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Richard Carter

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Writing tagged: ‘Robert Macfarlane’

Book review: ‘Mountains of the Mind’ by Robert Macfarlane

‘Mountains of the Mind’ by Robert Macfarlane

A history of a fascination.

Published 27-Oct-2020
Filed under: Writing Genres: History, Nature & Place Tags: Charles Darwin, Charles Lyell, John Tyndall, reviews, Robert Macfarlane

Newsletter No. 20: ‘Giving it the David Attenboroughs’

Barn owl

In which I gatecrash a podcast, and share cool stuff by the likes of: Melissa Harrison · Luke Turner · Werner Herzog · Merlin Sheldrake · Robert Macfarlane · Gaby Wood · Caught by the River · Philip Hoare · and a host of talented extras.

Published 20-Jul-2020
Filed under: Writing Tags: archaeology, birds, Caught by the River, Clive James, Darwin book, Donald Hall, Gaby Wood, Gilbert White, Luke Turner, Melissa Harrison, Merlin Sheldrake, Philip Hoare, Philip Larkin, podcasts, Robert Macfarlane, Werner Herzog

Book review: ‘Ness’ by Robert Macfarlane & Stanley Donwood

‘Ness’ by Robert Macfarlane & Stanley Donwood

A haunting prose-poem (I think).

Published 08-Dec-2019
Filed under: Writing Genres: Fiction, Nature & Place, Poetry Tags: reviews, Robert Macfarlane

Newsletter No. 17: ‘Scoffing all the berries’

Fieldfare on our hawthorn

Island Review · Julian Hoffman · John Green · Dorothea Lange · Jonathan Meades · Rebecca Solnit · Willowherb Review · Robert Macfarlane · Dave Winer · Horatio Clare · Mark Cocker · Steve Rutt

Published 06-Dec-2019
Filed under: Writing Tags: Horatio Clare, island review, Julian Hoffman, Mark Cocker, on writing, Robert Macfarlane, Stephen Rutt, Willowherb Review

Book review: ‘Underland’ by Robert Macfarlane

‘Underland’ by Robert Macfarlane

A deep time journey.

Published 15-Jul-2019
Filed under: Writing Genres: Nature & Place Tags: reviews, Robert Macfarlane

23 June 2019

Jay’s feather

A topaz treasure, and suppressed claustrophobic memories.

Published 23-Jun-2019
Filed under: Writing Tags: birds, Calder Valley, curlews, dogs, Hebden Bridge, Liverpool, reminiscences, Robert Macfarlane, Shetland, Yorkshire Dales

Newsletter No. 16: ‘Snippets of nature writing’

Bluebells, Hardcastle Crags
Bluebells, Hardcastle Crags

sidelines · Robert Macfarlane · Julian Hoffman · Amy Liptrot · Little Toller · Sir Thomas Browne · Tim Dee · Adam Nicolson · Julia Blackburn

Published 07-Jun-2019
Filed under: Writing Tags: Adam Nicolson, Amy Liptrot, Julia Blackburn, Julian Hoffman, Little Toller, Robert Macfarlane, Thomas Browne, Tim Dee

Newsletter No. 5: ‘Incongruous owl’

Sunny bunny
Sunny bunny.

dawn chorus · Simon Armitage · the invention of the telescope · huge, sprawling collaborations · Withnail & I · book smells · re-assembling Darwin’s research notes · converting walks into words · Daniel Dennett · writing letters · humanist politics · dentistry with stone tools · analysing penguin poo · Melissa Harrison · Robert Macfarlane · swallows

Published 25-Apr-2017
Filed under: Writing Tags: Ben Myers, birds, Charles Darwin, history of science, humanism, Melissa Harrison, Robert Macfarlane, swallows

Newsletter No. 4: ‘Paint to pufferfish’

Sistine Chapel

Robert Macfarlane · Hilary Mantel · Martha Sprackland · Viking wool · Charles Darwin's reading habits · human evolution · praying to Elrond · drawing · making ink · Rebecca Solnit · insectivorous plants · do pufferfish hold their breath?

Published 24-Mar-2017
Filed under: Writing Tags: Charles Darwin, Dee Marshes, evolution, GrrlScientist, Martha Sprackland, Rebecca Solnit, Robert Macfarlane

Recent Newsletters

  • Newsletter No. 28: ‘Breaking my golden rule’
    Thoughts on nature writing · Richard Feynman · Vikings! · Bronze Age diets · recovered daguerreotypes · transit of Phobos · Alice Roberts · Cal Flyn
  • Newsletter No. 27: ‘Getting hitched’
    The Pros and Cons of tying the knot · prehistoric invention · Ernest Shackleton · W.G. Sebald · swallows · comma splices · Amy Liptrot · Kapka Kassabova
  • Newsletter No. 26: ‘Slits for pupils’
    Research triage · filing your nuggets · pupil shapes · Amy Liptrot · moths and bats · critical reading · early medieval history · Tim Dee · book reviews

Recent Sidelines

  • A long way
    A trip to Ireland.
  • In the early hours
    A bad night’s sleep has unforeseen benefits.
  • Nature writing’s ill-defined, thriving ecosystem
    There is an embarrassment of riches when it comes to whatever ‘nature writing’ is supposed to be these days. It might not all be to my personal taste, but such diversity has to be a good thing.

Recent Articles

  • Giving fiascos a bad name
    How not to make a simple three-minute podcast piece.
  • Gilbert White’s influence on Charles Darwin
    To mark the 300th anniversary of his birth, a brief account of Rev. Gilbert White’s influence on Charles Darwin.

News

  • 2021: a year in photos
    My eleventh annual video slideshow.
  • HebWeb interview
    I have been interviewed for the local HebWeb site.

Recent Reading

Recent Photos

More photos »
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Richard Carter

The whole is greater than some of its parts