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Nature Tales for Winter Nights
___ From the author of Fifty Words for Snow comes a treasure trove of nature tales from storytellers across the globe, bringing a little magic and wonder to every winter night. As the evenings draw in – a time of reckoning, rest and restoration – immerse yourself in this new seasonal anthology.
Nature Tales for Winter Nights puts winter – rural, wild and urban – under the microscope and reveals its wonder.
From the late days of autumn, through deepest cold, and towards the bright hope of spring, here is a collection of familiar names and dazzling new discoveries.
Join the naturalist Linnæus travelling on horseback in Lapland, witness frost fairs on the Thames and witch-hazel harvesting in Connecticut, experience Alpine adventure, polar bird myths and courtship in the snow in classical Japan and ancient Rome. Observations from Beth Chatto's garden and Tove Jansson's childhood join company with artists' private letters, lines from Anne Frank's diary and fireside stories told by indigenous voices.
A hibernation companion, this book will transport you across time and country this winter.
___
Praise for Fifty Words for Snow , a Waterstones Book of the 'Absolutely
exquisite . This little book is a work of art.' Horatio Clare, author of
The Light in the Dark 'This
stunning book made me want to pack all my woolies, candles, ample firewood and enough books for a year – and head to as northerly a location as I could find.' Kerri ní Dochartaigh,
Caught by the River 'A
delightful compendium'
The Herald
Nature Tales for Winter Nights puts winter – rural, wild and urban – under the microscope and reveals its wonder.
From the late days of autumn, through deepest cold, and towards the bright hope of spring, here is a collection of familiar names and dazzling new discoveries.
Join the naturalist Linnæus travelling on horseback in Lapland, witness frost fairs on the Thames and witch-hazel harvesting in Connecticut, experience Alpine adventure, polar bird myths and courtship in the snow in classical Japan and ancient Rome. Observations from Beth Chatto's garden and Tove Jansson's childhood join company with artists' private letters, lines from Anne Frank's diary and fireside stories told by indigenous voices.
A hibernation companion, this book will transport you across time and country this winter.
___
Praise for Fifty Words for Snow , a Waterstones Book of the 'Absolutely
exquisite . This little book is a work of art.' Horatio Clare, author of
The Light in the Dark 'This
stunning book made me want to pack all my woolies, candles, ample firewood and enough books for a year – and head to as northerly a location as I could find.' Kerri ní Dochartaigh,
Caught by the River 'A
delightful compendium'
The Herald
201 pages, Hardcover
Published October 12, 2023
54 people are currently reading
577 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 113 reviews
December 2, 2023
Wonderfully curated anthology of both fiction and non-fiction that feature the beauty of nature, particularly the landscapes of winter in the northern hemisphere. These diverse stories, folk tales, poems, and essays are best read one or two at a time. There is a mix of short, medium, and long pieces. I found it a nice way to relax in the evening before sleeping and took my time. If you enjoy writings related to the natural world, wildlife, and especially cold weather, this is a very soothing and meditative collection featuring such writers are Charlotte Brontë, Susan Fennimore Cooper, Charles Darwin, Anne Frank, Kenneth Grahame, Carl Linnaeus, Henry David Thoreau, Walt Whitman, Virginia Woolf, and Nancy Campbell herself. As an added bonus, the cover is gorgeous.
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance reader's copy.
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance reader's copy.
December 31, 2023
Probably the most excruciatingly boring book I've ever read. Some of the curated stories don't work well out of context. Some of them just don't make any sense at all. Seems like a vanity project for the editor. Directionless and dull. There are some gems but they are few and far between. Overall, the collection lacks cohesion.
September 14, 2023
2.5 rounded up.
This is not quite what I had expected, I thought I would be getting essays written about nature during the winter; whilst there was some of that, what I actually for was a lot more snippets from fiction with a natural theme, (think the frost fair scene from Orlando). As always with these sort of books, some entries were more successful than others, but on the whole, it felt rather fleeting and incomplete. I did enjoy the Innuit folk takes and the entry about starling murmerations on the Somerset levels, something I go to watch myself from time to time, and it is spectacular, but I did find myself skimming more than usual.
I think this would make a nice gift as a physical book, it looks beautiful, and you can flick through and read whatever takes your fancy, something a bit harder to do with an ebook. Also, it would benefit from a much slower read.
*Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a review copy in exchange for an honest opinion.*
This is not quite what I had expected, I thought I would be getting essays written about nature during the winter; whilst there was some of that, what I actually for was a lot more snippets from fiction with a natural theme, (think the frost fair scene from Orlando). As always with these sort of books, some entries were more successful than others, but on the whole, it felt rather fleeting and incomplete. I did enjoy the Innuit folk takes and the entry about starling murmerations on the Somerset levels, something I go to watch myself from time to time, and it is spectacular, but I did find myself skimming more than usual.
I think this would make a nice gift as a physical book, it looks beautiful, and you can flick through and read whatever takes your fancy, something a bit harder to do with an ebook. Also, it would benefit from a much slower read.
*Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a review copy in exchange for an honest opinion.*
September 16, 2023
I received a free copy of, Nature Tales For Winter Nights,by Nancy Campbell, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Winter is coming and this is a good book to curl up with on a cold winters night, great stories of winter and nature abound.
November 9, 2023
Well, this were right proper interesting, one of those books where I was dazzled by the cover and neglected to actually find out what the book was about, a journey into the writings of many new authors (to me) and an increase of my tbr list. I’m not sure I’ve ever read a book that has left me craving a fire to sit next too whilst reading, alas all I have is a BBQ and a garden full of rain and wind.
