POSSUM LIVING
How to Live Well Without a Job and With (Almost) No Money
In the late seventies, at the age of eighteen and with a seventh-grade education, Dolly Freed wrote Possum Living about the five years she and her father lived off the land on a half-acre lot outside of Philadelphia. At the time of its publication in 1978, Possum Living became an instant classic, known for its plucky narration and no-nonsense practical advice on how to quit the rat race and live frugally. In her delightful, straightforward, and irreverent style, Freed guides readers on how to buy and maintain a home, dress well, cope with the law, stay healthy,
In the late seventies, at the age of eighteen and with a seventh-grade education, Dolly Freed wrote Possum Living about the five years she and her father lived off the land on a half-acre lot outside of Philadelphia. At the time of its publication in 1978, Possum Living became an instant classic, known for its plucky narration and no-nonsense practical advice on how to quit the rat race and live frugally. In her delightful, straightforward, and irreverent style, Freed guides readers on how to buy and maintain a home, dress well, cope with the law, stay healthy, save money, and be lazy, proud, miserly, and honest, all while enjoying leisure and keeping up a middle-class façade.
Thirty years later, Freed’s philosophy is world-renowned and Possum Living remains as fascinating, inspirational, and pertinent as it was upon its original publication. This updated edition includes new reflections, insights, and life lessons from an older and wiser Dolly Freed, whose knowledge of how to live like a possum has given her financial security and the confidence to try new ventures.
- Tin House Books
- Paperback
- January 2019
- 225 Pages
- 9781947793200
Buy the Book
$15.95
About Dolly Freed
Following her success as an author, Dolly Freed grew up to be a NASA aerospace engineer. She put herself through college after she aced the SATs with an education she received from the public library. She has also been an environmental educator, business owner, and college professor. She lives in Texas with her husband and two children.
Praise
“This book will not only make you laugh but might actually inspire you to embrace a simpler life.” —O , The Oprah Magazine
“Compulsively readable…[T]his strange , engaging hymn to the laid-back life now , in 2010 , one message comes out loud and clear. As the 18-year-old sage Dolly Freed wrote: ‘I refuse to spend the first 60 years of my life worrying about the last 20.’” —The New York Times Art Beat
“An elegant memoir” —Philadelphia City Paper
“Dolly Freed is my hero….[If] this smart , engaging , funny , and frank manifesto…doesn’t make you want to quit the rat race at least a little bit , then you must be one big , fat rat.” —Vice Magazine
“Dolly is a sharp writer , an autodidact and an 18-year-old of unusual competence and grit… [T]here’s nothing precious about Possum Living: it’s genuine in a way few books are…” —Jezebel
“Possum Living , a manifesto for living cheaply…is a relevant and sassy manual for the nonconsumer lifestyle.”—Flavorwire
“A paean to self-sufficiency”—Columbia Journal Review