Memories of a Farm Kitchen
Praise for ONCE UPON A FARM By Bob Artley:"Artley's illustrations have a homespun feel reminiscent of Norman Rockwell.  His writing is conversational and informative, like one neighbor talking to another, or a grandfather sharing history and lost practical skills with his grandchildren." --ForeWord"This is a beautiful book, that progresses through the seasons, bringing life to an almost forgotten time. For reading or browsing, it's a delight." --School Library Journal"The book depicts the rural material culture of his era through the use of lush, detailed illustrations . . . It is a story told through the eyes of a boy growing-up; refreshingly honest and personal. The result is a balanced description portraying life before rural electrification as both trying and rewarding, hard and pleasant." --Small Farmer's Journal"The book is not a collection of cartoons, but rather a recollection with detailed color drawings and personal commentary of farm life beyond everyday chores."  --Agri News"Artley's sharp memory allowed him to re-create scenes of farm life from an earlier era." --Today's Farm"It's almost like stumbling on to a personal journal, full of recollections, paintings and sketches." --Farm Collector"Artley details farm life with amazing accuracy and detail . . . It's all here documented from the memory of an Iowa farm boy shared in detail with all readers who want to know or remember `once upon a farm.'" --Iowa Reading Journal"A lively and detailed look at life in the country back in the good old days." --Home School Digest"Illustrated with full color drawings of farm machinery, animals and buildings and detailed with little anecdotes, one can quickly scan the book for small bits of humor or curl up with the book for an afternoon of enjoyable prose." --River Valley Reader"Artley describes--and illustrates in fascinating detail--the many responsibilities of growing up on a family farm in Iowa." --Country Decorating Ideas"Artley strives to keep alive the memories of what it was like to live on a farm in the early 20th century. He feels that farming was neither idyllically romantic nor a burdensome drudgery, just a special way of life that should not be forgotten."  --The Tampa Tribune"You can take the boy from the farm, but you can't take the farm from the boy . . . Although Artley has spent most of his life living away from the family farm he grew up on, he has made a career out of sharing his memories and experiences with people across the country through his watercolors and drawings." --Hampton Times"For those of us who have lived on a farm it will bring back memories of good/bad days. For others it will be an education of how farming life was." --Cannon Courier (Woodbury, TN)"The best thing about the Artley's new book is that it is wonderfully sentimental. With words, beautiful watercolor prints and distinctive line drawings, the author, who always will be a farm boy at heart, captures the reality and hard work of Iowa farm life - as well as the joy and sense of family farm ownership." --The N'West Iowa Review"What sets his work apart from other farm nostalgia writing is his illustrations: Right-on watercolor and ink renderings that capture the spirit of the farm life." --Quad -City TimesPraise for CHRISTMAS ON THE FARM By Bob Artley:"This engaging childhood reminiscence comes alive through Artley's numerous watercolor illustrations." --BookPage"Artley has created a masterful feast, combining charming and informative snapshots of this long-gone childhood." --The Bloomsbury Review"Christmas on the Farm," includes many of Artley's detailed illustrations throughout the book that clearly depict his memories of Christmas taking the reader back in time to Christmas before all of the luxuries of today."  --Farm News"While everything is related in great detail with loving affection, the book is also a veritable history lesson. The kind that counts--not with cold bare facts and lists of dates, but with the personal delight that turned one of the most difficult times into moments of sheer pleasure. --The Sanford Herald"Bob Artley's distinctive illustrative style is enough reason itself to purchase this book." --The N'West Iowa Review"It's a heartwarming rural celebration that conveys an appreciation of the joy of bonding with family and friends." --The Rural Heritage"This book celebrates a season filled with appreciation for simple joys and familial bonds." --Antiques and Collecting"Every phase of farm life is recorded here in beautiful story form." --Winter Haven News Chief"Here he shares his magical childhood memories for all of us, young and old, to experience and enjoy." --Midwest and American Traditions"A marvelously nostalgic-but-never-mushy book about yesteryear's Christmases with great illustrations and a deep down spirit that would be lovely to return to." --The Courier-Gazette"Exceptional!" --Today's Books