What the Flock by Sally Urwin is memoir about farm life in the UK. Sally Urwin was a young woman working an office job in London when she began experiencing chronic pain and serious anxiety. After some time suffering through that with no successful treatments, she met a man who was a farmer and decided to leave the city life behind. 

As this memoir began, I was put off by the romanticizing of farm life. I’m glad I continued listening because after the first few chapters, the tone shifts and Sally shares many of the obstacles and challenges faced by modern farmers. I especially enjoyed the chapters about calving and lambing. The first deep dive into farming challenges is when Sally describes the experience during the Foot and Mouth epidemic in the early 2000s. (Content warning for animal death.) 

From there, Urwin describes more of her life on the farm mostly chronologically. I was very interested in her descriptions of the unique ways Covid impacted farm life. She also speaks about mental health in farming families and the deleterious effects of Brexit. 

Overall, I enjoyed this memoir. It veered into farm life romanticism at the beginning and end, and there was a point where I was tired of the cute anecdotes about specific animals. Otherwise, it was eye opening and engaging. I’d recommend this to anyone who enjoys memoirs or feels connected to farm life. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Thread Books for this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.