Black Heels to Tractor Wheels by Ree Drummond review

(Allen & Unwin, $54.99 rrp)

Reading Black Heels to Tractor Wheels is like eating a chocolate bar. The first bite is heavily anticipated, the ‘New York Times Bestseller’ wrapper torn away by eager fingers.

With sugary descriptions such as “but he was a vision, this Marlborough man-esque, rugged character across the room”, Ree Drummond’s real life encounter is quickly devoured. Recently separated from her long-time boyfriend, Ree moves back home to Oklahoma for a quick pit-stop before heading to Chicago. In a chance encounter, she meets the love of her life – described only as ‘the cowboy.’

Savouring the sweetness of each romantic encounter between Ree and her cowboy, the quietness of the country, the reader finds solace between the pages and is content, floating in a glucose-induced peace.

Somewhere along the way however, the sweetness becomes overpowering. There is no depth to Ree, the cowboy, or Oklahoma for that matter. There are bite sized struggles – Ree’s conviction that her mother is to blame for the Drummond family’s collapse, the cowboy’s ‘palpable’ disappointment when Ree gives birth to a girl instead of a boy. Rather than expand on these morsels of substance however, Ree quickly adds another layer of the filling which is by now, a little nauseating.

There is nothing wrong with predictability. ­­The reader knows exactly how Ree’s story will end, and is willing to go along for the laughs. The real problem here is Ree’s lack of focus and knowledge of what’s important in the recipe for the perfect chocolate bar novel. Underneath the calorie-loaded, syrupy prose there is a need for plot momentum.

Ree’s obsession with the exact shade of the cowboy’s eyes and his every outfit, (“his delicious boots...the kind of shirt that perfectly emphasized biceps born from labour) whilst descriptive, veer parts of the book dangerously toward the ‘Mills and Boon’ category of writing.

Ree is actually a very successful blogger and food writer – this book is yet another example that the blogging platform does not necessarily translate successfully to novel platform.

Black Heels to Tractor Wheels is a great book for those with a sweet tooth. For others, it is best to stay away from this food group and opt for something a little healthier.