Although the young man playing crazy golf wore shorts, the day was sharp and shivery on the pier. Glassy March light slid off the waves and broke into bright, glittering shards. Further out to sea, panels of dark grey rain had been hoisted against the horizon, blotting it from view. The arms of the Ferris … Continue reading A Murmuration of Starlings
"If there is magic on this planet, it is contained within water." ~ Loren Eiseley, 'The Flow of the River' Strong and muscular, Otny Thomas stood like a figurehead at the prow of the boat. He had an angel tattooed on his back, and a large centipede inked in a coiled and wavy line around … Continue reading A World Within Water
This past July I had the great pleasure of recording passages from Irreplaceable around Christchurch in Dorset and on the stunning headland of Hengistbury with friend, musician and sound recordist Matthew Shaw. Utilising the natural sounds of sea, wood, wind, birds and people, we sought connective links between the places written about in the book, … Continue reading Irreplaceable: sound recordings and tour dates
"Irreplaceable is a call to arms." ~ Rebecca Foster, Shiny New Books This summer, six years after I began writing it, Irreplaceable finally set out on a path of its own when it was published by Hamish Hamilton and Penguin Books. Celebrating those threatened places and wild species that are increasingly vanishing from our world, … Continue reading Irreplaceable: The Fight to Save Our Wild Places
“The landscape here is both wild and uncontainable, but also delicate and full of treasure.” ~ Rowena Dugdale Books act as journeys in the sense of the times, places, ideas and experiences through which a reader voyages, and often they are no less propelling and enlarging of view for their authors. In the years that … Continue reading Artwork for Irreplaceable: Interview with Rowena Dugdale
Julian Hoffman 