Who: Liese Greensfelder
What: an afternoon open house signing celebrating her new memoir, Accidental Shepherd: How a California Girl Rescued an Ancient Mountain Farm in Norway
Where: Dragonfly Books
When: Saturday, 5/3 at from 11am-1pm
Author Liese Greensfelder will be signing copies of her new memoir, Accidental Shepherd, at an open house meet & greet signing on Saturday, May 3rd from 11am-1pm at Dragonfly Books at 112 W. Water St., Decorah IA. Everyone is invited to this free event sponsored by the Oneota Valley Literary Foundation, with support from Dragonfly Books.
What would you do if you were suddenly left in charge of a remote farm—with no experience and no one to guide you? Could you rise to the challenge, or would the wilderness win?
In Accidental Shepherd, Liese Greensfelder recounts her unexpected journey from a young traveler to an unlikely farm steward in the Norwegian mountains. Arriving in Øystese for a summer job in 1972, she quickly found herself alone with a herd of sheep, a stubborn draft horse, and an isolated farm to run when its owner fell ill. With the help of wary but kind-hearted neighbors, she learned to milk cows, wrangle livestock, and survive the harsh realities of farm life. But as winter loomed and the farm’s true master prepared to return, Greensfelder faced an even greater challenge—navigating the volatile temper of the man who had abandoned both the land and those who depended on it. A gripping memoir of resilience and discovery, Accidental Shepherd captures the beauty of a fading way of life and the strength it takes to carve out a place in an unfamiliar world.
Liese Greensfelder grew up hiking Northern California’s trails before spending a year in Denmark as an exchange student and three years in Norway, where she ran a farm, attended ag school, and worked on a coastal freighter. With degrees in plant sciences and a certificate in science communication, she has worked as a county farm advisor, led an agricultural project in Guatemala, and written extensively on science, engineering, and medicine. In 2011, she co-edited The Nature of This Place. She and her husband live off-grid in a cooperative in the Sierra Nevada foothills, managing 120 acres for old-growth habitat, frequented by owls, mountain lions, and other wildlife.
This event is part of Dragonfly Books and the Oneota Valley Literary Foundation’s robust author event series, which brings top-notch writers of all genres to Northeast Iowa to lead in conversations about literature and writing. To learn more about this event and other events with Dragonfly Books, visit www.dragonflybooks.com.
If you find that you can’t make it to the event but would still like to purchase any books from this author signing, give Dragonfly Books a call at 563-382-4275. Our staff will be glad to reserve a book, have it autographed for you, and shipped out as needed.