The book starts off with an intro from Campbell, explaining what the book was about, how she came upon the idea for it and how she carried out the research, I really like how this intro carries on after her memoir Thunderstone.
There are some authors I have heard of and read before, Darwin, Woolf, Defoe and Robert Louis Stevenson, whilst it was nice to revisit these authors it was the unread writers that stood out for me. Tim Dee was already on my radar and reading his poetic words on a murmuration convinces me I need to find copies of his books. The book starts off with Anne Frank and I can’t believe I haven’t sat down and read her diaries before. Some favourites were by Tove Jansson, Dorothy Pilley and Jorsias Ammonsen, three authors I’ve never heard of and all three capture the readers imagination as they share their adventures, some wonderful writing.
The standout piece for me though took me by surprise, I started off thinking it was weird this was added as it made no sense, but reading the author’s mini bio and where it gets a mention in the intro I realised just how important it was to add it. Relic of an expedition by Salomon Andrée is just the fragment of a diary found on this explorers body, I feel lucky to have read these surviving words, without this book I would never have known about it, thanks to Campbell for keeping them alive.
I have really enjoyed this collection, much to read and learn and loads of inspiration on what I want to read next, highly recommended.
Blog review: https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2023...
The book starts off with an intro from Campbell, explaining what the book was about, how she came upon the idea for it and how she carried out the research, I really like how this intro carries on after her memoir Thunderstone.
There are some authors I have heard of and read before, Darwin, Woolf, Defoe and Robert Louis Stevenson, whilst it was nice to revisit these authors it was the unread writers that stood out for me. Tim Dee was already on my radar and reading his poetic words on a murmuration convinces me I need to find copies of his books. The book starts off with Anne Frank and I can’t believe I haven’t sat down and read her diaries before. Some favourites were by Tove Jansson, Dorothy Pilley and Jorsias Ammonsen, three authors I’ve never heard of and all three capture the readers imagination as they share their adventures, some wonderful writing.
The standout piece for me though took me by surprise, I started off thinking it was weird this was added as it made no sense, but reading the author’s mini bio and where it gets a mention in the intro I realised just how important it was to add it. Relic of an expedition by Salomon Andrée is just the fragment of a diary found on this explorers body, I feel lucky to have read these surviving words, without this book I would never have known about it, thanks to Campbell for keeping them alive.
I have really enjoyed this collection, much to read and learn and loads of inspiration on what I want to read next, highly recommended.
Blog review: https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2023...
February 20, 2024
I can’t say I have a favourite season, they each have their positives and negatives, but of all of them, winter can feel like it is dragging sometimes. But it is the perfect season for reading, immersing yourself in the words others have written from their experiences and travels.
I thought that this was an interesting collection of essays and extracts of non-fiction, fiction and poetry that Campbell has chosen. The extracts are not all from recent writers, it begins with a heartfelt paragraph from Anne Frank as she mourns the lack of fresh air in her hiding place. There is a piece written by a Japanese lady from 1000 years ago and musings from Darwin, Jansson and folk tales from Iceland.
As with any collection, there are some pieces that I really enjoyed and others that didn’t move me at all. It was good to find the always brilliant Tim Dee in here, I can’t think of anything of his work that I didn’t love reading. I should also note that this is the first time that I have ever read anything by a Bronte!
The other pleasure from this is discovering new authors. I have a copy of Walden by Henry David Thoreau that I picked up recently, but have not read it yet, based on the two extracts in here it should be really good. My favourite piece though was Encounters on the Road of Hercules by Charlotte Du Cann. I thought it was a stunning piece of travel writing and I have a new author’s work to explore. I personally prefer to have the author bio with the piece, rather than at the back as I don’t like flicking back and forwards every time, but that is just my view. Really good collection that I can recommend.
I thought that this was an interesting collection of essays and extracts of non-fiction, fiction and poetry that Campbell has chosen. The extracts are not all from recent writers, it begins with a heartfelt paragraph from Anne Frank as she mourns the lack of fresh air in her hiding place. There is a piece written by a Japanese lady from 1000 years ago and musings from Darwin, Jansson and folk tales from Iceland.
As with any collection, there are some pieces that I really enjoyed and others that didn’t move me at all. It was good to find the always brilliant Tim Dee in here, I can’t think of anything of his work that I didn’t love reading. I should also note that this is the first time that I have ever read anything by a Bronte!
The other pleasure from this is discovering new authors. I have a copy of Walden by Henry David Thoreau that I picked up recently, but have not read it yet, based on the two extracts in here it should be really good. My favourite piece though was Encounters on the Road of Hercules by Charlotte Du Cann. I thought it was a stunning piece of travel writing and I have a new author’s work to explore. I personally prefer to have the author bio with the piece, rather than at the back as I don’t like flicking back and forwards every time, but that is just my view. Really good collection that I can recommend.
November 10, 2023
It wasn't what I expected and I struggled to finish it. I think the main problem is that the stories are too fragmented. The excerpts some times didn't make too much sense as they were out of context and sometimes they were quite boring.
As always, some of the "stories" were better than than others but not enough, unfortunately...
Thank you NetGalley and Elliott & Thompson for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.
As always, some of the "stories" were better than than others but not enough, unfortunately...
Thank you NetGalley and Elliott & Thompson for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.
