{"product_id":"9781529144239-our-oaken-bones","title":"Our Oaken Bones","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eReviving a Family, a Farm and Britain’s Ancient Rainforests\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eSHORTLISED FOR THE WAINWRIGHT PRIZE 2025\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The powerful memoir on mental health, the healing power of nature, and how we need to heal it in return – with a blueprint for restoring Britain’s rainforests, perfect for readers of \u003ci\u003eThe Salt Path\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Lost Rainforests of Britain\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eScholarly, wise, funny, charming, terrifying and thrilling. I adored it all, every page\u003c\/b\u003e. - JOANNA LUMLEY\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eBoth a comfort and an inspiration\u003c\/b\u003e - CHLOE DALTON, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eRaising Hare\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e This is a lovely book - \u003cb\u003ewise, brave, thoughtful, painfully intimate\u003c\/b\u003e - but with a remarkable spiritual and environmental vision. - RORY STEWART\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e --------------------------------------\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I look up through the canopy and time freezes as the oak leaves drift gently backwards and forwards, dappling the light as it falls onto my body.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I am home.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eReeling from the pain of devastating miscarriages and suffering from PTSD after military adventures in Afghanistan, Merlin and his wife Lizzie decide to leave the bustle of London and return to Merlin’s childhood home, a Cornish hill farm called Cabilla in the heart of Bodmin Moor.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e There, they are met by unexpected challenges: a farm slipping ever further into debt, the discovery that the overgrazed and damaged woods running throughout the valley are in fact one of the UK’s last remaining fragments of Atlantic temperate rainforest, and the sudden and near catastrophic strickening by Covid of Merlin’s father, the explorer Robin. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e As they fall more in love with the rainforest that Merlin had adventured in as a child, so begins a fight to save not only themselves and their farm, but also one of the world’s most endangered habitats.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eOur Oaken Bones \u003c\/i\u003eis an honest and intimate true story about renewal, the astonishing healing power of nature, and our duty to heal it in return.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Praise for \u003ci\u003eOur Oaken Bones\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eAn enormously \u003cb\u003emoving and inspiring\u003c\/b\u003e story about war, trauma, nature and rebirth, written with infectious passion and unsparing honesty. I loved it. - DOMINIC SANDBROOK\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e An \u003cb\u003eextraordinarily courageous, urgent and powerful\u003c\/b\u003e book. - ISABELLA TREE\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eDeeply compelling. emotional, informative, pleasurable.\u003c\/b\u003e I believe that this is an important work with planet-sized dreams and ambitions. Perhaps the greatest philosophy or teachable lesson that came to me off the page is that dominion comes with responsibility. - RUSSELL CROWE\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I love this book\u003c\/b\u003e. - RICK STEIN\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Powerfully \u003cb\u003eenchanting\u003c\/b\u003e, written with verve and imbued with hope. - GUY SHRUBSOLE\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55792417440118,"sku":"9781529144239","price":10.02,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/orig_40378720.jpg?v=1773886041","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9781529144239-our-oaken-bones","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}