The Wild Places

The threads connecting these wild places are pretty tenuous. Even the definition of wild is subjective as it isn't necessarily the absence of man-made structures. Some of these landscapes are man-made or at least man interfered and their traces are as fascinating as their natural history. There is a loose geological and geographical theme that progresses through this book but even this connection is more about the contrasts and differences. All this is irrelevant because it is beautifully described in MacFarlane's dynamic and evocative use of shining similes and point perfect prose. Some people complain we have too many nature writers. Not me, but there are certainly some that excel. Robert MacFarlane is one, and another is his friend Roger Deakin who's passing is poignantly noted in this book. I don't want to spend a night out on a mountain in the face of a storm but even my geriatric daytime perambulations are enthused by this book which celebrates the sheer otherness of the UK's animal, vegetable and mineral diversity.