November 26, 2023
This has to be probably the worst collection of stories I have read. For one I wouldn’t really even class these as stories, they read like random passages and quotes taken without any context from random sources and thrown together into a book with no care. Unlike the back of this book describes, there are not whimsical, adventurous and wintery tales that I was expecting. Every story here lacked any depth or magic of the winter season. I would not recommend this at all.
January 26, 2024
These are snippets and excerpts from larger works rather than complete stories. I found that reading just one or two of them at a time was quite meditative and I liked reading the little biographies about each writer. If you appreciate the natural world then you will like reading this.
2023
June 6, 2024📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Elliott & Thompson
December 23, 2023
This book features a collection of short stories around the winter theme. Even though I really loved some - I had already read quite a few before - most of the snippets were too short to actually enjoy. As a whole, this book doesn't feel cohesive.. unfortunately. The premise is really nice. But most entries are one or two pages, which is really not enough to feel immersed in winter vibes.
Thank you so much to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC to read & review. These are my honest opinions.
Thank you so much to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC to read & review. These are my honest opinions.
October 13, 2023
The premise of this book is initially what compelled me to read it, alongside the beautiful front cover! There is something magical and atmospheric about reading seasonal writings as the world outside shifts and changes to mirror what is on the page. Nancy Campbell states that the main motivation for this compilation of winter writings was to ‘use this precious time of interiority to look outwards. I wanted to nestle into the words of others.’ This is what the book allows you to do, although there are moments that are far from relaxing or snug. You are amidst the winter season in all its stark beauty and ferocity. There are some stories that were familiar and that I had encountered before, which, rather than being disappointing, was interesting and intriguing. It allowed me to see the stories in a new light when placed in this particular context and in juxtaposition with other stories around it. As Campbell writes, ‘to re-read is a discovery of self as well as story, rather like the return of the seasons when our own lives have changed.’ There are things that are familiar but also things that are irrevocably changed as we change as readers.
There are moments that take your breath away, like the very opening text by Anne Frank, to moments that are unnerving and linger long after you read them. Charlotte Bronte’s ‘A Shadow’ left more questions than it answered, a truly haunting text. Whilst all the time you are accompanied by the beauty and starkness of the outdoors in winter. It can be a time of excitement and anticipation for the new year but also a time of anxiousness and discomfort. There are explorations of how things take on unsettling and unfamiliar aspects in once comforting settings like the description of the beloved pear tree, a ‘skeleton, grey, gaunt and stripped,’ in Daisy Hildyard’s ‘A Winter Day on the Sea Beach.’ Alongside recoiling at the prospect of changed worlds, we are reminded of how much we depend on the landscape such as in Daniel Defoe’s ‘The Rainy Season’ and how ancient landscapes are, steeped in myth and folklore like the Inuit folktales about the raven.
This did not feel like a set of texts that could be consumed easily in one sitting. You move across time and countries with pace which can feel a little disorientating. Text types and length vary which required focus and concentration from me, a different type of reading experience rather than getting lost in the comfort of a longer fictional novel. It is a book that can be revisited each year and I suspect it will have something new to offer each time.
Thank you to NetGalley for my arc.
There are moments that take your breath away, like the very opening text by Anne Frank, to moments that are unnerving and linger long after you read them. Charlotte Bronte’s ‘A Shadow’ left more questions than it answered, a truly haunting text. Whilst all the time you are accompanied by the beauty and starkness of the outdoors in winter. It can be a time of excitement and anticipation for the new year but also a time of anxiousness and discomfort. There are explorations of how things take on unsettling and unfamiliar aspects in once comforting settings like the description of the beloved pear tree, a ‘skeleton, grey, gaunt and stripped,’ in Daisy Hildyard’s ‘A Winter Day on the Sea Beach.’ Alongside recoiling at the prospect of changed worlds, we are reminded of how much we depend on the landscape such as in Daniel Defoe’s ‘The Rainy Season’ and how ancient landscapes are, steeped in myth and folklore like the Inuit folktales about the raven.
This did not feel like a set of texts that could be consumed easily in one sitting. You move across time and countries with pace which can feel a little disorientating. Text types and length vary which required focus and concentration from me, a different type of reading experience rather than getting lost in the comfort of a longer fictional novel. It is a book that can be revisited each year and I suspect it will have something new to offer each time.
Thank you to NetGalley for my arc.
April 11, 2024
I love seasonal reading, especially collections of different kinds- short stories or poetry, but unfortunately this one left me disappointed. I found the title misleading, as I expected more about nature - animals, plants, weather - anything related. However, the book contained not stories but a series of random extracts, some a couple of sentences, others several pages long. I wanted to enjoy this collection very much but it failed to put me in a wintry mood and overall felt disjointed.
Thanks to NetGalley for a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
Thanks to NetGalley for a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.
December 25, 2023
Good and cozy. Will re-read.
May 6, 2025
I'm sorry but Robinson Crusoe sowing wheat had no place in this book 💀
December 10, 2023
This book was not what I was expecting based on the summary and title.
I had expected a collection of completed tales or maybe essays about plants and animals set in the winter. Instead, this is a collection of excerpts from literature that contain a section describing winter with the occasional complete story (the Indigenous Peoples’ stories were my favorite parts).
It is mostly because of the unmet expectations that I did not, personally, enjoy this book. But I also wonder about the curating process. Why were certain parts selected? And why were they placed in the order they were? I didn’t understand the reasoning.
I’m sorry this one wasn’t for me, and I thank the publisher and NetGalley for providing me an e-copy in exchange for an honest review.
