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Woodston
Woodston
Oct 22, 2024 2:44 AM

Author:John Lewis-Stempel

Woodston

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

'Lewis-Stempel is one of our finest nature writers ... He writes with delicate observation and authority, giving us in Woodston a book teeming with fascinating details, anecdotes and penetrating insights into the real cost of our denatured countryside.' - Sunday Times

'The English countryside is 'a work of human art, done by the many and the nameless' and John Lewis-Stempel wanted to celebrate it. He has succeeded admirably.' - Daily Mail

_________________

In the beginning was the earth...

From the Paleozoic volcanoes that stained its soil, to the Saxons who occupied it, to the Tudors who traded its wool, to the Land Girls of wartime, John Lewis-Stempel charts a sweeping, lyrical history of Woodston: the quintessential English farm.

With his combined skills of farmer and historian, Lewis-Stempel digs deep into written records, the memories of relatives, and the landscape itself to celebrate the farmland his family have been bound to for millennia. Through Woodston's life, we feel the joyful arrival of oxen ploughing; we see pigs rootling in the medieval apple orchard; and take in the sharp, drowsy fragrance of hops on Edwardian air. He draws upon his wealth of historical knowledge and his innate sense of place to create a passionate, fascinating biography of farming in England.

Woodston not only reminds us of the rural riches buried beneath our feet but of our shared roots that tie us to the land.

Reviews

One of Britain's finest nature writers...Lewis-Stempel maps an intriguing journey through his ancestral farmland.

—— Radio Times

Hardback Book of the Month: John Lewis-Stempel has ... an eye for vivid detail who creates evocative images as he shares his knowledge and love of the countryside.

—— CHOICE magazine

From a master of storytelling... Other writers have written about the history of agriculture ... but this writer is the master, because his book is not just a scholarly treatise. It is about the history of agriculture, yes, but it is a personal account, written with a great love of the subject. It is the 'biography' of a farm and the English landscape, written through the eyes of a man who is a true wordsmith, knowledgeable on his subject and lover of the natural world. It is these enthusiasms which make it so readable ... [Lewis-Stempel is] a writer who is without equal in his field.

—— David Hill , Western Morning News

A compelling read, crammed with eyewitness accounts, and an immensely valuable guide to a great and terrible industry.

—— The Economist

Offers a foretaste of almost everything that followed in the later 20th century ... Fisher narrates this hefty history with remarkable restraint.

—— Barnaby Crowcroft , Literary Review

Here, at last, is the book I have long been waiting for: an unsparing, comprehensive, and thoroughly documented history of the global oil industry and its pernicious influence on human society and the planet we inhabit... Essential reading.

—— Michael Klare

A book that offers the reader a clear-eyed analysis of the global history of oil exploration and exploitation ... very deeply researched, wonderfully illuminating, penetrating in its analysis, and written with great verve. It is a gem of a book, a brave book, a book that will become indispensable in this field.

—— Douglas Newton, author of THE DARKEST DAYS

Fisher's extensive research builds upon the foundations of global petroleum histories and then drills deeper to illuminate the intricate contexts of the origins to our oil addiction. A Pipeline Runs Through It is sure to spark some lively debates over the causes and outcomes of petroleum production through the ages.

—— Stephen C. Cote, Ph.D., author of OIL AND NATION

Impressively researched and fun to read, A Pipeline Runs Through It provides our deepest understanding yet of oil's early decades, foreshadowing its rise into a vital strategic commodity that determined the fate of nations in the twentieth century.

