John Lewis-Stempel is the twice winner of the Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing and my interest was increased by the wood. Cockshutt Wood is situated in the south-west of Herefordshire which is the county of my birth. It is a daily account of how he managed the wood from December to December. It is a particular wood, but one which can stand as an exemplar for all the small woods in England. It is only has three and half acres of both deciduous and coniferous trees, and the only standing water is a small pond.
Our countryside is ‘managed’ and that is why we can see the patchwork quilt effect when we view our farmland. It has been changed to an amazing degree from the days of the ‘forest’ and less regard is placed on natural habitats. And this wood has been managed too, for the benefit of the owners and populace. But back to this book as there are so many issues that are environmental.
It is a story that is the opposite of the one contained in Isabel Tree’s book, Rewilding because this one has been controlled and still is. The writer’s view is that when he managed it, he was free to avail myself of its resources. He carried a shot gun and used it. A cock pheasant for dinner and a Grey Squirrels dray blasted because the occupiers are capable of taking nestlings. That's the way in the ‘wild’. I can see the logic, but do we have the right to interfere like that.
Yes, I am being critical and there are answers out there that we have yet to provide. I loved his descriptions of the inhabitants and his love for it showed through many times. I learned from it and to what we can garner from the fruits, the leaves and also from the fungi. It made me want to live in a wood similar to that and make it part of me; part of my life. The sounds, the smells and the bird and the animal life would be terrific to be that close to my existence.
I started to read it when I acquired it in July and so I am reading it as the current weeks go by. The author is a skillful writer and his lines are poetic.
Thank you John Lewis-Stempel for The Wood: The Life and Times of Cockshutt Wood.
No comments:
Post a Comment