The writing in this book is solid as a rock and the style fits perfectly with the harsh life of farming families in the hills of the Welsh borders. There is a masculine tone to the narrative as the story is mostly told through the experiences of Oliver, the son of a sheep farmer, whose family have lived in the same property for multiple generations.
The book begins in 1941 when Oliver is a young boy at school. He's a big strong lad with a swarthy look to him, and one day other boys taunt him that he looks like a gypsy and not his father. There have always been rumours about him, but his mother has never agreed to talk about it, so Oliver learns to put up a fight and takes on anyone who hits him first.
The farm they live in is barely changed from a century before as Oliver's father Idris prefers the old ways and resists modernisation. He still farms using a plough with a horse and refuses to have electricity connected to the house. Winters are terrible with snow drifting deep enough to trap the sheep, and tending to the animals is a constant battle against the elements. Everyone in the family has to work to keep the farm going and it is taken as read that Oliver will follow his father as the farm's owner.
As the book progresses through the years, the author incorporates issues that affected all farming communities and shows how difficult it can be to just keep a farm going. There is always physical hardship but the farmers and their families are tough and resilient and will do anything they can to preserve their heritage.
Despite the harsh reality of the farming life, there is still beauty to be found in the countryside and the changing of the seasons and Tom Bullough captures the mix perfectly. There is an economy to his writing that trims off unnecessary detail but allows a few well turned phases that evoke exactly the right sound or smell to propel the reader onto the farm. This feels like very grown up writing and a real demonstration of the art of words.
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