About the Book
A century ago woodlands were at the heart of daily life. Trees and hedgerows, copses and spinneys provided wood-fuel, thatch and bedding, woodland pasture for pigs and cattle, medicine from tree bark and a wild harvest of nuts and fruit for the home. But the role of woodlands has been in decline in the last two centuries, drifting ever further from our modern lives. Yet there is no other landscape in the British Isles that matches the complexity and variety of life in a woodland, above and below ground.And while sheltering wildlife, woods continue to enrich our language, feed our imagination and still have the power to transform us, literally and metaphorically. Woodlands have not only inspired folktales, music, novels, visual art and poetry, they are also finding new uses in healthcare and as outdoor classrooms.Arboreal is a landmark publication of new writing from woodlands across the UK and beyond. In memory of the great historical ecologist Oliver Rackham, the book gathers contributions from a variety of voices - novelists, teachers, poets, botanists, artists, architects and foresters - to explore why woods matter and mean so much.
Table of Contents:
Introduction - South Mead Coppice - Adrian Cooper,Inshriach - Inshriach Bothy - Kathleen Jamie, Bird Song - Hannah's Wood - Jay Griffiths, Another Look at Glennamong - Nephin Beg - Sean Lysaght, Hidden Places - The Lincolnshire Wolds - Fiona Stafford, Arborotopia - New Forest - Philip Hoare, Chanterelles - Pankhurst Forest - Evie Wyld, Why Woods Matter - Badby Woods - Fiona Reynolds, Forest of Eyes - Burnham Beeches - Paul Kingsnorth, Speaking Wood - Cae'n-y-coed - David Nash, Princess Forest - Coille Na Bana Phrionnsa - Alec Finlay, Medieval Survivor - Chalkney Wood - Simon Leatherdale, Don't Look Back - Piles Copse - Gabriel Hemery, Thinning - Kingsettle Wood - Robin Walter, The Ramsbury Elm - Ramsberry Village - Peter Marren, Two Storms - Tedworth Square - William Boyd, Sand Forest - Tentsmuir Forest - Jim Crumley, Wood Woes - Up the Forest! - Sue Clifford, Ash - Farnley Estate - Simon Armitage, Nine Oaks - Curridge Village - Adam Thorpe,Trunk - Spinney Wood - Jackie Kay, City, Trees, Water - Avon Gorge - Helen Dunmore, Return to Ruskin Land - Wyre Forest - Neil Sinden, Heartwood - Windsor Hill Road - Tobias Jones, Cusop Dingle - Dulas Brook - Nina Lyon, The Gypsy Stone - Epping Forest - Will Ashon, The Green Stuff - Wandlebury Wood - Ali Smith, Forest Fear - Wood of Cree - Sara Maitland, Thwaite - Ulpha Fell - Richard Skelton, On the 7.46 - Shrewsbury to Crewe - Paul Evans, Alison - West Sussex Downs - Madeleine Bunting, Yggdrasil in Shetland - Lea Gardens - Jen Hadfield, What is a Tree? - Stump Cross - Germaine Greer, Laburnum Time - B13 - Zaffar Kunial, The Common Dean - The Edge - Alan Garner, Searching for Natural Woodland - Lady Park - George Peterken, Woodcock - Wicken Fen - Tim Dee, Taking Root - Moonshine Wood - Piers Taylor, Discovering the Spinney - Spinney Wood - Deb Wilenski, Rackham's Treasure - Merthen Wood - Philip Marsden, Still Lives - Berkhamsted Common - Richard Mabey
About the Author :
Authors include: Ali Smith, Simon Leatherdale, Alan Garner, Alec Finlay, Simon Armitage, David Nash, Fiona Stafford, Sara Maitland, George Peterken, Helen Dunmore, Jen Hadfield, Philip Marsden, Nina Lyon, Paul Kingsnorth, Paul Evans, Richard Skelton, Tobias Jones, Germaine Greer, Fiona Reynolds, Jay Griffiths, Richard Mabey, Peter Marren, Philip Hoare, Deborah Wilenski, Jim Crumley, Robb Penn, Piers Taylor, Madeleine Bunting, Kathleen Jamie, William Boyd, Gabriel Hemery, Tim Dee, Evie Wyld, Will Ashon, Sean Lysaght, Robin Walter
