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Seasons
Autumn: An Anthology for the Changing Seasons
Autumn is a time of transformation. Crisp, clear days mark summer’s close and usher in a new season with its rich scents and vivid palette, leaves flaming red and gold by day, bonfires and fireworks lighting up the lengthening nights. There is abundance, as humans and animals make stores for the winter; and there is decay, which gives rise to the next cycle of life.
In prose and poetry from across the British Isles, Autumn captures both the exhilaration and the melancholy of this turning point in the year. Featuring original writing by Horatio Clare, John Lewis-Stempel and Amy Liptrot, classic extracts from the work of Ted Hughes, Helen Macdonald and Nan Shepherd, and a wealth of fresh new voices, Autumn is an evocative celebration of the year’s decline – and new beginnings.
“In years to come, I have a feeling that Melissa Harrison will be responsible for the introduction of a whole new cohort of gifted writers to the English language. In collections such as this we shall encounter them first” – Richard Littledale, blogger
“In years to come, I have a feeling that Melissa Harrison will be responsible for the introduction of a whole new cohort of gifted writers to the English language. In collections such as this we shall encounter them first” – Richard Littledale, blogger
“Waking early in the dark is autumn’s gift, I tell myself. Get out there and smell it, taste it, watch and listen. 64 authors in this fine collection, skilfully assembled by Melissa Harrison, have the same message. The UK in autumn is a feast for the senses. If you feel it is passing you by, dip into these pages” -- Sue Brooks, Caught by the River
“This gorgeous little book is a diverse collection of autumnal prose and poetry, perfect to give as a gift to a lover of nature or literature, or to keep on your own shelves as a little treat to dip into from time to time ...The line drawings were simply lovely” -- Being Anne.com
“Whatever your own experience of autumn – whether it’s a much loved season or not; even if you call it “fall” instead – I can highly recommend this anthology’s chorus of voices old and new. There’s no better way for a book lover to usher in the season” – BookishBeck
“A pretty book with something for everyone inside” -- Call Me Madam
“A celebration of the year’s rich transformation” -- Plantlife
“There's something rather special about these beautifully expressive little books … Sharp and crisp with occasional touches of melancholy, this is a perfect read for the Autumn season” -- jaffareadstoo.blogspot.co.uk
“Full of vibrant colour and sound... Autumn is a stunning anthology that perfectly captures this most beloved of seasons” – thebookmagnet.blogspot.co.uk
In prose and poetry from across the British Isles, Autumn captures both the exhilaration and the melancholy of this turning point in the year. Featuring original writing by Horatio Clare, John Lewis-Stempel and Amy Liptrot, classic extracts from the work of Ted Hughes, Helen Macdonald and Nan Shepherd, and a wealth of fresh new voices, Autumn is an evocative celebration of the year’s decline – and new beginnings.
“In years to come, I have a feeling that Melissa Harrison will be responsible for the introduction of a whole new cohort of gifted writers to the English language. In collections such as this we shall encounter them first” – Richard Littledale, blogger
“In years to come, I have a feeling that Melissa Harrison will be responsible for the introduction of a whole new cohort of gifted writers to the English language. In collections such as this we shall encounter them first” – Richard Littledale, blogger
“Waking early in the dark is autumn’s gift, I tell myself. Get out there and smell it, taste it, watch and listen. 64 authors in this fine collection, skilfully assembled by Melissa Harrison, have the same message. The UK in autumn is a feast for the senses. If you feel it is passing you by, dip into these pages” -- Sue Brooks, Caught by the River
“This gorgeous little book is a diverse collection of autumnal prose and poetry, perfect to give as a gift to a lover of nature or literature, or to keep on your own shelves as a little treat to dip into from time to time ...The line drawings were simply lovely” -- Being Anne.com
“Whatever your own experience of autumn – whether it’s a much loved season or not; even if you call it “fall” instead – I can highly recommend this anthology’s chorus of voices old and new. There’s no better way for a book lover to usher in the season” – BookishBeck
“A pretty book with something for everyone inside” -- Call Me Madam
“A celebration of the year’s rich transformation” -- Plantlife
“There's something rather special about these beautifully expressive little books … Sharp and crisp with occasional touches of melancholy, this is a perfect read for the Autumn season” -- jaffareadstoo.blogspot.co.uk
“Full of vibrant colour and sound... Autumn is a stunning anthology that perfectly captures this most beloved of seasons” – thebookmagnet.blogspot.co.uk
208 pages, Paperback
Published August 25, 2016
37 people are currently reading
920 people want to read
About the author
Melissa Harrison
14 books243 followersMelissa Harrison is the author of the novels Clay and At Hawthorn Time, which was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and longlisted for the Bailey's Women's Prize, and one work of non-fiction, Rain, which was longlisted for the Wainwright Prize. She is a nature writer, critic and columnist for The Times, the Financial Times and the Guardian, among others. Her new novel All Among the Barley is due for publication in August, 2018..
