otrops reviewed The Wild Places by Robert Macfarlane
Review of 'The Wild Places' on 'Storygraph'
5 stars
I originally purchased The Wild Places a year and a half ago as a Kindle Daily Deal. I started reading it during my commute on a whim after I'd finished another book and was looking for something else to read. It quickly became clear that this was a book I'd need to read as a physical book.
Robert Macfarlane is an extraordinary writer. He manages to write very lyrical prose without going over the top. He writes take-your-breath-away sentences that enhance, rather than detract from, his more straightforward prose.
The Wild Places chronicles his search for wild places in the British Isles, where some believe there are no wild places left. As Macfarlane seeks out and visits these wild places, he examines our relationship with the places. Almost everywhere he goes, there is evidence or stores of the people who have been there before him. At the same time, he …
I originally purchased The Wild Places a year and a half ago as a Kindle Daily Deal. I started reading it during my commute on a whim after I'd finished another book and was looking for something else to read. It quickly became clear that this was a book I'd need to read as a physical book.
Robert Macfarlane is an extraordinary writer. He manages to write very lyrical prose without going over the top. He writes take-your-breath-away sentences that enhance, rather than detract from, his more straightforward prose.
The Wild Places chronicles his search for wild places in the British Isles, where some believe there are no wild places left. As Macfarlane seeks out and visits these wild places, he examines our relationship with the places. Almost everywhere he goes, there is evidence or stores of the people who have been there before him. At the same time, he starts to see the wild in the most unlikely of places, appearing in the cracks, crevices and forgotten spaces of our built environment.
In the end, his journey fundamentally changes his idea of what a "wild place" is.
I can't recommend this book highly enough. I'll certainly be reading Macfarlane's other books.
