Pleasant Valley (1945): This non-fiction work was the first of Bromfield's so called "Farm Books". It begins with the telling of his coming to Pleasant Valley and the creation of Malabar Farm. The book also describes the inspiration for and the building of the author's unique country home, his "Big House". Bromfield rounds out the book with a number of interesting studies of local history and of individual personalities either related to or of special interest to the him. In the pages of Pleasant Valley Bromfield expresses very clearly his love of the the land and the need to preserve it. One critic compared this book favorably with Thoreau's Walden.