enjoyed it very much. Highly recommended!
I received an advance copy for my honest review through Net Galley.

This book was not at all what I was expecting and I think that hindered my enjoyment of it. I had read the synopsis but for some reason I had it in my mind that it would be more about becoming self-sufficient in the wilderness than about a family's fall from grace.

I don't read that many memoirs (but I'm trying to branch out more this year), and I feel quite awkward about reviewing this one truthfully because it seems akin to slagging off someone's life and actions. It's much easier to slag off a made up story.

So, I really hope I don't cause any offence with my opinion, but this book made me quite angry! I found Jennifer infuriating. How could she be so clueless about her family's finances? I understand that her husband was an accountant so she left the money side to him, but when she listed all the 'signs' that they were in difficulties, the list didn't read as signs so much as glaringly obvious incidents (such as their power and water being frequently turned off and having bailiffs at the door on more than one occasion). I mean really?

There were lots of other things I didn't understand too. Such as how a family whose main breadwinner was on 'six figures a year' can get into such a terrible financial situation. The decision he made to stop paying taxes (without telling his wife, I should add), but to carry on paying for a very expensive private school for their children. I was also confused as to why they thought it was OK to break into their old house to collect their things, instead of calling the police...

Jennifer details how the house was legally still theirs during the foreclosure but that the owners, previously thought of as life-long friends, had boxed up all their belongings, stored them in the garage, and changed all the locks. The options as Jennifer believes were 1. to contact their now ex-friends 2. contact the police or 3. break in. And they broke in. Why? It was at points like this in the story in which I lost all faith in the narrator. I realise you don't know how you would react in any given situation until it happens to you, but I simply could not fathom Jennifer's behaviour and attitude.

The main thing that annoyed me however, was that Jennifer was never able to look on the bright side. They are offered a run-down cabin to rent for peanuts. Sure, it needs a LOT of work, but it comes with land, and is in a beautiful location surrounded by waterfalls; so beautiful that tourists travel there from all around the world. No matter how run-down the cabin is, you'd think just a little part of them would be thrilled to be in such a beautiful place, I know I would. I couldn't help thinking that they didn't deserve it.

I did appreciate Jennifer's ability to keep calm and carry on though, and I guess I was a little inspired by that, and the fact that she stuck with her husband despite all of his misdemeanors, but essentially this wasn't the book I wanted to read.

The one thing I couldn't fault about Flat Broke however, was the writing. It was written so well I wanted to keep reading even though I wasn't enjoying the story, and that is as high a praise I can muster I'm afraid.

FLAT BROKE WITH TWO GOATS
A memoir of Appalachia by Jennifer MC GAHA


Flat broke with two goats by Jennifer MC GAHA opens up with a beautiful family of 3 children, 5 dogs and a man &wife. How their lives move in a spacious cape cod style house and why &what made them to shift to a century old cabin in the mountains of western north Carolina is the dominant feature of the book.
The book carries with it the heaviness of overloaded burden of a family struggle &the various ways they tried to overcome it. “There are two ways of meeting difficulties: you alter the difficulties, or you alter yourself to meet them.” – Phyllis Battome. Jennifer has altered herself.
I quote from page 89 of the book – “On those nights, everything piled into one heap in my mind: our tax problem, the foreclosure of our home. Bill’s death. My grandmother’s death. My grandmother’s empty house. My kids leaving home. The copperhead. Each event had jolted my centre, severed my sense of stability and security. Each thing collapsed into the other, mingling, overlapping, entwining, until I was unable to discern the greater trauma. Too much had happened at once. I was not safe.”
“Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can’t be kind, true, merciful, generous or honest.- Maya Angelou
Jennifer’s courage needs to be applauded and deserves a good appreciation.
‘House is a building for people to live in, were as home is a place where we love to live.” Leaving our loved home is a tough task and their experiences are quiet touchingly put into words.
This follows friend’s suggestions, children leaving home for their studies and Jennifer leaving for a new job. Major turns and chain of troubles shakes and creates unrest. The author recollects her good old memories and finds it as a source of inspiration to cross her hurdles.
Couples are mostly two different people with different ideas, perspectives &from different backgrounds. The impact of this is normal in every one’s lives. But in this book the misunderstandings lead to a more complicated future for them. Here the author admires her grandparents who were married for seven decades. The details are in chapter VII.
Author has good insight of geographical features which reflects in her writings in the chapter VIII. Mountains, snow, regional /country side description takes the readers to that location itself
From the page 156, I quote, gradually, our lives began to wrap around the rituals of farm life. All those things that at first seemed so complicated- regulating the chick’s water flow and food supply, mixing the right amount of oyster shells in with the feed, cleaning and sorting and labelling the eggs and so on, became part of our routines.’’ A thorough study &procedures of farm life
The author has shared a recipe at the end of each chapter, the book has total of twenty five chapters. GOAT’S MILK CUSTARD and CAJETA are so fresh and interesting to note is the preparation of GOATMILK SOAP.
Many interesting facts about goats, raising goats, plus &minus of leaving close to nature, lost goats, naming goats &chickens, ‘Spring –Lamb” are all dealt in an elaborate manner. Finally, ‘’Patience and perseverance have a magical effect, before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish –John Quincy Adams.

