by Robert MacFarlane

Robert MacFarlane, writer, literary critic and tutor of English at Cambridge, takes us on a journey through the wilder landscapes of Britain. Beginning with his local beech wood, he writes of his visits to a variety of potentially wild places across the British Isles: an island, a moor, a beach, a tor, a forest and more. Whilst journeying, MacFarlane explores both the geographical and the intellectual aspects of wildness. He questions our contemporary human concept of remote landscape, isolation and solitude, and why we need wild places, even though we may not know it. He finds himself feeling scared on top of a cold, harsh mountain, peaceful in the green depths of a holloway and exhilarated by a snow-filled forest. He swims in lochs and tarns, sleeps out on windy ledges and night-walks through pitch darkness. MacFarlane’s exploration, contemplation and lyrical writing is deeply inspirational.

©Julia Welstead 2011