I had expected a collection of completed tales or maybe essays about plants and animals set in the winter. Instead, this is a collection of excerpts from literature that contain a section describing winter with the occasional complete story (the Indigenous Peoples’ stories were my favorite parts).
It is mostly because of the unmet expectations that I did not, personally, enjoy this book. But I also wonder about the curating process. Why were certain parts selected? And why were they placed in the order they were? I didn’t understand the reasoning.
I’m sorry this one wasn’t for me, and I thank the publisher and NetGalley for providing me an e-copy in exchange for an honest review.
February 12, 2024
[I got a copy of this book sent to me by NetGalley, in exchange of an honest review.]
Firts things first: this book was not quite what I was expecting it to be. I thought it would actually contain folktales and about winter, but most of the texts are actually not proper "tales", but extracts from stories or non fiction books, essays, letters, poems, and so on. They were still well-chosen and pleasant to read, though, but I have to admit that I was a little disppointed when I figured out there wouldn't be any talesin this anthology.
Of course, just like with any anthologies, I liked some entries more than others, and I even kept some titles to (hopefully!) read the full texts later!
Firts things first: this book was not quite what I was expecting it to be. I thought it would actually contain folktales and about winter, but most of the texts are actually not proper "tales", but extracts from stories or non fiction books, essays, letters, poems, and so on. They were still well-chosen and pleasant to read, though, but I have to admit that I was a little disppointed when I figured out there wouldn't be any talesin this anthology.
Of course, just like with any anthologies, I liked some entries more than others, and I even kept some titles to (hopefully!) read the full texts later!
December 22, 2024
A collection of really dull excerpts or short pieces of prose linked the wintery natural world. Poems are nice. But other than that, the majority were really quite tedious. I followed the advice of others in reading a couple each day; I’m not sure I could have endured much more than that. I don’t know who would enjoy this. Perhaps someone really studying language etc very closely. But it’s not for me. Not when I read for recreation and relaxation. Sorry.
February 11, 2025
A real eclectic mix of sources and styles in this collection of writing, all with a wintery theme. From Vincent van Gogh to Tove Jansson, Henry David Thoreau to Robert Louis Stevenson, and plenty lesser knowns. It’s the perfect book to snuggle up with by a log fire while the snow banks up against the cabin door.
January 12, 2024
There is something comforting about reading stories set in winter on a cold winter’s day or evening while wrapped up warm indoors under blankets with a hot water bottle or curled up by a roaring fireplace.
I also love nature writing and this collection of nature tales is a perfect bedside table read for those dark long evenings. Filled with a mix of short stories, poems, diary entries and letters, this book will transport the reader to wondrous and magical moments in our natural environment from appreciating the climate and changes in the wind, rain and snow to the flora and fauna that are impacted or flourish in this climate to the animals that hibernate in the harshest season of the year. Whether on land or at sea, winter is an experience that appears in different shapes and sizes; at once mysterious, unpredictable, fascinating and a little bit frightening too.
This collection enabled me to appreciate the natural world in so many different facets and I really enjoyed it! I read it from beginning to end but it can easily be dipped in and out of given the short stories and extracts within. It is a lovely companion for these cold wintry days and nights but it will also cast light and magic in the gloomy days until spring comes.
Highly recommend for nature lovers. It also makes a brilliant gift to loved ones 💙🕯️❄️
I also love nature writing and this collection of nature tales is a perfect bedside table read for those dark long evenings. Filled with a mix of short stories, poems, diary entries and letters, this book will transport the reader to wondrous and magical moments in our natural environment from appreciating the climate and changes in the wind, rain and snow to the flora and fauna that are impacted or flourish in this climate to the animals that hibernate in the harshest season of the year. Whether on land or at sea, winter is an experience that appears in different shapes and sizes; at once mysterious, unpredictable, fascinating and a little bit frightening too.
This collection enabled me to appreciate the natural world in so many different facets and I really enjoyed it! I read it from beginning to end but it can easily be dipped in and out of given the short stories and extracts within. It is a lovely companion for these cold wintry days and nights but it will also cast light and magic in the gloomy days until spring comes.
Highly recommend for nature lovers. It also makes a brilliant gift to loved ones 💙🕯️❄️
January 14, 2024
Not really possible to get into anything in this collection too deeply as the excerpts are too short, but there are some interesting and informative pieces
January 18, 2024
Layout could have been improved for the Kindle version, to give bio/source details for each piece as you read them.
October 9, 2023
I very much enjoyed this book. I received an ARC via Net Galley.
I love winter so was excited by the cover and description. I wasn't disappointed. I enjoyed the description at the start of the book where the author took a retreat at an old castle. Very wintery! All the included poems and short stories were wonderful winter reads.
The only thing I would add is I would've liked more illustrations!
I love winter so was excited by the cover and description. I wasn't disappointed. I enjoyed the description at the start of the book where the author took a retreat at an old castle. Very wintery! All the included poems and short stories were wonderful winter reads.
The only thing I would add is I would've liked more illustrations!
January 16, 2024
I expected this book to be a treasury of tales about nature through the winter and the changes the season brings focussing on weather, animals & plants etc. In fact it was more a variety of winter mentioned passages from different authors.
As ever in such collections, some excerpts I enjoyed more than others. I unfortunately found my attention wandering in some of the more longer stories, it just wasn’t quite what I expected!. My thanks go to the author, publisher & NetGalley for providing this arc in return for a honest review.
