BROWN COWS IN THE MANOR

These charming tales of the countryside reveal some of the pitfalls and pleasures encountered when a couple who have spent most of their life in the suburbs buy a 65-acre farm and begin to raise beef cattle. The farm is located in My Lady's Manor, the heart of Maryland fox-hunting country, and the cows cause a ripple in a lake of gentility. Social pressures steer Rosie and Richard to become part of the "horsey" set, with damage both to wallet and to bones. However the rewards of the country life are great, whether it be in assisting in the birth of a calf, watching an Irish Wolfhound in pursuit of a deer or cantering a tall Thoroughbred across an autumn pasture. Perhaps most rewarding of all is getting to know local farmers who are mostly kind and sometimes downright humorous. Their hostility towards governmental over-regulation is exceeded only by their love of the land and their animals. Some of these colorful characters are represented here in what is hopefully an accurate and honest portrayal. This book is in the way of being a sequel to the author's The Professor and the Brown Cows, which gained a reputation for humor among the local community. As one wag remarked, it went "viral in White Hall" - an accolade which loses some of its force when one becomes aware of the size of this Maryland village. It is hoped that Brown Cows in the Manor provides an equal chance to chuckle for the good people of My Lady's Manor - and possibly beyond.