DaytonDailyNews.com

Gene Logsdon lives at what he describes as a "small-scale experimental farm" in north-central Ohio. He raises sheep, cultivates a variety of crops and writes books — more than two dozen thus far.

He imparts his wisdom in memoirs like "You Can Go Home Again" and "Adventures of a Contrary Life." A passion for farm ponds led him to write "The Pond Lovers."

A real Renaissance Man, Logsdon even writes fiction, most recently "The Last of the Husbandmen: A Novel of the Farming Life." Set in an Ohio farming community, it traces the lives of two young men, Ben and Emmet. In 1940, as the story begins, they are embarking on very different paths.

Ben's life is the central focus here. He is a husbandman, a follower of the old ways. He loves farming. His character is clearly a mouthpiece for the author's viewpoints on agriculture. Ben's family is poor. His father, Nat, a German veteran of World War I, came to this country after the war and scraped together the money to buy a farm by distilling moonshine whiskey.

Emmet, Ben's best friend, is a spoiled rich kid. His family owns a huge farm and the bank. Their town bears his family name. WWII changes his luck. Emmet goes to war and experiences horrors.

Meanwhile, back on the farm, Ben is figuring out how he can come up with the cash to buy his own place. Logsdon weaves a complex tapestry of the intertwined relationships in this rural community during the next 45 years. He writes what he knows. His farmers shake the dust off their boots at the local cafe and bemoan commodity prices or the weather.

They battle over land at farm auctions. They gossip. They plot. They worry. Farmers are the biggest gamblers in the world. A record harvest usually translates into low prices. As they struggle to get an edge or even to make a profit, they see their margins dwindle, shredded by costs of chemicals and equipment.

While the farms around him get larger, Ben, the contrary farmer, spurns the new techniques. He plows with horses, fertilizes with manure and refuses to borrow money. His neighbors abandon their livestock to focus on raising grain. Ben insists on keeping his dairy herd.

"The Last of the Husbandmen" reads like a parable. Emmet is the grasshopper, fiddling with crazy schemes that lead to disaster. Ben is the ant, steady and industrious, storing away the fruit of his labors to keep him happy and warm all winter. Logsdon addresses his readers through Ben.

This uplifting book had a few surprises. A scary episode with the Ku Klux Klan morphs into slapstick. A murder occurs during a land dispute, and Logsdon pulls out all the stops for a drunken funeral that would do Lake Wobegon proud.

Vick Mickunas blogs about books daily at www.DaytonDailyNews.com/booknook. Contact him at vick@vickmickunas.com