As ever in such collections, some excerpts I enjoyed more than others. I unfortunately found my attention wandering in some of the more longer stories, it just wasn’t quite what I expected!. My thanks go to the author, publisher & NetGalley for providing this arc in return for a honest review.
March 22, 2024
Thanks to the publisher Elliott & Thompson and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest book review.
A varied anthology of prose focusing on lives entwined with the natural world, with a special focus on icy wintry conditions.
The varied extracts in this book range from selections from novels such as "Orlando" by Virginia Woolf, "Robinson Crusoe" by Daniel Defoe, "Wild Animals I Have Known" by Ernest Thompson Seton and the (it would seem almost obligatory) chapter from the wonderful "The Wind in the Willows" by Kenneth Graham (in this case when Mole encounters the Wild Wood in the depths of winter).
For me the more interesting excerpts were the nonfiction ones, and these ranged from transcripts of Innuit oral histories (something that I had never come across before); diary extracts from the likes of Susan Fenimore Cooper, Matthew Henson (who participated in the 1908-9 exhibition to the Geographic North Pole), Carl Linnaeus, Henry David Thoreau and Dorothy Wordsworth. The most moving diary entry was the one written by Salomon Andree, a Swedish aeronaut and polar explorer, who died while attempting to reach the Geographic North Pole by hydrogen balloon in 1897. The entry that makes up the extract 'Relic of an Exhibition' was found on a piece of paper tucked into the breast pocket of his coat on his dead body.
In terms of memoir the highlights for me were taken from "Kolyma Tales" by Varlam Shalamov remembering the fatal consequences of going outside of the boundary of the gulag whilst a prisoner foraged for some berries for sustenance and the extract from "Climbing Days" by Dorothy Pilley the pioneering mountaineer who formed The Pinnacle Club (the first women’s rock climbing club in 1921) which describes the hard climb of the Col de Boucharou. There is also a fantastic piece of nature writing by Tim Dee describing in detail the beautiful murmuration of starlings. These are all authors that I plan on exploring in more detail.
As is always the case with an anthology, some pieces I enjoyed far more than others with some not holding any personal appeal for me.
Nature Tales for Winter Nights then, whilst by no means life changing, is an enjoyable book to dip in and out of when snuggled up inside on a cold winter’s night. It would particularly suit readers that are interested in the natural world and polar exploration.
A varied anthology of prose focusing on lives entwined with the natural world, with a special focus on icy wintry conditions.
The varied extracts in this book range from selections from novels such as "Orlando" by Virginia Woolf, "Robinson Crusoe" by Daniel Defoe, "Wild Animals I Have Known" by Ernest Thompson Seton and the (it would seem almost obligatory) chapter from the wonderful "The Wind in the Willows" by Kenneth Graham (in this case when Mole encounters the Wild Wood in the depths of winter).
For me the more interesting excerpts were the nonfiction ones, and these ranged from transcripts of Innuit oral histories (something that I had never come across before); diary extracts from the likes of Susan Fenimore Cooper, Matthew Henson (who participated in the 1908-9 exhibition to the Geographic North Pole), Carl Linnaeus, Henry David Thoreau and Dorothy Wordsworth. The most moving diary entry was the one written by Salomon Andree, a Swedish aeronaut and polar explorer, who died while attempting to reach the Geographic North Pole by hydrogen balloon in 1897. The entry that makes up the extract 'Relic of an Exhibition' was found on a piece of paper tucked into the breast pocket of his coat on his dead body.
In terms of memoir the highlights for me were taken from "Kolyma Tales" by Varlam Shalamov remembering the fatal consequences of going outside of the boundary of the gulag whilst a prisoner foraged for some berries for sustenance and the extract from "Climbing Days" by Dorothy Pilley the pioneering mountaineer who formed The Pinnacle Club (the first women’s rock climbing club in 1921) which describes the hard climb of the Col de Boucharou. There is also a fantastic piece of nature writing by Tim Dee describing in detail the beautiful murmuration of starlings. These are all authors that I plan on exploring in more detail.
As is always the case with an anthology, some pieces I enjoyed far more than others with some not holding any personal appeal for me.
Nature Tales for Winter Nights then, whilst by no means life changing, is an enjoyable book to dip in and out of when snuggled up inside on a cold winter’s night. It would particularly suit readers that are interested in the natural world and polar exploration.
November 19, 2024
We're just beginning what passes for our cold weather season here in Southern California and this was the perfect book to read. Having been born and raised in Minnesota, I can truly remember, and shudder at, the vivid descriptions of winter's cold, snow, ice, sleet and freezing rain. The book is a series of [sometimes abridged] essays from well-known and unknown (to me) authors and I must say I enjoyed about 95% of them. I read this book in preparation for Miranda Mills's Comfort Book Club discussion on November 29, 2024. First time participating and looking forward to it very much.
essays from well-known and unknown authors
essays from well-known and unknown authors
December 7, 2024
What absolutely delights me about a book, which is a collection of essays or short stories is that the exclaimed joy of discovering a new author. In Nature Tales for Winter Nights, I discovered quite a few, learned something new about known authors, and also confirmed my dislike for some.
It is difficult to write about nature… she is very visual and very visceral, and to describe and evoke those two very emotions on page with jsut the help of words is a job that beckons only the bravest.
The book solemnly opens up a excerpt from Anne Frank’s diary, dated 24th December 1943. She contemplates from her hiding place, in the loft, when she will be able to breathe the fresh crisp winter air.
