The Wild Places

By: Robert Macfarlane

Narrated by: Simon Bubb

Are there any genuinely wild places left in Britain and Ireland? Or have we tarmacked, farmed and built ourselves out of wildness?

In his vital, bewitching, inspiring classic, Robert Macfarlane sets out in search of the wildness that remains.

©2007 Robert Macfarlane (P)2007 Robert Macfarlane

Soothing Alchemy in the Aftermath of a Storm

I first listened to this extraordinary book while working in long neglected gardens of a home I was renting. It was during the pandemic and listening to books was a way to feel a sense of companionship in a time when we were so very far apart in so many ways.
Now, here I am in the aftermath of Helene, in these ancient Carolina mountains, cleaning up the debris of both nature and of life, so of course, I turned once again to the wisdom of Mr. Macfarlane and his ability to transport me beyond my aching heart to the peace of wild places.
Perhaps it was because I was diligently working to move dozens of fallen trees to a new purpose as a hugekultur on our land, but the book resonated even more deeply with me this time and I found myself openly weeping many times. On the morning of September 27th, I watched in horror as we lost nearly 75% of the trees of our forest to the forces of wind and rain, unexpected and unfathomable in these sacred mountains. We are fortunate to have only experienced a temporary flooding of our creek, while others lost homes and lives and businesses to the rage of rivers flowing beyond their banks and trees and land sliding down on top of them.
The Wild Places offered me hope, knowing that, indeed, nature will renew herself. We are so very aware of her power and strength here now more than ever, but also of her resilience, much like these people in these tiny mountain towns. Trees will grow, we will rebuild, and the wild places will flourish once again.
Read this book. Be transported. Love and tend our wild places. Please.

Wonderful journey into the wild places

Robert Macfarlane takes us again on a wonderful exploration of the wild places of the British archipelago. His unique way of seeing this world and sharing his finds is a joy. He also introduces us to his fascinating traveling companion Roger as they travel out and about.

Magical

The detailed description of the landscape combined with its interwoven historical storytelling is riveting. He writes of the natural world with utter awe and love.

The wild places

This is such a poetic and imaginative description of the wild places of Great Britain and Ireland . You can picture in your minds eye everything about which Robert Macfarlane writes . Beautiful prose encouraging us all to escape to the remotest spots and repose.

Extraordinary in every way!

I have been listening to this book in my favorite Wild Place on the Wild Atlantic Way in coastal Ireland. And I have never enjoyed a book more. Thank you Robert Macfarlane for your gifts of poetic language and wanderlust!

Rocks are hard, waves crash, and birds soar

I was disappointed. I thought there would be more information about flora and fauna and geological history. Instead it was mainly descriptive about the surroundings. On the positive side I did find it helpful in falling asleep.

Boring Boring Boring

Don’t waste you time, incredibly boring dialogue. Nothing of interest to the armchair adventurer or outdoorsman.