The Hedgehog Diaries
'The most poignant and heartwarming memoir of the year'
Published on 14. September 2023
Book
Hardback
160 pages
978-1-915780-02-7 (ISBN)
Description
"If you buy one book this year make sure it's this one... Enchanting."
Daily Mail
"This charming book weaves hedgehogs into our hearts, our lives and our national identity."
John Witherow
A few days after her elderly father is admitted to hospital, Sarah Sands and her grandson find a poorly hedgehog in the garden. They name her Peggy, and her fate becomes a matter of pressing concern.
There is something about hedgehogs - homely and yet mysterious, prickly and defenceless, wild and tame - that makes us feel deeply sympathetic to them.
Having managed to outlive roads, dogs, strimmers and pesticides, hedgehogs are now an endangered species. For Sarah Sands, our failure to protect them is a symptom of our alienation from the living world.
But all is not yet lost. In this charming book, Sands explores the meaning and morals of hedgehogs, and finds, in hedgehog world, a source of deep solace and wisdom.
Daily Mail
"This charming book weaves hedgehogs into our hearts, our lives and our national identity."
John Witherow
A few days after her elderly father is admitted to hospital, Sarah Sands and her grandson find a poorly hedgehog in the garden. They name her Peggy, and her fate becomes a matter of pressing concern.
There is something about hedgehogs - homely and yet mysterious, prickly and defenceless, wild and tame - that makes us feel deeply sympathetic to them.
Having managed to outlive roads, dogs, strimmers and pesticides, hedgehogs are now an endangered species. For Sarah Sands, our failure to protect them is a symptom of our alienation from the living world.
But all is not yet lost. In this charming book, Sands explores the meaning and morals of hedgehogs, and finds, in hedgehog world, a source of deep solace and wisdom.
Reviews / Votes
"A beautiful, moving and very personal book but also one with an important core message around the need to protect our natural world." * Douglas Gurr, director of the Natural History Museum * "Through this eccentric and humorous celebration of the hedgehog, we also learn aboutthe loss of nature and those we love. A very moving and entertaining read." * Martha Kearney * "This charming book weaves hedgehogs into our hearts, our lives and our national identity." * John Witherow * "The most poignant and heartwarming memoir of the year" * Daily Express *
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Product notice
Trade binding
Illustrations
B&W illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 202 mm
Width: 133 mm
Thickness: 20 mm
Weight
268 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-915780-02-7 (9781915780027)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Sarah Sands is a journalist and author. A former editor of the London Evening Standard, she was editor of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 from 2017 to September 2020. Her first book The Interior Silence was published to wide acclaim in 2021.