HOW TO SEE NATURE

A beautifully lyrical collection of essays on the natural world in Britain by the Guardian's country diary writer. With a title taken from the 1940 Batsford book, this is nature writing for the modern reader. Today we can experience nature every day through brownfield edge lands, transport corridors, urban greenspace, industrialised agriculture and fragments of ancient countryside. Paul Evans weaves historical, cultural and literary references into his writing, ranging from TS Eliot to Bridget Riley, from Hieronymus Bosch to Napoleon. The essays include the The Weedling Wild, on the wildlife of the wasteland - ragwort, rosebay willowherb, giant hogweed and the cinnabar moth; Gardens of Light about the creatures to be found under moonlight - pipistrelle bats, lacewings and orb-weaver spider; The Flow, with tales of the riverbank, estuaries and seas including kingfisher, minnow, otter and heron. The Commons looks at meadowland with a human footprint, with the Adonis blue butterfly, horseshoe vetch, skylark, black knapweed and the six-belted clearwing moth. Other chapters look at the wildlife returned to Britain, such as the wild boar and polecats, and finds nature in and around landscapes as varied as a domestic garden or a wild moor. The book ends with an alphabetical bestiary based on the author's personal encounters. Evans has a lovely way of writing and this is a perfect collection to dip into at leisure. Prettily decorated 176 page paperback.