From Leonardo da Vinci on the shifting colours of the sky to Charlotte Brontë on the wild moors of Yorkshire, and from DH Lawrence inhabiting the mind of the indomitable tortoise to the intrepid Isabella Bird climbing a Hawaiian volcano, this unusual anthology showcases many voices – lyrical, awestruck, often deeply reflective. The texts gathered here, many accompanied by rarely seen artwork from early editions, are all grounded in close observation and real love for landscape, and reveal the tradition of nature writing to be deep-rooted and infinitely varied.
Christina Hardyment is the author of more than ten books on literature and social history, including Writing Britain: Wastelands to Wonderlands (British Library, 2012) and The World of Arthur Ransome (Frances Lincoln 2012). She is also the editor of Pleasures of the Garden: A Literary Anthology (British Library, 2014).