Signs of spring are everywhere
We are lucky enough to live in a tiny village
Surrounded by fields and farmland
We have been going on daily walks in the surrounding area for a year now
And it looks like we will be spending more time locally this coming year
We have decided to not go on holiday this year again
Instead choosing to focus on improving our garden
And exploring more of our local countryside
We have grown very attached to the flora and fauna around us
The children are keen nature explorers and want to learn more and do more
To protect the plants and animals they have come to know
As always we have started our learning by spending time in nature
And reading lots of books
I recently reviewed the wonderful Poppy Goes Wild
By Nick Powell and Becca Hall
Yesterday for Book Match Monday on Instagram
I paired that beauty of a book
With When We Went Wild
Another book about rewilding and letting nature take the lead
Written by the author of Wilding Isabella Tree
And illustrated by Allira Tee
Is about a little girl who is on a mission
To save her Grandad’s farm
The farm has become unfriendly to native wildlife
And Poppy wants to make the land habitable and welcoming again
This is a story written to introduce children to the concept of rewilding
Creating safe spaces to encourage the return of our native wildlife
When We Went Wild is a story about how we can bring nature back
Nancy and Jake are farmers
They raise raise their cows and pigs and grow their crops
With machines and chemicals
No one is happy on the farm
Not Nancy or Jake, not the animals
Even the trees look sad
Nancy and Jake decide to make a change
They decide to sell their machines and their chemicals
They choose to go wild!
With no more ploughing and chemicals
The magic of nature happens
Wildflowers spring up
Bees, butterflies and beetles return
Brambles and wild roses grow
The birds come back
The illustrations in the book are stunning
And show how the practical changes on the farm
Positively effect the land, the animals and the people
The playful pigs plunging into ponds is such a wonderful happy picture
But not everyone is happy
Neighbours think that the farm looks a mess
But then comes a series of floods around the country
But the people local are not affected by the rising waters
The wild land of the farm holds on to huge amounts of water
And prevents the area from flooding
The neighbours see for themselves the benefits of rewilding
Of bringing nature back
Poppy Goes Wild and When We Went Wild are hugely important inspirational books
But they are more than that
These books are not just nice stories
With pretty pictures
They are a call to action
To get involved in the movement of rewilding
To make our countryside wild again
So that the lost birds and animals can return
And the balance of our ecosystems can be restored
I would love to live in a world of falcons and beavers
Skylarks and hares
Wouldn’t you?