Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #581957 in Books
• Published on: 2003-08
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

From Publishers Weekly
They were DINKs (double income, no kids) living in Los Angeles. Levering scripted B-movies; his wife Urbanska was a journalist and author. In 1986, in their early 30s and weary of their treadmill existence, they made an abrupt change by moving to rural southwestern Virginia to run the Levering family orchard. They hoped to combine that work with freelance writing careers. How they made the adjustment is an interesting and inspiring story. Levering's parents were active Quakers whose commitment to service outweighed practical matters, and the orchard was in debt. Urbanska had to overcome doubts about being surrounded by her husband's relatives and maintaining her independence. In the end, things worked out. If the authors sound smug at times, they probably deserve to be--they had the courage and determination to turn their lives around.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Many people in the United States and throughout the world practice "simple living" because of monetary restraints, but they would quickly complicate their living styles if they could afford to. Levering and Urbanska (husband and wife) willingly chose to simplify their lifestyle when they returned to Virginia to help manage an orchard, leaving behind successful writing careers in Hollywood. Seeking to reinforce their decision, they interviewed people throughout the United States who have made similar choices. They discuss the problems faced when making a major change in lifestyle and share insights into their philosophy of conscientiously working for a better world. Libraries will find an audience for this title in the small but growing minority of people advocating a simpler way of living.
- Marguerite Mroz, Baltimore Cty. P.L.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Ingram
In L.A., Frank was a hot young screenwriter and Wanda was a rising young journalist. They had yearned for life in the fast lane--yet the psychic cost of it was killing them. Finally they decided to give it all up to run a family orchard in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. Now comes their memoir and guide for finding a better life.

Customer Reviews

An inspirational guide to taking charge of one's life
Simple Living is the true story of Frank Levering and Wanda Urbanska, a couple whose constant craving for more of the trappings of materialism while living life in the fast lane encroached upon their sanity and well-being -- until they chose to revert to a simpler life running a family orchard on the Blue Ridge mountains. An inspirational guide to taking charge of one's life and prioritizing what truly matters, Simple Living is thoughtful and occasionally inspiring reading which is heartily commended to the attention of anyone feeling that there contemporary lifestyle is disadvantageous to their truly livingk and are looking for something better -- something simpler.

A Better Life
i don't know if i'm more thankful to wanda and frank for writing this book or to my friend kurt for passing it along to me. either way, it helped change my life.

the book tells the story of how wanda and frank transformed their LA lives. mixed in with their narrative are vignettes of other peoples' searches for simplicity in their lives. maybe the word "simplicity" has become overused and its definition washed out. for me, the book showed how different folks found peace of mind on a daily basis. how they realigned their goals and actions with their values. how they stopped competing and started living.

after i read it, i took a trip to Levering Orchard with my friend kurt. we wanted to meet the authors, to let them know that their book had touched us. so we took some time off from work, drove to virginia and found the orchard. when we arrived, frank was working at the pack house. we bought some apples and told him why we were there.

frank called wanda, who was up at the house, and told her that some "fans" had arrived at the pack house and wanted to meet her. and over time, kurt and i became friends with frank and wanda. we visited them on several occasions and kurt even helped them pick apples during the last week of the season that year.

i saw how they lived ten years after the move from california. i understood what they were writing about in Simple Living, and i began changing my own life. i wouldn't say that life has become "simple", but it sure is more peaceful than it used to be. my daily actions reflect my personal values and i have learned to live well with less stuff. i even moved from california to north carolina, in the blue ridge mountains, not too far from Levering Orchard.

so thanks, wanda and frank, for writing this book. and thanks, kurt, for letting me know about it.

Intelligently Simple
This is undoubtedly one of the best books I have ever read, and yes, I have read many. Having grown up in a small town, moved away to several metropolitan areas, and then returned, I am well aware of the challenges which face those of us who do so. Levering & Urbanska do a marvelous job of eruditely characterizing those challenges, as well as providing insight into the paradigm shifts required to resolve them. Their detailed, yet lively, description of small town and rural life is masterful, honest yet not critical. While their circumstances are unique to themselves, they are/will be reflected in the experiences of anyone making a similar choice. Additionally, the work is more than just one dimensional. It provides insight into both simple living as well as small town living. The writing style was eloquently simple, yet above a third-grade reading level. It was entertaining as well as enjoyable. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in small town living, simple living, or both.