The Farm
Books | Fiction / Literary
3.7
(258)
Joanne Ramos
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Life is a lucrative business, as long as you play by the rules. Skimm Reads Pick • People Book of the Week • Belletrist Book Pick • “[Joanne] Ramos’s debut novel couldn’t be more relevant or timely.”—O: The Oprah MagazineNAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Time • Glamour • Real Simple • Good Housekeeping • Marie Claire • Town & Country Nestled in New York’s Hudson Valley is a luxury retreat boasting every amenity: organic meals, personal fitness trainers, daily massages—and all of it for free. In fact, you’re paid big money to stay here—more than you’ve ever dreamed of. The catch? For nine months, you cannot leave the grounds, your movements are monitored, and you are cut off from your former life while you dedicate yourself to the task of producing the perfect baby. For someone else. Jane, an immigrant from the Philippines, is in desperate search of a better future when she commits to being a “Host” at Golden Oaks—or the Farm, as residents call it. But now pregnant, fragile, consumed with worry for her family, Jane is determined to reconnect with her life outside. Yet she cannot leave the Farm or she will lose the life-changing fee she’ll receive on the delivery of her child. Gripping, provocative, heartbreaking, The Farm pushes to the extremes our thinking on motherhood, money, and merit and raises crucial questions about the trade-offs women will make to fortify their futures and the futures of those they love.NOMINATED FOR THE NAACP IMAGE AWARD • LONGLISTED FOR THE CENTER FOR FICTION FIRST NOVEL PRIZE“So many factors—gender, race, religion, class—may determine where you come down on the surrogacy debate. . . . Ramos plays with many of these notions in her debut novel, The Farm, which imagines what might happen were surrogacy taken to its high-capitalist extreme. . . . The stage is set for lively book chat.”—The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice)“A thrilling read.”—New York “Grippingly realistic.”—Entertainment Weekly“Brilliant.”—New York Post“A provocative idea, and Ramos nails it . . . Crisp and believable, this smart debut links the poor and the 1 percent in a unique transaction that turns out to be mutually rewarding.”—People“Wow, Joanne Ramos has written the page-turner about immigrants chasing what’s left of the American dream. . . . Truly unforgettable.”—Gary Shteyngart, New York Times bestselling author of Super Sad True Love Story and Lake Success
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More Details:
Author
Joanne Ramos
Pages
336
Publisher
Random House Publishing Group
Published Date
2019-05-07
ISBN
1984853767 9781984853769
Ratings
Google: 3
Community ReviewsSee all
"This is the most boring book I have ever read in my life! There are about 15 main characters that are all completely uninteresting, the plot is so dull at one point I got excited because b/c for several pages you think someone may have cancer, turns out they don’t. I know that’s a spoiler but, it just shows how effing stupid this book is! "
B S
Brandy Schluterman
"DNF’d @75%"
S
Sereen
"Different from anything I’ve read in the past."
S J
Suzanne Jamison
"I can appreciate that this book is a commentary on the elitist side of capitalism that can dehumanize its employees under the guise of a "job opportunity." In terms of the actual plot though, there were times that it dragged and while making mistakes is realistic, all of the characters seemed to only be advancing their own interests and made stupid errors that felt pointless at times. Not quite dystopian, not quite realistic."
"Ramos captures the uniquely delicate experience of Filipina immigrants trying to thrive amongst their ultra-rich employers. As a Filipina myself, I saw my own family members reflected in Ramos' characters. Her portrayal of well-meaning white liberals with their grey ethics and morality is handled well. She doesn't make anyone villainous in order to punctuate the emotionality of the story. "