Review:
This book is about Grafton, NH, the Free Town Project (a libertarian plan to take over an American town and eliminate its government), and New Hamphire's bears.
I believe this book got on my radar via Obsidian's review. In a way that occasionally feels a bit roundabout, Hongoltz-Hetling writes about Grafton, NH's beginnings, how it contained the seeds that allowed the Free Town Project to take root, and how that then exacerbated and exposed Grafton's various issues.
Grafton was depicted as a place that had been hanging on by its fingernails even before the Free Towners got there. The Free Towners took Grafton and tried their best to abolish as many laws and regulations as possible, or cripple the town's ability to enforce them, leaving residents even more vulnerable to things like fire and the area's growing bear population than they were before. As the town's problems mounted, things like guns, fences, and occasional neighborly support (which could be nonexistent, or not enough, or downright scary) were viewed as potential solutions. Literally everything but taxes.
I came away from this book with feelings of horror and anger about New Hampshire in general (the Free State Project gives me chills), Grafton in particular, and the various similarities I see in my own state. If you ever really want to appreciate taxes and what they can do for communities, this is the book to read.
The one bright spot: Soule, a Grafton resident who I'd been worrying about since the author described her difficulties moving around in her own home and making everything more accessible, and who'd basically become a shut-in due to concerns about bears, eventually ended up someplace that sounded genuinely healthier and better for her overall.
Yikes! Thanks for your review, makes me want to read this book.
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