TWO Victorian farmers are among eight women featured in a new book that has hit the best-sellers list for non-fiction in Australia within a few weeks of its launch.
Women of the Land brings together the inspiring stories of women from Australia who have run their own farms, capturing their ways of life, their personal struggles and their remarkable achievements.
The book has been written by award-winning rural journalist Liz Harfull, who grew up on a farm near Mount Gambier in South Australia.
Among the women she chose to feature were Cecily Cornish from Wando Bridge in Victoria's Western District and Timboon dairy farmer Jan Raleigh.
"Jan always wanted to be a farmer, but like many country kids she was encouraged by her parents to gain a profession, not just because she was a girl but because farming can be a tough way to make a living," Ms Harfull said.
"So Jan trained as a nurse and went on to become a very highly-qualified coronary care nurse, at one stage in charge of the Geelong Hospital."
* Full story in this week's Stock & Land