Talk about a challenging life! Jennifer and husband David were living above their means, and ultimately lost almost everything. Moving to an almost tumbledown cabin in the Appalachian, they find that the alternative lifestyle, sustainable living, and a rearrangement of values to be challenging and ultimately so satisfying. Honestly written.

There are more than two goats in this brutally honest yet easy to relate to and incredibly human memoir. There's also chickens, dogs of various sizes, mice, and even the occasional snake - poisonous or otherwise. The last two were neither on purpose or particularly welcome but are unavoidable in the country.



But the story doesn't start out with goats. The story starts out with almost empty-nesters scrambling to keep their suburban private school life going as the Jenga style tower that was their financial health begins to teeter. And McGaha isn't taking this with a relaxed optimistic attitude. She's blindsided, thoroughly stunned and seriously and understandably angry. She doesn't embrace the whole going back to nature journey with joy and optimism convinced that everything will be unicorns and rainbows. Sometimes when a character is resistant to something that seems so mandatory to the reader I find myself becoming annoyed and impatient with the character but this was never the case here. Instead I was was right with her the whole way. The panicked feeling when she finds a very live copperhead in the dining room, the rage when all she wants is a hot shower but can't have one because the fire in the boiler hasn't been lit - I could completely and wholeheartedly understand just why she felt that way and I'm pretty sure I would have had very similar reactions.



The book is told mostly in the present with the occasional flashbacks to the past - sometimes to her own life and sometimes examining what she remembered about her grandparents and great-grandparents who lived a life very similar to the one she suddenly finds herself living. The addition of the farm animals - first chickens then goats - was fascinating and incredibly informative. Turns out no part of me wants to own chickens or goats - especially a male goat - but I thoroughly enjoyed reading about all the ends and outs about how you go about acquiring them and taking care of them.

This is a fascinating, eye opening, and thoroughly entertaining memoir about what happened to a couple when the bottom completely fell out of their lives. Reading the last page felt like the end of a conversation with a friend and I'll be looking for more from McGaha in the future.

Thank you to Sourcebooks for providing me with an advance copy of Jennifer McGaha's memoir, Flat Broke with Two Goats, in exchange for an honest review.

PLOT- Jennifer McGaha was living a comfortable, upper middle-class life in the suburbs, when her world fell apart. A combination of the 2008 financial crash and living beyond their means, created a hole that Jennifer and her husband, David, couldn't seem to climb out of. David dropped a bombshell on Jennifer, when he revealed that they owed over a hundred thousand  in back taxes, and that their house was about to be repossessed. A small solution presented itself, by way of a bargain rental cabin deep in the Appalachian countryside. The cabin was in disrepair and lacked all of the comforts that they were used to having. It also boasted some roommates: venomous snakes, spiders, and other critters. Would Jennifer and David be able to embrace their new lifestyle as they slowly fixed their debt? Would their marriage survive?

LIKE- I liked McGaha's frank discussion regarding her financial issues. She experiences a range of emotions, including a lack of trust towards her husband and a profound sense of loss. Although she never loses sight of the fact that she has come from a privileged background and at the end of the day, she still has a roof over her head and love from her family, she still undergoes a transition, where she has to mourn her old life and reshape herself.

Certainly, Flat Broke with Two Goats, made me think about my own finances and I took this to be a cautionary tale. Your life can easily change by any number of factors. On a much more minor level than McGaha's experience, last year I moved to a different state and sold my childhood home, when my husband got a job transfer. I was depressed over it for about six months and I wish I had read McGaha's memoir during that time, as it's a great boost towards putting things in perspective. Life changes and you must roll with them.

