Northern California is home to several pig farms; Eatwild.com lists several. There are the Barbarosa Ranchers in Red Bluff, Clark Summit Farm in North West Marin, and Tara Firma Farms in Petaluma. Each of these farms adheres to strict standards for raising hormone-free, grass-fed food for their communities. For young boys growing up on these farms, some methods of caring and slaughtering animals change while others remain the same. More humane methods are now in place than in the early part of the 20th century.
It doesn't appear that there are any active Shaker communities in northern California. At leaset none this Examiner could find through an internet search. Why the interest in the seemingly unrelated topics of pig farms and members of the Shaker community? In 1972 a book was published that deals with the coming-of-age of Robert Peck; his family were Shakers and his father worked on a pig farm.
Book Info
Title: A Day No Pigs Would Die
Author: Robert Newton Peck
Publisher: Dell Publishing (1972)
ISBN: 0440920833
The story of Robert Peck and the time spent on his family's farm in Vermont during his twelfth and thirteenth year, examines the bond he has with his father and the tough decisions that must be made as one reaches maturity. It takes place in an era when wagons were still used to get from place to place by much of the United States and the dependence those communities had on their farm animals for survival.
The reader is first introduced to Robert when he is skipping school and ends up nearly killed by his neighbor's heifer as he assists her in delivering twin bull calves. As a reward and thank-you, the neighbor gifts the young boy with a piglet he names Pinky. As the story progresses and Robert learns more about the care of animals and the sacrifices his father has made for his family, Robert begins to take on more responisbility around the farm. His father must not only work the family farm, but he goes to a neighboring pig farm and butchers pigs everyday. One fateful day, is the day no pigs would die.
This book has been challenged and banned several times. The author uses an authentic dialect, which some find degrading. The author also accurately describes the harsh realities of farm life and the sometimes tough decisions that must be made. Is this inappropriate for middle-school-aged children? There are also descriptions of what happens when breeding takes place between a male and female pig and the description of how pigs are slaughtered. These are graphic, however, all one needs to do is watch one episode of a twelve or thirteen year old's favorite movie to see graphic images. This book deals with a rural life in an accurate, if at times graphic and harsh, manner.
This Examiner had never read A Day No Pigs Would Die until recently (probably because it was banned when she was a middle schooler). It is a book worth reading, whether in middle school or not. It's one of those books that can provide many discussions about one's own beliefs of faith, growing up, and what one holds dear. If you haven't read it, pick up a copy. If you read it as a kid, read it again and see how or if your opinions of it have changed.
A Day No Pigs Would Die is available online from Amazon, Biblio, and Powell's. It can also be found at libraries around the country and bookstores like these located in northern California.
Rain All Day Books
1136 Main St.
Fortuna, California 95540
707-725-5600
Cheshire Books
345 North Franklin Street
Fort Bragg, California 95437
(707) 964-5918
Budman's Book Mine
106 Main St.
Weaverville, California 96093
530-623-6251
