The Best Technology Writing, 2009: 2009
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"The ubiquity of the digital lifestyle has forced us to write and think about technology in a...
Melanie Caldicott (6 KP) rated The Midnight Library in Books
Apr 29, 2021
Spring; Summer; Autumn; Winter
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Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter... in prose and poetry both old and new, the acclaimed Seasons series...
travel poetry nature
I Sleep Around
10.0
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With no camping or RV experience, author Sue Ann Jaffarian decided to chuck her life in Los Angeles...
Fast Food and Gin on the Lawn
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Fast Food and Gin on the Lawn is a unique and contemporary insight into the political and cultural...
The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot
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The Old Ways is the stunning fourth book by acclaimed nature writer Robert Macfarlane. Shortlisted...
Adam Colclough (3 KP) rated The January Man: A Year of Walking Britain in Books
Apr 19, 2018
The sometimes awkward, but always close, relationship between journalist Christopher Somerville and his war hero father is at the heart of this hugely engaging mix of memoir and nature writing. Their shared love of walking was the bond that united two very different characters in a story that unfolds against a backdrop of profound social change.
The quiet stoicism that saw a generation of men through the war giving way to rebellion born of affluence, then morphing into the busy atomisation of twenty first century life. This could make for a maudlin exercise in chin stroking, but is saved from it by Somerville’s good humour and inherent optimism.
Added to this is a deep love of nature and the English countryside and the people who have painted, written about or made their living from it over the centuries. Somerville is able to translate this into nature writing that carries the message that we should value what we’ve got without being either sentimental or didactic.
As a memoirist, he has an eye for the eccentricities of family life and a welcome sense of empathy with the experience of his parent’s generation and how it shaped their outlook. Being reserved is not the same thing as being distant, love strong enough to last a lifetime doesn’t need to announce itself with flowers and candy hearts; it manifests in the little acts that make up a life.
This is also a resolutely practical book, something Somerville senior would have approved of, with several associated walks that can be downloaded. Even if the journey from the bookcase to your easy chair is the closest you get to hiking, it is still worth reading.
Wildwood: A Journey Through Trees
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Roger Deakin's Wildwood is a much loved classic of nature writing Wildwood is about the element...
He Played for His Wife and Other Stories
Anthony Holden and Natalie Galustian
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He Played For His Wife...Poker has grown into one of the most popular sports in the world, with...
Extreme Animals
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Prepare to be amazed by the most astounding feats in the natural world. Did you know that the mantis...