A young Tove Jansson becomes obsessed with an iceberg, and resists her childhood memory by bringing out the inky midnight darkness and the glow of a single light in my mind in the iceberg ‘that looks like a tattered crown’ that floated away, the flashlight lighting up the grotto, ‘an illuminated aquarium at night’
Snow mountains everywhere by sei shonagon is wickedly hilarious. A bet between an Empresses and her lady in waiting turns serious when the ‘snow mountain’ a pile of heaped snow at the lady in waiting’s quarter doesnt seem to melt away with the waning of the winter season. Word soon spreads and everyone becomes involved in what is now more than a strong whisper in the courts and soon the word reaches the Emperor. Who wins in the end? I wouldn’t spoil it for you.
Charlotte Bronte’s a shadow is a revelation for me. I was stunned in silence, re-reading the short story again, thrice, just to absorb it all, Similarly, Varlam Tikhonovich Shalamov’s berries is the perfect story which has everything has all the marks for an uplifting story against all odd with a terrifying twist at the end.
A harsh winter by mathilte Sorensen somehow comes across as a moral story, reminding me of the ant and the grasshopper. Yuletide by Marchelle Farrell, is an ode to resting in winter, using her garden as a metaphor… fairly sensible and also poetic. Jorsias Ammonsen expressively captures the tempestuous nature of the sea — calm one moment, treacherous the next. Humans have their boats, their swimming skill, but the sea has brute force and sometimes there is nothing you can do but just watch in awe and wisdom as the surf rises along with the waves.
Sarah Thomas’s Beygja – bend, Djupt – deeply, Halda – hold is mesmeric in her description of the emotional journey winter days and nights wreck on humans. She talks, wistfully of the trudgery of winter mornings and the crackling energy of winter nights. ‘To walk alone in the middle of the night with the hushed crunch of my footsteps in a green-lit bowl of snow; that is what I came for. That is what living is for.’
Eloquent, isn’t it?
It is difficult to write about nature… she is very visual and very visceral, and to describe and evoke those two very emotions on page with jsut the help of words is a job that beckons only the bravest.
The book solemnly opens up a excerpt from Anne Frank’s diary, dated 24th December 1943. She contemplates from her hiding place, in the loft, when she will be able to breathe the fresh crisp winter air.
A young Tove Jansson becomes obsessed with an iceberg, and resists her childhood memory by bringing out the inky midnight darkness and the glow of a single light in my mind in the iceberg ‘that looks like a tattered crown’ that floated away, the flashlight lighting up the grotto, ‘an illuminated aquarium at night’
Snow mountains everywhere by sei shonagon is wickedly hilarious. A bet between an Empresses and her lady in waiting turns serious when the ‘snow mountain’ a pile of heaped snow at the lady in waiting’s quarter doesnt seem to melt away with the waning of the winter season. Word soon spreads and everyone becomes involved in what is now more than a strong whisper in the courts and soon the word reaches the Emperor. Who wins in the end? I wouldn’t spoil it for you.
Charlotte Bronte’s a shadow is a revelation for me. I was stunned in silence, re-reading the short story again, thrice, just to absorb it all, Similarly, Varlam Tikhonovich Shalamov’s berries is the perfect story which has everything has all the marks for an uplifting story against all odd with a terrifying twist at the end.
A harsh winter by mathilte Sorensen somehow comes across as a moral story, reminding me of the ant and the grasshopper. Yuletide by Marchelle Farrell, is an ode to resting in winter, using her garden as a metaphor… fairly sensible and also poetic. Jorsias Ammonsen expressively captures the tempestuous nature of the sea — calm one moment, treacherous the next. Humans have their boats, their swimming skill, but the sea has brute force and sometimes there is nothing you can do but just watch in awe and wisdom as the surf rises along with the waves.
Sarah Thomas’s Beygja – bend, Djupt – deeply, Halda – hold is mesmeric in her description of the emotional journey winter days and nights wreck on humans. She talks, wistfully of the trudgery of winter mornings and the crackling energy of winter nights. ‘To walk alone in the middle of the night with the hushed crunch of my footsteps in a green-lit bowl of snow; that is what I came for. That is what living is for.’
Eloquent, isn’t it?
October 2, 2023
Thanks to NetGalley and Elliott & Thompson for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
Prepare yourself firstly for a long list of contributors. Some are modern authors, some historical, and some from entire books themselves:
Anne Frank, Sei Shōnagon, Olaus Magnus, Daisy Hildyard, Charlotte Brontë, Walt Whitman, Joy Harjo, Virginia Woolf, Tove Jansson, John Evelyn, Theophilus Kwek, Charles Darwin, Solomon Andrée, Daniel Defoe, Joseph Roth, Varlam Tikhonovich Shalamov, Mathilte Sørensen, Damian Le Bas, James Frazier, Marchelle Farrell, Longus, Beth Chatto, Robert Louie Stevenson, Jorsias Ammonsen, Edwin Way Teale, Vincent Van Gogh, Alvin Aubert, Dorothy Pilley, Matthew Henson, Dorothy Wordsworth, Tim Dee, Susan Fenimore Cooper, Charlotte Du Cann, Ernest Thompson Seton, John Clare, Henry Davis Thoreau, John Rae, Carl Linnœus, William Scoresby Junior, Kenneth Grahame, Elizabeth-Jane Burnett, Sarah Thomas, The Quran, The Exeter Book, and Inuit Folktales.
Now, time for the review.
I thought this book would be right up my street. It felt all wintery and cosy and fabulous.
However, it wasn't quite what I was expecting. I was expecting essays by writers about the winter, but it isn't. It's an anthology of pre-existing writings from across thousands of years that just so happen to mention nature during the winter.
