Description

WINNER OF THE WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR CONSERVATION 2023

The Sunday Times Science Book of the Year

As seen on Countryfile

‘If anyone was born to save Britain’s rainforests, it was Guy Shrubsole’ Sunday Times

Shortlisted for the Richard Jefferies Society Literary Prize

Temperate rainforest may once have covered up to one-fifth of Britain, inspiring Celtic druids, Welsh wizards, Romantic poets, and Arthur Conan Doyle’s most loved creations. Though only fragments now remain, they are home to a dazzling variety of luminous life-forms.

In this awe-inspiring investigation, Guy Shrubsole travels through the Western Highlands and the Lake District, down to the rainforests of Wales, Devon, and Cornwall to map these spectacular lost worlds for the first time.

This is the extraordinary tale of one person’s quest to find Britain’s lost rainforests – and bring them back.

Publisher Review

'A treasure chest full of woodland jewels, rare, precious and beautiful' Chris Packham 'Utterly enchanting, transporting and spellbinding, The Lost Rainforests of Britain will change our understanding of Britain and the hidden treasures we live amongst. A rallying cry for restoring the rainforests of Britain urgently, and an inspiring and informative must-read for anyone interested in rewilding and ecological restoration' Lucy Jones, author of Losing Eden 'Passionate, powerful, political and practicable, Guy Shrubsole gives us a blueprint for how to bring our missing rainforests back to life in all their riotous, tangled glory. Impeccably researched, convincingly argued and with generous measures of joyful discovery, this really is a spectacular book' Lee Schofield, author of Wild Fell 'A magnificent and crucial book that opens our eyes to untold wonders' George Monbiot 'In The Lost Rainforests of Britain, Guy Shrubsole deftly lays out the reasons why we need to care for these ancient wildernesses ... You might think we shouldn't need this book. But we do, and I'm extremely glad it exists' Philip Hoare, author of Leviathan and Albert & the Whale 'A book rich in vivid wordsmithery that unravels, in stunning technicolour, a magnificent treasure on our doorstep which, unbeknownst to many, is as draped in folklore as it is in ferns. Guy Shrubsole might just be as much a national treasure as those boggy forests he's become the preeminent biographer of' Sam Lee, Mercury Prize-nominated musician and author of The Nightingale Praise for Who Owns England? 'A formidable, brave and important book' Robert Macfarlane 'One of the most important books of the year' Chris Packham 'A great book, crucial for anyone who seeks to understand this country' George Monbiot