Country and city mice alike will delight in Julia Rothman’s charming illustrated guide to the curious parts and pieces of rural living.

Dissecting everything from the shapes of squash varieties to how a barn is constructed and what makes up a beehive to crop rotation patterns, Rothman gives a richly entertaining tour of the quirky details of country life. 

Also available in Julia Rothman's Anatomy series: Nature Anatomy, Nature Anatomy Notebook, Ocean Anatomy,Food Anatomy, and Wildlife Anatomy.

Chapter 1: Breaking Ground
Layers of the Soil * Topsoil Chart * The Texture Triangle * Mineral Nutrients * Crop Rotation * Contour Farming and Terracing * Windbreaks * Predicting Weather * Composting * An Acre Is...

Chapter 2: Raised in a Barn
Barn Styles * Timber Construction * Trusses * Barn Doors, Bracing, and Hardware * Barn Cupolas * Barn Birds * Farm Buildings * Animal Housing * Feeders * Fencing

Chapter 3: Tools of the Trade
Tractors * Tractor Implements * How to Plow a Field * Inside a Combine * Other Machines * Felling, Bucking, Splitting and Stacking * In the Toolshed

Chapter 4: Plant a Seed
Average Frost Dates * Vegetable Anatomy * Squash Varieties * Build a Bean Teepee * Dry Bean Varieties * Pepper Varieties * Tater Tower * 4 Ways to Grow Tomatoes * Tomato Varieties * How to Can Tomatoes * Herb Chart * Growing Grains * Planting an Orchard * Apple Varieties * Good Bugs * Bad Bugs

Chapter 5: Separating the Sheep from the Goats
Animal Terms * Parts of a Rooster * Comb Styles * Chicken Breeds * Fresh Eggs * Duck and Goose Breeds * Heritage Turkeys * Parts of a Beef Animal * How a Cow's Stomach Works * Cow Breeds * How to Milk a Cow * Parts of a Goat * Goat Breeds * Hoof Trimming * Knots * Parts of a Horse * Horse Markings and Tail Styles * Parts of a Hoof * Draft Horse Breeds * Draft Harness * Mules * Parts of a Pig * Pig Breeds * Livestock Water Consumption * Parts of a Sheep * Sheep Breeds * Shearing Sheep * Parts of a Rabbit * Rabbit Breeds * Rabbit Coat Types * Parts of a Bee * Anatomy of a Beehive

Chapter 6: Country Wining and Dining
In an Old-Fashioned Country Kitchen * Wine-Making Equipment * Edible Flowers * The Basics of Breadmaking * Dairy Terms * The Basic Steps in Making Cheese * Butchering Knives * How to Cut Up a Chicken * Prime Cuts of Beef * Build a Barrel Smokehouse * Prime Cuts of Pork * Dry Curing * Prime Cuts of Lamb * Freezing Meat * Pressure Canning * Root Cellaring * Making Maple Syrup

Chapter 7: Spinning a Yarn
Carding and Spinning Yarn * Natural Dyes * How to Make a Flower Press * How to Make a Cornhusk Doll * Making Rag Rugs * Making Candles * Quilt Patterns