At 272 pages, I assumed it would consist of maybe a dozen different stories. But as you can see from the long list above, there are a lot more than a dozen. Some are several pages long, others 1 or 2 pages, and some even just a paragraph. These are very short stories, which gives allowances to more contributors, which was nice.
It's not all positive about nature in the winter. There's tales of fun in the winter, of play, the excitement of the cold and snow and frost and promises they bring. But is also talks about the danger that the winter brings, about how much harm it can do to nature, to animals, and to our most vulnerable. It shows that you must always remember that nature will always win and we must respect it at all times of the year. Some tales are fiction, some non-fiction, poetry, religious, some modern, and some ancient.
It is good and I enjoyed it, but it's a bit disjointed. I think it would have been better if the stories flowed into each other a bit more, but they're quite random and so difficult to read more than 1 or 2 in one go, whereas I like to read through a book, but it was difficult to do so. But a beautiful book that I think would look lovely in physical form.
Prepare yourself firstly for a long list of contributors. Some are modern authors, some historical, and some from entire books themselves:
Anne Frank, Sei Shōnagon, Olaus Magnus, Daisy Hildyard, Charlotte Brontë, Walt Whitman, Joy Harjo, Virginia Woolf, Tove Jansson, John Evelyn, Theophilus Kwek, Charles Darwin, Solomon Andrée, Daniel Defoe, Joseph Roth, Varlam Tikhonovich Shalamov, Mathilte Sørensen, Damian Le Bas, James Frazier, Marchelle Farrell, Longus, Beth Chatto, Robert Louie Stevenson, Jorsias Ammonsen, Edwin Way Teale, Vincent Van Gogh, Alvin Aubert, Dorothy Pilley, Matthew Henson, Dorothy Wordsworth, Tim Dee, Susan Fenimore Cooper, Charlotte Du Cann, Ernest Thompson Seton, John Clare, Henry Davis Thoreau, John Rae, Carl Linnœus, William Scoresby Junior, Kenneth Grahame, Elizabeth-Jane Burnett, Sarah Thomas, The Quran, The Exeter Book, and Inuit Folktales.
Now, time for the review.
I thought this book would be right up my street. It felt all wintery and cosy and fabulous.
However, it wasn't quite what I was expecting. I was expecting essays by writers about the winter, but it isn't. It's an anthology of pre-existing writings from across thousands of years that just so happen to mention nature during the winter.
At 272 pages, I assumed it would consist of maybe a dozen different stories. But as you can see from the long list above, there are a lot more than a dozen. Some are several pages long, others 1 or 2 pages, and some even just a paragraph. These are very short stories, which gives allowances to more contributors, which was nice.
It's not all positive about nature in the winter. There's tales of fun in the winter, of play, the excitement of the cold and snow and frost and promises they bring. But is also talks about the danger that the winter brings, about how much harm it can do to nature, to animals, and to our most vulnerable. It shows that you must always remember that nature will always win and we must respect it at all times of the year. Some tales are fiction, some non-fiction, poetry, religious, some modern, and some ancient.
It is good and I enjoyed it, but it's a bit disjointed. I think it would have been better if the stories flowed into each other a bit more, but they're quite random and so difficult to read more than 1 or 2 in one go, whereas I like to read through a book, but it was difficult to do so. But a beautiful book that I think would look lovely in physical form.
September 30, 2024
A cornucopia of seasonal writing.
What a wonderful book. Nature Tales for Winter Nights might be a relatively slim volume, but it is filled with evocative, interesting and entertaining writing from diary extracts, through letters and factual pieces to poetry and prose. There are well known writers, like Charlotte Bronte or Shakespeare, new, modern writers like the editor Nancy Campbell and others I’d never heard of such as Marchelle Farrell (whose Yuletide might just be my favourite entry in the main body of the book), with surprising entries from the likes of Vincent van Gogh, so that this is a book that appeals to a wide readership and enables readers to dip in and out and always find an entry to suit their taste or mood. Charles Darwin’s dated entries are ostensibly dry and prosaic and yet they have a morose undertone that, perversely, made me smile.
Accompanying the varied and engaging entries in Nature Tales for Winter Nights are beautiful illustrations that act as an extra surprise when a page is turned. With biographies of those whose writing is included at the end, Nature Tales for Winter Nights also acts as a catalyst for further investigation and reading. I also think this would be a superb volume to use in a creative writing group as a stimulus for other writing.
For those reading the book, I’d urge them to include Nancy Campbell’s Introduction. So often a book’s introuction is missed out in reading, but here it is beautiful, poetic, filmic and emotional so that to miss the introduction is to miss wonderful writing and – without exaggeration – to deny yourself a feeling of hope that I not only adored, but very much needed.
And I loved the fact that Nature Tales for Winter Nights isn’t dedicated to any individual in the hope it will be passed on and shared with those people important to the reader. That said, I also loved that those who provide shelter in a storm are particularly acknowledged. In a world where so many are persecuted and find their winters without shelter, this is the most important sentiment. Indeed, Nature Tales for Winter Nights is a perfect gift for every one of us. It’s a superb book and could be just what you need to get through the coming seasons.