Also, on the financial cautionary tale aspect, it was scary how long it took McGaha to be able to negotiate a repayment plan with the IRS. It's not as if they weren't trying to come up with a  solution, but as time passed, they had their wages garnished and had zero access to credit cards. They really had their hands tied, as they spent years in the process of trying to work out a repayment.

McGaha's transition from a suburbia dweller to living in the country, is fascinating. She embraces her family's pioneering, Appalachian roots. by growing crops and raising animals. She learns to raise chickens for eggs and goats for cheese. McGaha has a beautiful writing style and she really imparts the unique personalities of her farm animals to the reader. As an animal lover, it was heartbreaking to read about their animals getting ill and old, but she writes about learning to tend for farm animals with love and compassion.

DISLIKE- They is not much that I disliked about Flat Broke with Two Goats, but I did wonder about the title. There are far more than two goats in the story and it's not like a particular two goats are more meaningful than the others. The chickens seem to play a big role too. I think it sounds nice as a title, but I wondered when the meaning would present itself and it never did.

RECOMMEND- Yes! Flat Broke with Two Goats is an inspirational story and McGaha is a engaging writer. I think this is a great pick for anyone undergoing a transition in their lives and in need of a moral boost. it's also great as reminder to be aware of your finances and lifestyle.

I picked up this book because of the subtitle, but it’s not actually “A Memoir of Appalachia” but a memoir of the life of a woman who happens to live in Appalachia. I expected information and history about Appalachia to be woven into her personal narrative and was disappointed that it wasn’t. The first third of the book is about the hardships the author has experienced: an abusive first marriage, the collapse of her personal finances, and the death of her grandmother. With so much hardship I expected the rest of the book to involve a lot of soul searching along with stories about her new homesteading life at the ramshackle cabin she and her husband had to move to, but the second two thirds of the book is mainly just about her chickens and goats. The book is wonderfulfully written, and the animal stories were often humorous, and I enjoyed the recipes at the end of most chapters, but when I finished the book I felt like something was missing.

The book certainly does have a great title, which kept me interested in eventually finding time to read it. I was surprised to discover it dealing with hard economic issues so many of us face these days and rarely have the courage to reveal, let alone talk about. Overcoming a financial hardship whether it be foreclosure, no job, homelessness, or even a person physically unable to perform a task efficiently enough to be gainfully employed was seemingly the object meant to attract readers to this memoir. Little did I suspect that in these opening pages it would then suddenly segue into the most engaging but horrendous report of an earlier frightening abusive first marriage. McGaha’s use of parallel nightmares was perfectly suited to her textbook off-the-grid recovery, and though the impetus behind her eventual flight to the country presumably unrelated to that physical abuse, it was nonetheless McGaha again trusting that her life was different than the facts showed them to be. McGaha’s opening forays tackle denial admirably and with skillful craft.

The first half of McGaha’s book blazes out of the gate with spousal abuse, mental illness, deceit, foreclosure, the IRS, and the county sheriff’s department. Add a side trip escape by the female protagonist to the corn fields of Illinois, a temporary academic job, a new male friend, and I was all in. But McGaha eventually returns home to her husband and their mice-infested cabin and their segue into farm husbandry. The book then morphs into a milk toast downer detailing the life of two novice mountain farmers, brought down to the level of a how-to Good Earth manual, especially after her aggressive opening scenes.

Getting back to the land and closer to the earth is certainly admirable, and one worth making a case for. But the underlying reason behind the couple’s move back to nature obviously had more to do with a lack of honesty and trust in their relationship than somehow reacquiring good character. Their farm chores might keep them busy enough to not have to deal with the problems they both created in their relationship, but does little to rectify an already bad situation that in time likely will become worse. McGaha deals courageously in the beginning of the book, promising to provide answers to her rather pathetic marriage. But as the two-thirds mark approached it appeared she was running back into the safety of their mutual disease. Raising goats and chickens kept them both busy learning the skills and tools necessary for succeeding as off-the-grid farmers, but the relationship with her husband was never again honestly examined and felt instead like something endured. The recipes provided at the end of every chapter were tiresome and unneeded additions. These added tidbits advanced little toward the object behind her writing this memoir, which in the end was a mystery. Any novice desiring to learn about raising goats and chickens might get a kick out of this couple’s travails, but for me, based on the promising beginning, an opportunity was squandered.

This was a book about losing it all but also about owning up to your part. It's also about grief and rebuilding. I found it to be very beautifully written. It kept my interest well all the way through and there were tears more than once, a very moving story. Thanks for reading. A copy was provided by NetGalley for my review.