England

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What to expect

Brought to you by Penguin.

Our countryside is iconic: a series of distinctive habitats that unite to create a landscape that is unique for the rich diversity of our flora and fauna. In England, his most magisterial book to date, John Lewis-Stempel explores each in turn, taking us from coast to moor, from downs to field, from the park to the village to create a vivid living portrait of our natural history.

In his trademark lyrical prose, Lewis-Stempel reveals the hidden workings of each habitat: the clear waters and dragonflies; the bluebells, badgers and stag beetles; wild thyme; granite cliffs; rock pools and sandy beaches; red deer standing at ancient oaks; the wayside flowers of the lane; hedgehogs and hares; and snow on the high peak. Each landscape - be it calm green or wild moor, plunging cliff or flatland fen - has shaped our idea of ourselves, our sense of what it is to be in England.

In a stunning package, complete with decorated boards, endpapers, chapterheads and a map, England: A Natural History is the definitive volume on the English landscape and the capstone of John Lewis-Stempel's nature writing.

‘John Lewis-Stempel is the hottest nature writer around.’ – Spectator

'Assured and expert countryside writing' -TLS

‘His immense, patient powers of observation – along with a flair for the anthropomorphic – mean he is able to offer a portrait of animal life that's rare in its colour and drama.’ – Observer

‘That John Lewis-Stempel is one of the best nature writers of his generation is undisputed.’ – Country Life

‘I love the earthiness of John Lewis-Stempel's writing … The author has seen it, done it, sweated it, and has earned the right to write about it with straw-cut fingers and itchy palms. Brilliant stuff.’ – Christopher Somerville, walking correspondent for The Times

‘It’s his observation of the natural world – the sight, the sound, the smell of it – that is so memorable. He has a distinctively brisk, muscular style of writing that has a poetic intensity and concision. – Guardian

‘Lewis-Stempel sees and hears things others will never see and hear, and he can write about them as no one else can.’– Daily Mail

'Gilbert White for the 21st Century.' The Bookseller


© John Lewis-Stempel 2024 (P) Penguin Audio 2024

Critics Review

By our very finest nature writer ... a pastoral symphony, a masterpiece, and a very English love letter.
Daily Mail
Britain's finest nature writer
Telegraph
In an age when it seems that nothing has been left unscathed by our bulldozing technological advances, John Lewis-Stempel offers a breath of fresh (and natural) air.
The Times
It is now expected of the modern nature writer to draw together landscape, wildlife, history and culture, but few – if any – do it as deftly as Lewis-Stempel does here … There is still a place for this kind of assured and expert countryside writing. Not just a place, but acres of room.
Times Literary Supplement
BOOK OF THE MONTH: erudite and highly informative …packed with humorous, quirky details…a brilliant gift for anyone who loves the countryside.
The Independent
Full of evocative detail, this celebration of nature and place is bursting with historical details and lyrical observations of wildlife and landscape.
Countryfile magazine
He combines Jefferies’s way of looking closely with W. H. Hudson’s wide-roaming curiosity. That he champions them and the likes of ‘BB’ and the Revd Gilbert White in these pages is no surprise. All of them, like the author, were true country souls. This is a book to sit on the shelf beside theirs and not be overshadowed.
Country Life
This extraordinarily fine writer tours England with an eye for every living thing. A work of beauty, deeply informed, a fantastic gift.
Saga
What we have here is the best of John Lewis-Stempel and the best of his vision of England.
The Tablet
A richly enjoyable treasure trove for any nature lover. Gilbert White for the 21st century.
The Bookseller, Editor’s Choice

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