—— John V. Bowlus, Lecturer and Researcher at Kadir Has University, Istanbul

Emma Smith's history of the physical book is a thing to cherish ... witty and ingenious ... Smith reads with all her senses alert ... A wise, funny, endearingly personal book

—— Peter Conrad , Observer

Anyone who's ever enjoyed the feel or indeed smell of a book should read Emma Smith's delightful and informative Portable Magic: A History of Books and Their Readers

—— Lucasta Miller , Spectator Books of the Year

From bullet-stopping Bibles to tomes bound in human skin, Smith's history of books revels in their magic and malignity. It skewers our faith in the written word yet repays it handsomely

—— Telegraph

Outstanding... a deep dive into the nuts and volts of Tesla

—— Minneapolis Star Tribune

The tale of Tesla's ascent is inherently dramatic and compellingly told

—— NPR.org

A riveting saga...Power Play reads like a novel

—— The Free Lance–Star

Eminently readable...A must-read for any fan or critic

—— Business Insider

Josiah Wedgwood was "the Steve Jobs" of the 18th century, according to Tristram Hunt, the historian and V&A director. Wedgwood, of modest background but expansive inventive genius, turned a Staffordshire pottery firm into a global company, one that showed that Britain could make high-quality porcelain, a high-demand product in the new age of tea drinking. Not bad for a man who couldn't turn a wheel because childhood disease disabled one of his legs. He was nicknamed "Owd Wooden Leg" by his workers - and referred to the day he lost his limb as "Saint Amputation Day".

—— Robbie Millen , The Times Books of the Year

Tristram Hunt, in The Radical Potter, underlines brilliantly the consumerism and politics of the age in the character of Josiah Wedgwood, in whom we can see all the energy of the era - the campaign for abolition, the birth of international trade, the stirrings of the industrial revolution, the combination of mass production and aesthetic sense.

—— Catherine Ostler , Aspects of History Books of the Year

Where Rooted ploughs its own shining furrow in its humanity ... but also the gathered, inspirational stories of farmers trying to do better and greener.

—— John Lewis-Stempel

A wonderful volume on the whole Apollo program. As a geologist who worked closely with the astronauts and taught them how to photograph the Moon during the Apollo missions, I was amazed at the detail and clarity of these remastered versions Andy has produced, 50 years later. Also impressive is the research to produce such an accurate record. The information along with each photograph helps tell the story of the program in such an immersive way. He really has done a great deal for the legacy of the Apollo program

—— Dr Farouk El-Baz

A handsome volume. . . The digitally restored images in Apollo Remastered bring NASA's moon voyages to life as never before

—— Simon Ings , New Scientist, Best Books of the Year

In Mission Control, imagination pieced together grainy television images, crew voice reports and the flight plan, to portray mission events. Now, for the first time, APOLLO REMASTERED brings the glory of Apollo and the explorers into sharp focus. 50 years later, I can finally look over the shoulder of Mike Collins and Al Bean and see what they saw. I become part of the experience, as if I were a member of the crew.

—— Gene Kranz, Apollo Flight Director

Apollo Remastered is a fine collection of remastered photographs that depicts the real essence of the Apollo program. It brought back many memories of my time during the missions - an incredible book that will surely be enjoyed for many generations to come

—— Jim Lovell, Apollo 13 Commander

Using cutting edge enhancement techniques, Andy Saunders has created the highest quality Apollo photographs ever produced. He's also produced the first ever clear image of the first man on the Moon, Neil Armstrong. It's not surprising that his new book, Apollo Remastered has become a Sunday Times bestseller; showcasing photographs that are literally out of this world

—— ITV News

Read this book (praise for: The Sixth Extinction)

—— Independent

Elizabeth Kolbert's cautionary tale, The Sixth Extinction, offers us a cogent overview of a harrowing biological challenge. The reporting is exceptional, the contextualizing exemplary (praise for: The Sixth Extinction)

—— Barry Lopez, author of Arctic Dreams and Horizon

The Sixth Mass Extinction is the biggest story on Earth, period, and Elizabeth Kolbert tells it with imagination, rigor, deep reporting, and a capacious curiosity about all the wondrous creatures and ecosystems that exist, or have existed, on our planet. The result is an important book full of love and loss (praise for: The Sixth Extinction)

—— David Quammen, author of The Song of the Dodo and Spillover

Fascinating

—— Chris Fitch , Geographical

In Under a White Sky...Elizabeth Kolbert...[combines] curiosity with an acerbic wit to explore humanity's obsession with controlling nature... Kolbert's skill is in presenting compelling stories from the Anthropocene and letting us judge for ourselves

—— James Dacey , Physics World
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