Media Center: ‘Bootstrapper’ by Mardi Jo Link
WHO: Mardi Jo Link
WHAT: BOOTSTRAPPER: From Broke to Badass on a Northern Michigan Farm
WHEN: Published by Knopf June 13, 2013
WHERE: Set in Northern Michigan
WHY:
“A woman’s journey of survival against many odds.
“‘Nobody likes a drunk, soon-to-be-divorced, in-debt, swollen-eyed, single mother farmeress,’ writes Link in her down-to-earth, often humorous memoir of her effort to hold onto her farm and her three sons. With ‘Mr. Wonderful’ (her ex) living just across the street, the author chronicles a year’s worth of struggles as sole breadwinner, mother and farmer. In a partially refurbished old farmhouse, Link battled the monthly cycle of bills and the impossible task of feeding three teenage boys on her vegetable garden, one pig and a free year’s supply of day-old bread, courtesy of the giant-zucchini contest she won. With the death of her beloved horse, her dreams of one kind of life were replaced with another vision and a loneliness that she filled with work and the need to survive.
“Whether gardening, stealing firewood or shoveling snow, the foursome eked their way through the lack of heat, food and money, juxtaposing days of intense labor with fun-filled moments like cooking marshmallows indoors in the fireplace or finding the perfect Christmas tree. As winter turned to spring and the threat of losing everything hung over her head, Link was forced to make difficult decisions. But tenacity and perseverance prove life can be good, filled with simple joys such as watching her sons grow into hardworking individuals, eating food straight from the ground and collecting 
eggs from her own hens. And if romance appears at odd moments, so much the better.
“A moving account of how one woman’s willpower saved her home and her family.” —KIRKUS REVIEWS
“Heart-wrenching, heartwarming, and invigorating.
Neither sugarcoated nor wallowing in self-pity, Link’s storytelling is tough, honest, and unyielding. Her account, told with humor and panache, of pulling oneself up after disappointment and loss will appeal to the bootstrapper in all of us.”
—Bridget Thoreson, BOOKLIST
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Media Resources:
About the book | About the author | Reader’s Guide | Download the jacket or the author photo | Listen to the RH Audio
Publicist for this title:
Lena Khidritskaya | 212-572-2103 | lkhidritskaya@randomhouse.com