I adored this beautiful and thoughtful story of Michael Malay's life in the UK, and how he can chart his relationship with the world through its nature. Recounting how his moves across countries often left him feeling like a migratory bird himself, his utter joy and passion for the natural world is stunningly rendered in this book.

What elevates this book further for me is his ability to draw links to the politics of such a move, and this book is not naive about the very present realities for many people moving across countries. Theresa May's 'hostile environment' for migrants is name-checked explicitly, commenting on how the ways we talk about people and nature can be wildly different, despite the unity we should be feeling.

I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Coming to the West Country of England via Indonesia and Australia, Malay gives a newcomer's view of the British countryside, writing with precision, fascination and humour, picking out tiny details that a local might not even notice thanks to familiarity. He learns about the negative sides to the country alongside nature knowledge: poverty and the housing crisis, marvels at the long summer days and takes a deep dive into a few species and locations, being claear that he is leaving the "charismatic" species to others - "I wanted to write about animals who, though known to us, are also ignored, unloved or neglected in some way". So then he looks at eels, moths, mussels and crickets, speaking to experts, going on field trips, sometimes alone sometimes with a friend, becoming addicted to each creature in turn.

He also draws parallels with types of people and different places, for example the long migration patterns of eels bringing to mind the journeys of migrants and refugees and the blocks to their journeys, just as eels are now blocked by modern land use patterns, both experiencing "perilous journeys". Patterns on moths remind him of his grandmother's sarongs and lists of cave paintings include Lascaux, Altamira and Sulawesi: by dint of his heritage, Malay makes his book seamlessly inclusive and with an expansive world view. There are fascinating points about land that is reclaimed by nature that fits in with the rewilding books I've been reading, but going deeper into smaller areas again. And the writing is truly lyrical and beautiful. Malay calls for a return to thinking about nature and working as one with the planet, and gives us a lot to think about in this beautiful book.

My blog review will be up on Sunday 30 July