Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Would you trade nine months of freedom for a better life? Nestled in the Hudson Valley is a sumptuous retreat boasting every amenity: organic meals, private fitness trainers, daily massages--and all of it for free. In fact, you get paid big money--more than you've ever dreamed of--to spend a few seasons in this luxurious locale. The catch? For nine months, you belong to the Farm. You cannot leave the grounds; your every move is monitored. Your former life will seem a world away as you dedicate yourself to the all-consuming task of producing the perfect baby for your berwealthy clients.
Jane, an immigrant from the Philippines and a struggling single mother, is thrilled to make it through the highly competitive Host selection process at the Farm. But now pregnant, fragile, consumed with worry for her own young daughter's well-being, Jane grows desperate to reconnect with her life outside. Yet she cannot leave the Farm or she will lose the life-changing fee she'll receive on delivery--or worse.
Heartbreaking, suspenseful, provocative, The Farm pushes our thinking on motherhood, money, and merit to the extremes, and raises crucial questions about the trade-offs women will make to fortify their futures and the futures of those they love.
Synopsis
Life is a lucrative business, as long as you play by the rules. Nestled in New York's Hudson Valley is a luxury retreat boasting every amenity: organic meals, private 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.
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 own 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 delivery.
Heartbreaking, gripping, provocative, The Farm pushes our thinking on motherhood, money, and merit to the extremes, and raises crucial questions about the trade-offs women will make to fortify their futures and the futures of those they love.
Advance praise for The Farm
"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
"A highly original and provocative story about the impossible choices in so many women's lives. These characters will stay with me for a long time."--Karen Thompson Walker, New York Times bestselling author of The Age of Miracles and The Dreamers
"The Farm terrifies with a simple question: How much of ourselves are we willing to sell? With characters so real they leap off the page, Ramos yanks the reader into a world of Haves and Have-Nots, and her question lingers long after we turn the final page."--Christina Dalcher, author of Vox
"The Farm is a completely plausible imagination of the future of pregnancy in a world of ever-greater inequality. What at first feels off-kilter is slowly ramped up to truly chilling, and it's done so subtly that we barely notice the change happening--it's not afraid to ask searching questions about who wins and who loses when women's bodies are commodified, and how freedom and agency for some come at a cost for others. It's sharply prescient, and terrifying, too."--Sophie Mackintosh, author of The Water Cure
Synopsis
Life is a lucrative business, as long as you play by the rules. " Joanne] Ramos's debut novel couldn't be more relevant or timely."--O: The Oprah Magazine (25 Books We Can't Wait to Read in 2019)
Nestled in New York's Hudson Valley is a luxury retreat boasting every amenity: organic meals, private 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.
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 own 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 delivery.
Heartbreaking, gripping, provocative, The Farm pushes our thinking on motherhood, money, and merit to the extremes, and raises crucial questions about the trade-offs women will make to fortify their futures and the futures of those they love.
Advance praise for The Farm
"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
"A highly original and provocative story about the impossible choices in so many women's lives. These characters will stay with me for a long time."--Karen Thompson Walker, New York Times bestselling author of The Age of Miracles and The Dreamers
"The Farm terrifies with a simple question: How much of ourselves are we willing to sell? With characters so real they leap off the page, Ramos yanks the reader into a world of Haves and Have-Nots, and her question lingers long after we turn the final page."--Christina Dalcher, author of Vox
Synopsis
NATIONAL BESTSELLER - Life is a lucrative business, as long as you play by the rules. Skimm Reads Pick - People Book of the Week - " Joanne] Ramos's debut novel couldn't be more relevant or timely."--O: The Oprah Magazine
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.
Praise for The Farm
"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