The daughter of two hippies who taught her to love nature and the art of growing vegetables, Carpenter grew up in the fields. He later studied biology and philology at the University of Washington and graduated from the University of California, Berkeley School of Journalism, where he studied with writer, journalist, and activist Michael Pollan. She has written for media such as Mother Jones, Salon and SF, and is also co-author with Traci Vogel of Do not Jump! (2002), the famous survival guide published by Sasquatch Books.

But Novella is best known for her bestseller The Urban Farm (2009), in which she describes her experiences riding a sprawling farm in a ramshackle and troubled neighborhood just a mile from downtown Oakland, California. In March 2011, Oakland municipal authorities said Carpenter would have to close his farm because he was selling surplus production without permission. In April, after extensive debate leading to a review of city policies regarding urban agriculture, Carpenter was granted a conditional use permit for a residential farm on a 4,500-square-meter parcel, allowing him it supports more than 40 animals, including ducks, chickens, rabbits, pigs and goats.