Book Review: And I Shall Have Some Peace There

And I Shall Have Some Peace There: Trading in the Fast Lane For My Own Dirt Road

by Margaret Roach

260 pages

Grand Central Publishing, 2010

List price: $25.99

In our dream world, while still young and job marketable, some of us leave a lucrative position in a job that others may envy, and we go off to the woods to find peace and tranquility. Of course, no one really does that do they? Margaret Roach did.

Her new book, And I Shall Have Some Peace There, speaks of the desires in all of us. Perhaps her memoir isn’t your story, but the day to day life that makes such a drastic departure from what she had lived every day for 15 years as the editorial director of Martha Stewart Omnimedia, is part of that proverbial human condition.

Roach’s story resonated with me, as one who left regular employment in 2003, knowing my lifestyle would have to change, if I were to be able to grasp the brass ring that had dangled elusively before me for so many years. But I am married and have the luxury of another income. Roach did not.

Kudos to Margaret (I feel like we're on a first-name basis after reading her book), for taking the risk and listening to the inner voice that called, assuring her that it was what she needed to do. The voice was a whisper at times, but still she heard it and persisted until she came through on the other side. This is the story of her return to a love of writing, nature, and the garden.

Margaret Roach has been a columnist at the New York Times, fashion editor at Newsday, the first garden editor for Martha Stewart Living magazine, and the editorial director of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. In 2008 Roach left New York City for her home upstate, where she is a consultant and avid gardener, keeping fans up to date on her blogs A Way to Garden and The Sister Project. Roach is the author of A Way to Garden, named Best Garden Book of the Year by the Garden Writers' Association of America, and Groundcovers, part of the Burpee American Gardening Series, and co-authored The Natural Habitat Garden.