"That's when I saw him -- the cowboy -- across the smoky room."
I'll never forget that night. It was like a romance novel, an old Broadway musical, and a John Wayne western rolled into one. Out for a quick drink with friends, I wasn't looking to meet anyone, let alone a tall, rugged cowboy who lived on a cattle ranch miles away from my cultured, corporate hometown. But before I knew it, I'd been struck with a lightning bolt... and I was completely powerless to stop it.
Read along as I recount the rip-roaring details of my unlikely romance with a chaps-wearing cowboy, from the early days of our courtship (complete with cows, horses, prairie fire, and passion) all the way through the first year of our marriage, which would be filled with more challenge and strife -- and manure -- than I ever could have expected.
This isn't just my love story; it's a universal tale of passion, romance, and all-encompassing love that sweeps us off our feet.
It's the story of a cowboy.
And Wranglers.
And chaps.
And the girl who fell in love with them.
Ree Drummond began blogging in 2006 and has built www.ThePioneerWoman.com into an award-winning website, where she shares recipes, showcases her photography, and documents her hilarious transition from city life to ranch wife. The number one New York Times bestselling author of The Pioneer Woman Cooks, Ree has appeared on Good Morning America, the Today show, and The View, and has been featured in Ladies' Home Journal, Woman's Day, People, More, and Southern Living. Ree lives on a working cattle ranch near Pawhuska, Oklahoma, with her husband, Ladd, and their four children.
Read more about Ree in February's issue of BookPage:
Drummond, a blogger and best-selling author of The Pioneer Woman Cooks, turns her popular blog chronicling her improbable city-girl-meets-rugged-cowboy saga into an affecting new memoir. Drummond deftly describes what happens when life takes a U-turn, taking readers from her chaste but steamy courtship with "Marlboro Man," to their subsequent wedding and Australian honeymoon, and into the first year of their marriage where the two decamped to Marlboro Man's isolated ranch (Drummond had been en route to a new life in Chicago when she met him). What emerges is a charming and romantic yet realistic tale of the forces that can test a new relationship—no matter how good it is. She presents a sometimes riotously funny, always strikingly real tale of love and life. Drummond is intensely likable and writes with the facile confidence of one who clearly knows herself well. Plenty of surprises lie along the way, such as her parents' divorce and an immediate pregnancy following the nuptials. She's sure to have readers in tears and in stitches as they share her adventure. In a word: delightful. Includes several recipes. (Feb.)
BookPage Reviews
Behind the scenes with the Pioneer Woman
Want a behind-the-scenes look at the Pioneer Woman's lifestyle? Assistant Web Editor Eliza Borné went to the ranch to interview Ree Drummond for our February issue—and came back with some video. Click through to watch!