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews
September 5, 2016
(3.5) I recently learned that there are two different official start dates for autumn. The meteorological beginning of the season was on September 1st, while the astronomical opening is not until the 22nd. For the purposes of this review I’ll incline towards the former. I’ve been watching leaves fall since early last month, after all, but now – after a weekend spent taking a chilly boat ride down the canal, stocking the freezer with blackberries and elderberries, and setting hops to dry in the shed – it truly feels like autumn is here in southern England. Luckily, I had just the right book in hand to read over the last couple of weeks as I’ve been settling into our new place, Autumn: An anthology for the changing seasons.
This is the third of four seasonal volumes issued this year by the UK’s Wildlife Trusts, in partnership with London-based publisher Elliott & Thompson and edited by Melissa Harrison (see also my review of Summer). The format of all the books is roughly the same: pieces range from one to a few pages and run the gamut from recurring phenological records (Gilbert White and Thomas Furly Forster) and extracts from classic literature (poems by Shelley, Tennyson and Yeats) to recent nature writers (an excerpt from Helen Macdonald’s H is for Hawk; new work from Amy Liptrot and John Lewis-Stempel). Perhaps half the content has been contributed by talented amateurs, about 10 of them repeats from the first volumes.
This collection was slightly less memorable for me than Summer. A few pieces seem like school assignments, overly reliant on clichés of blackberry picking and crunching leaves underfoot. The best ones don’t attempt too much; they zero in on one species or experience and give a complete, self-contained story rather than general musings. A few stand-outs in this respect are Jo Cartnell chancing upon bank voles, Julian Jones on his obsession with eels, Laurence Arnold telling of his reptile surveying at London Wetland Center, and Lucy McRobert having a magic moment with dolphins off the Scilly Isles. I also enjoyed Kate Blincoe’s account of foraging for giant puffball mushrooms and Janet Willoner on pressing apples into juice – I’m looking forward to watching this at our town’s Apple Day in October.
I think all the contemporary writers would agree that you don’t have to live or go somewhere ‘special’ to commune with nature; there are marvels everywhere, even on your own tiny patch, if you will just go out and find them. For instance, South London seems an unlikely place for wildlife encounters, yet Will Harper-Penrose meets up with one of the country’s most strikingly exotic species (an introduced one), the ring-necked parakeet. Jane Adams comes across a persistent gang of wood mice in her very own attic, while Daphne Pleace spots red deer stags from the safety of her motorhome when on vacation in northwest Scotland.
Remarkably, the book’s disparate pieces together manage to convey a loose chronological progression, from the final days of lingering summer to the gradual onset of winter. Here’s Annie Worsley’s lovely portrayal of autumn’s approach: “In the woodlands the first trees to betray summer are silver birches: splashes of yellow dapple their fine, shimmering greenery. Here and there, long wavering larch tresses begin to change from deep green to orange and ochre.” At the other end of the autumnal continuum, David Gwilym Anthony’s somber climate change poem, “Warming,” provides a perfect close to the anthology: “These days I’ll take what Nature sends / to hoard for dour December: / a glow of warmth as autumn ends.”
A few more favorite lines:
My favorite essay of all, though, is by Jon Dunn: playful yet ultimately elegiac, it’s about returning to his croft on a remote Shetland island to find that an otter has been picking off his chickens.
Like Summer, this gives a good sense of autumn as a whole, including its metaphorical associations. As Harrison puts it in her introduction, autumn “makes tangible a suite of emotions – wistfulness, nostalgia, a comfortable kind of melancholy – that are, at other times of the year, just out of reach.” It’s been my favorite season since childhood, probably because it combines the start of the school year, my birthday, and American holidays like Halloween and Thanksgiving. Whatever your own experience of autumn – whether it’s a much loved season or not; even if you call it “fall” instead – I can highly recommend this anthology’s chorus of voices old and new. There’s no better way for a book lover to usher in the season.
With thanks to Jennie Condell at Elliott & Thompson for the free copy for review.
Originally published with images on my blog, Bookish Beck.
