Spring Rain
A wise and life-affirming memoir about how gardens can help us heal
Published on 2. February 2023
240 pages
978-1-4735-9865-2 (ISBN)
Description
An inspiring and life-affirming story of a difficult childhood transformed into happy adulthood through the power of nature and gardens
Beloved author Marc Hamer writes about finding refuge in his tiny back garden in this highly original story of childhood, old age, and the restorative power of gardens. As a child, he kindled a deep love of the earth by watching plants and insects and exploring the world through a stack of old encyclopaedias he found in the shed. Now an old man, he creates a garden for himself in the neglected plot behind his house.
A little book with a big heart: the insights glow as vivid as a flowerbed. If you want to be inspired, or you've lost your belief in the goodness of this world, this could be for you.
'A sublime meditation on life, love, nature and family, woven with the wisdom gained through a life well lived' Lee Schofield, author of Wild Fell
'Patterned with Hamer's gifts for observation, compression, and tone' New Yorker
'Rich and tender' New York Times
'A book of great but tender power' Charles Foster, author of Being a Beast
Beloved author Marc Hamer writes about finding refuge in his tiny back garden in this highly original story of childhood, old age, and the restorative power of gardens. As a child, he kindled a deep love of the earth by watching plants and insects and exploring the world through a stack of old encyclopaedias he found in the shed. Now an old man, he creates a garden for himself in the neglected plot behind his house.
A little book with a big heart: the insights glow as vivid as a flowerbed. If you want to be inspired, or you've lost your belief in the goodness of this world, this could be for you.
'A sublime meditation on life, love, nature and family, woven with the wisdom gained through a life well lived' Lee Schofield, author of Wild Fell
'Patterned with Hamer's gifts for observation, compression, and tone' New Yorker
'Rich and tender' New York Times
'A book of great but tender power' Charles Foster, author of Being a Beast
Reviews / Votes
A memoir infused with wisdom and a deep love of nature, as well as a how-to book for finding peace of mind * Saga * Hamer's prose proceeds by association and by charismatic detail... but it also has a strong sense of arc, of change...He has an inclination to celebrate and express love-an inclination that seems built out of the humus of a difficult childhood...he is not an Adam cast out of the garden but "a boy cast out of hell," and into a series of gardens. * New Yorker * An illuminating, powerful read * Woman's Own * Marc Hamer knows how to live - simply, sparely, reverently, abundantly. Spring Rain is a tonic for the soul. * Sy Montgomery, author of How to Be A Good Creature * Interwoven with the writer's deep-seated love of the natural world... I highlighted many passages while reading this book * Countryman * A breathtaking narrative that transcends genre and geography. * Shelf Awareness * * Hamer explains why a garden is not just a place of work - it's also a place of worship. -- Margaret Roach * New York Times * Mr. Hamer has found his ideal calling in this book stitched together from small essays, a genre in which such capricious mutability of opinion is not only tolerated but encouraged. Through his words, we connect with the ultimate text, the landscape itself. * Wall Street Journal * Hamer's signature prose, rich with precise, detailed observations that evoke the luminous wonder that informs and illuminates all being, is on full display * Vancouver Sun * A book of great but tender power; acute, wise and intimately observed, speaking with the unmistakable voice of the land itself - which is equally unmistakably Hamer's own. And what a voice that is! -- Charles Foster, author of Cry of the WildMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Random House (Digital)
File size
3,66 MB
ISBN-13
978-1-4735-9865-2 (9781473598652)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Person
Marc Hamer was born in the North of England and moved to Wales over thirty years ago. After spending a period homeless, then working on the railway, he returned to education and studied fine art in Manchester and Stoke-on-Trent. He has worked in art galleries, marketing, graphic design and taught creative writing in a prison before becoming a gardener. Both his books, A Life in Nature; or How to Catch a Mole and Seed to Dust have been longlisted for the Wainwright Prize.