What a wonderful book. Nature Tales for Winter Nights might be a relatively slim volume, but it is filled with evocative, interesting and entertaining writing from diary extracts, through letters and factual pieces to poetry and prose. There are well known writers, like Charlotte Bronte or Shakespeare, new, modern writers like the editor Nancy Campbell and others I’d never heard of such as Marchelle Farrell (whose Yuletide might just be my favourite entry in the main body of the book), with surprising entries from the likes of Vincent van Gogh, so that this is a book that appeals to a wide readership and enables readers to dip in and out and always find an entry to suit their taste or mood. Charles Darwin’s dated entries are ostensibly dry and prosaic and yet they have a morose undertone that, perversely, made me smile.
Accompanying the varied and engaging entries in Nature Tales for Winter Nights are beautiful illustrations that act as an extra surprise when a page is turned. With biographies of those whose writing is included at the end, Nature Tales for Winter Nights also acts as a catalyst for further investigation and reading. I also think this would be a superb volume to use in a creative writing group as a stimulus for other writing.
For those reading the book, I’d urge them to include Nancy Campbell’s Introduction. So often a book’s introuction is missed out in reading, but here it is beautiful, poetic, filmic and emotional so that to miss the introduction is to miss wonderful writing and – without exaggeration – to deny yourself a feeling of hope that I not only adored, but very much needed.
And I loved the fact that Nature Tales for Winter Nights isn’t dedicated to any individual in the hope it will be passed on and shared with those people important to the reader. That said, I also loved that those who provide shelter in a storm are particularly acknowledged. In a world where so many are persecuted and find their winters without shelter, this is the most important sentiment. Indeed, Nature Tales for Winter Nights is a perfect gift for every one of us. It’s a superb book and could be just what you need to get through the coming seasons.
October 12, 2023
3.5 stars rounded up.
Collated by Nancy Campbell, this beautiful anthology contains a wide variety of excerpts befitting the wintery theme. I was drawn to this one firstly by the gorgeous cover art by Helen Musselwhite - here's hoping I see her work on many more book covers in future!
The extracts in this collection range from short stories, to poems, to non-fiction works, and cover a long time period, containing pieces over 1000 years old up until the present day. There are many contributors for a book of just over 200 pages, as most of the excerpts are very short. I really loved the representation covered: there was inclusion of many cultures, nationalities, and social classes, and many works written by women.
My favourite was Snow Mountains Everywhere: an extract from The Pillow Book of Sei Shōnagon, about shenanigans at the imperial court of Kyoto during the turn of the first millennium. I loved getting an insight of the everyday lives and gossip of people who lived a thousand years in the past!
Other works that stood out to me were:
- The Iceberg
- A Shadow
- A Certain Blueness About the Lips
- Notes on a Landscape
- Innuit Folktales: the raven and the goose, when the ravens could speak, and the raven who wanted a wife
- Berries
- Sea Storm
- A letter from the Netherlands
- The Message
- Into Spain and Back Again
- A Murmuration
- Encounter on the Road of Hercules: Alpes Maritimes
- Shelter in a Snow Drift
- Sheep in Winter
- A Meteor Shower
A few of the pieces were a little dry to read, written in an expository style. Personally, I prefer even non-fiction, if it is memoir or journal entry, to include more description of the authors' emotions rather than purely a log of events, but I think this style is probably a reflection of the time period in which they were written.
This book lends itself better to a physical version rather than an ebook - it's the sort of thing that can be easily picked up when you have only a spare 5 minutes to read, as the stories are very short. I also had a few formatting issues on the kindle version but I'm sure they'll be ironed out before final release.
Overall an enjoyable collection that's bound to have something for everyone - I think it'd make a lovely Christmas present too!
Thank you to Nancy Campbell, Elliott and Thompson, and Netgalley for this ARC
Collated by Nancy Campbell, this beautiful anthology contains a wide variety of excerpts befitting the wintery theme. I was drawn to this one firstly by the gorgeous cover art by Helen Musselwhite - here's hoping I see her work on many more book covers in future!
The extracts in this collection range from short stories, to poems, to non-fiction works, and cover a long time period, containing pieces over 1000 years old up until the present day. There are many contributors for a book of just over 200 pages, as most of the excerpts are very short. I really loved the representation covered: there was inclusion of many cultures, nationalities, and social classes, and many works written by women.
My favourite was Snow Mountains Everywhere: an extract from The Pillow Book of Sei Shōnagon, about shenanigans at the imperial court of Kyoto during the turn of the first millennium. I loved getting an insight of the everyday lives and gossip of people who lived a thousand years in the past!
Other works that stood out to me were:
- The Iceberg
- A Shadow
- A Certain Blueness About the Lips
- Notes on a Landscape
- Innuit Folktales: the raven and the goose, when the ravens could speak, and the raven who wanted a wife
- Berries
- Sea Storm
- A letter from the Netherlands
- The Message
- Into Spain and Back Again
- A Murmuration
- Encounter on the Road of Hercules: Alpes Maritimes
- Shelter in a Snow Drift
- Sheep in Winter
- A Meteor Shower
A few of the pieces were a little dry to read, written in an expository style. Personally, I prefer even non-fiction, if it is memoir or journal entry, to include more description of the authors' emotions rather than purely a log of events, but I think this style is probably a reflection of the time period in which they were written.
This book lends itself better to a physical version rather than an ebook - it's the sort of thing that can be easily picked up when you have only a spare 5 minutes to read, as the stories are very short. I also had a few formatting issues on the kindle version but I'm sure they'll be ironed out before final release.
Overall an enjoyable collection that's bound to have something for everyone - I think it'd make a lovely Christmas present too!
Thank you to Nancy Campbell, Elliott and Thompson, and Netgalley for this ARC
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