This is the third of four seasonal volumes issued this year by the UK’s Wildlife Trusts, in partnership with London-based publisher Elliott & Thompson and edited by Melissa Harrison (see also my review of Summer). The format of all the books is roughly the same: pieces range from one to a few pages and run the gamut from recurring phenological records (Gilbert White and Thomas Furly Forster) and extracts from classic literature (poems by Shelley, Tennyson and Yeats) to recent nature writers (an excerpt from Helen Macdonald’s H is for Hawk; new work from Amy Liptrot and John Lewis-Stempel). Perhaps half the content has been contributed by talented amateurs, about 10 of them repeats from the first volumes.
This collection was slightly less memorable for me than Summer. A few pieces seem like school assignments, overly reliant on clichés of blackberry picking and crunching leaves underfoot. The best ones don’t attempt too much; they zero in on one species or experience and give a complete, self-contained story rather than general musings. A few stand-outs in this respect are Jo Cartnell chancing upon bank voles, Julian Jones on his obsession with eels, Laurence Arnold telling of his reptile surveying at London Wetland Center, and Lucy McRobert having a magic moment with dolphins off the Scilly Isles. I also enjoyed Kate Blincoe’s account of foraging for giant puffball mushrooms and Janet Willoner on pressing apples into juice – I’m looking forward to watching this at our town’s Apple Day in October.
I think all the contemporary writers would agree that you don’t have to live or go somewhere ‘special’ to commune with nature; there are marvels everywhere, even on your own tiny patch, if you will just go out and find them. For instance, South London seems an unlikely place for wildlife encounters, yet Will Harper-Penrose meets up with one of the country’s most strikingly exotic species (an introduced one), the ring-necked parakeet. Jane Adams comes across a persistent gang of wood mice in her very own attic, while Daphne Pleace spots red deer stags from the safety of her motorhome when on vacation in northwest Scotland.
Remarkably, the book’s disparate pieces together manage to convey a loose chronological progression, from the final days of lingering summer to the gradual onset of winter. Here’s Annie Worsley’s lovely portrayal of autumn’s approach: “In the woodlands the first trees to betray summer are silver birches: splashes of yellow dapple their fine, shimmering greenery. Here and there, long wavering larch tresses begin to change from deep green to orange and ochre.” At the other end of the autumnal continuum, David Gwilym Anthony’s somber climate change poem, “Warming,” provides a perfect close to the anthology: “These days I’ll take what Nature sends / to hoard for dour December: / a glow of warmth as autumn ends.”
A few more favorite lines:
“Dusk, when the edges of all things blur. A time of mauve and moonlight, of shapeshiftings and stirrings, of magic.” (Alexi Francis)
“Go down the village street on a late September afternoon and the warm burnt smell of jam-making oozes out of open cottage doors.” (Clare Leighton, 1933)
“There are miniature Serengetis like this under most logs, if you take the time to look.” (Ryan Clark)
“Ah, the full autumn Bisto bouquet comes powering to the nose: mouldering leaves, decaying mushrooms, rusting earth.” (John Lewis-Stempel)
My favorite essay of all, though, is by Jon Dunn: playful yet ultimately elegiac, it’s about returning to his croft on a remote Shetland island to find that an otter has been picking off his chickens.
Like Summer, this gives a good sense of autumn as a whole, including its metaphorical associations. As Harrison puts it in her introduction, autumn “makes tangible a suite of emotions – wistfulness, nostalgia, a comfortable kind of melancholy – that are, at other times of the year, just out of reach.” It’s been my favorite season since childhood, probably because it combines the start of the school year, my birthday, and American holidays like Halloween and Thanksgiving. Whatever your own experience of autumn – whether it’s a much loved season or not; even if you call it “fall” instead – I can highly recommend this anthology’s chorus of voices old and new. There’s no better way for a book lover to usher in the season.
With thanks to Jennie Condell at Elliott & Thompson for the free copy for review.
Originally published with images on my blog, Bookish Beck.
February 16, 2017
This autumn I have been so caught up in the whirl of living that I haven't had nearly enough time to look at everything that has been happening in the world around me.
Luckily I have had this little book, and it has been a lovely reminder of the things that make this season so very special.
The introduction captures it perfectly:
"Autumn is a time of transformation. Crisp, clear days mark summer’s close and usher in a new season with its rich scents and vivid palette, leaves flaming red and gold by day, bonfires and fireworks lighting up the lengthening nights. There is abundance, as humans and animals make stores for the winter; and there is decay, which gives rise to the next cycle of life."
The array of pieces that follow make wonderful sense of those words.
('An Autumn Morning' by Tina Morgan)
There is poetry and prose; I think a little more poetry in this volume than there was in spring or summer anthologies, and it was lovely to read them and to realise there are so many wonderful poems that celebrate autumn. Some are new and striking; some are older and wonderfully familiar.
That leaves less room for lovely extracts from classic novels this time; but fortunately, with each piece just a few pages long, there is room for a great many nature writers.
All of the obvious old names are there; many familiar contemporary names are there too; but the pieces that really spoke to me this time came from writers I hadn't known before I picked this book up.
Here is a detail from a lovely painting in prose, by Annie Worsley:
"In the woodlands the first trees to betray summer are silver birches: splashes of yellow dapple their fine, shimmering greenery. Here and there, long wavering larch tresses begin to change from deep green to orange and ochre. Gradually the azurite, ultramarine and Verdigris of late summer is overlain by Byzantine bronze, copper and gold, and even on days of dull, grey cloud, the oranges and deep russet reds glow as if hot. Slowly, steadily leaves begin to fall: silver birch and aspen leaves descend in gentle cascades like confetti, oak sycamore and beech leaves spin down crunchily ...."
(Autumn's Garland' by Tom Thomson)
Just a few pages further on Caroline Grenville caught my attention with an account of life in an around her home that was simple, real and vivid.
A few pages after that Louise Baker won me over with a wonderfully descriptive account of being out in the world on an autumn day.
As the book went on I saw nature in the town and in the city. Jo Cartnell was had the luck to observe bank voles. Kate Blincoe’s gave an account of foraging for giant puffball mushrooms. Julian Jones wrote of his fascination for eels. Janet Willoner offered an account of pressing apples into juice Lucy McRobert was enchanted by dolphins off the Scilly Isles ....
It was lovely to share in so many observations and experiences.
There was wonderful writing from the past too; my highlights were Nan Shepherd walking in the mountains, Claire Leighton at Harvest Festival, and Richard Jefferies walking down country paths.
('The Swans' by Mary Potter)
I was pleased that the credits come at the end of each piece and that I could read each one without preconceptions. Much of the time I couldn't have told you if I was reading words from a known or an unknown writer, if I was reading words from the past or the present, until I came to the name and date at the end of the piece.
It was good to be reminded that some things don’t change, and that we can look at the natural world is that we can see the same things and feel just the same as generations who have long gone.
I wasn't quite as taken with this anthology as I was with the two that preceded it - Spring and Summer.
I think that was because the format is familiar now and because this is 'my' season and I've thought and read more about it than the other seasons.
Luckily there are many familiar words that will always be magical:
“Is not this a true autumn day? Just the still melancholy that I love – that makes life and nature harmonize. The birds are consulting about their migrations, the trees are putting on the hectic or the pallid hues of decay, and begin to strew the ground, that one’s very footsteps may not disturb the repose of earth and air, while they give us a scent that is a perfect anodyne to the restless spirit. Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.”
(George Eliot)
That is one of many reasons why I can say this is a delicious collection.
The pieces are diverse but they sit together quite naturally because there is much that unifies them; and I am sure that they will speak both to those who at home in the country and to those who are interested but don’t really know what they're looking at.
The book is beautifully produced, it would make a lovely gift, and I'm sure I will pick my copy up again next autumn.
Luckily I have had this little book, and it has been a lovely reminder of the things that make this season so very special.
The introduction captures it perfectly:
"Autumn is a time of transformation. Crisp, clear days mark summer’s close and usher in a new season with its rich scents and vivid palette, leaves flaming red and gold by day, bonfires and fireworks lighting up the lengthening nights. There is abundance, as humans and animals make stores for the winter; and there is decay, which gives rise to the next cycle of life."
The array of pieces that follow make wonderful sense of those words.
('An Autumn Morning' by Tina Morgan)
There is poetry and prose; I think a little more poetry in this volume than there was in spring or summer anthologies, and it was lovely to read them and to realise there are so many wonderful poems that celebrate autumn. Some are new and striking; some are older and wonderfully familiar.
That leaves less room for lovely extracts from classic novels this time; but fortunately, with each piece just a few pages long, there is room for a great many nature writers.
All of the obvious old names are there; many familiar contemporary names are there too; but the pieces that really spoke to me this time came from writers I hadn't known before I picked this book up.
Here is a detail from a lovely painting in prose, by Annie Worsley:
"In the woodlands the first trees to betray summer are silver birches: splashes of yellow dapple their fine, shimmering greenery. Here and there, long wavering larch tresses begin to change from deep green to orange and ochre. Gradually the azurite, ultramarine and Verdigris of late summer is overlain by Byzantine bronze, copper and gold, and even on days of dull, grey cloud, the oranges and deep russet reds glow as if hot. Slowly, steadily leaves begin to fall: silver birch and aspen leaves descend in gentle cascades like confetti, oak sycamore and beech leaves spin down crunchily ...."
(Autumn's Garland' by Tom Thomson)
Just a few pages further on Caroline Grenville caught my attention with an account of life in an around her home that was simple, real and vivid.
A few pages after that Louise Baker won me over with a wonderfully descriptive account of being out in the world on an autumn day.
As the book went on I saw nature in the town and in the city. Jo Cartnell was had the luck to observe bank voles. Kate Blincoe’s gave an account of foraging for giant puffball mushrooms. Julian Jones wrote of his fascination for eels. Janet Willoner offered an account of pressing apples into juice Lucy McRobert was enchanted by dolphins off the Scilly Isles ....
It was lovely to share in so many observations and experiences.
There was wonderful writing from the past too; my highlights were Nan Shepherd walking in the mountains, Claire Leighton at Harvest Festival, and Richard Jefferies walking down country paths.
('The Swans' by Mary Potter)
I was pleased that the credits come at the end of each piece and that I could read each one without preconceptions. Much of the time I couldn't have told you if I was reading words from a known or an unknown writer, if I was reading words from the past or the present, until I came to the name and date at the end of the piece.
It was good to be reminded that some things don’t change, and that we can look at the natural world is that we can see the same things and feel just the same as generations who have long gone.
I wasn't quite as taken with this anthology as I was with the two that preceded it - Spring and Summer.
I think that was because the format is familiar now and because this is 'my' season and I've thought and read more about it than the other seasons.
Luckily there are many familiar words that will always be magical:
“Is not this a true autumn day? Just the still melancholy that I love – that makes life and nature harmonize. The birds are consulting about their migrations, the trees are putting on the hectic or the pallid hues of decay, and begin to strew the ground, that one’s very footsteps may not disturb the repose of earth and air, while they give us a scent that is a perfect anodyne to the restless spirit. Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.”
(George Eliot)
That is one of many reasons why I can say this is a delicious collection.
The pieces are diverse but they sit together quite naturally because there is much that unifies them; and I am sure that they will speak both to those who at home in the country and to those who are interested but don’t really know what they're looking at.
The book is beautifully produced, it would make a lovely gift, and I'm sure I will pick my copy up again next autumn.
October 29, 2022
3.5 stars. A beautiful reminder of why Autumn is simply the best season.
September 25, 2017
As the world turns once again on the equinox, nights draw in, the sunshine from summer has been converted into nature’s bounty, mist rolls over fields and a new smell permeates the sharper mornings. Gone are the acid greens of spring and deeper shades of summer, now we have leaves turning rich reds, bold yellows and mellow browns. The swallows who arrived early summer, zoom across the fields one final time before leaving for Africa. Autumn has arrived.
Just seconds ago I was in a concrete jungle, but now I stand surrounded by damp earth, wood and October’s sepia tones – Will Harper-Penrose
So begins the final book in this series of seasons that I have read. Melissa Harrison has again gathered together a fine collection of classic prose and poetry as well as the current stalwarts of our rich seam of nature writing in the UK. Most importantly is bringing to our attention the newest authors and writers who seek their inspiration from their own patch of the natural world. To be honest, they are all good, but there are a few that are outstanding, in particular, Jane Adams, Will Harper-Penrose and Megan Shersby. I am hoping that the chance that all these authors have had to appear in print will pay off in abundance in years to come. If you want a book to read that has those evocative smells and the whiff of bonfire then this is absolutely perfect. Great little book, another beautiful cover and a cracking series.
Just seconds ago I was in a concrete jungle, but now I stand surrounded by damp earth, wood and October’s sepia tones – Will Harper-Penrose
So begins the final book in this series of seasons that I have read. Melissa Harrison has again gathered together a fine collection of classic prose and poetry as well as the current stalwarts of our rich seam of nature writing in the UK. Most importantly is bringing to our attention the newest authors and writers who seek their inspiration from their own patch of the natural world. To be honest, they are all good, but there are a few that are outstanding, in particular, Jane Adams, Will Harper-Penrose and Megan Shersby. I am hoping that the chance that all these authors have had to appear in print will pay off in abundance in years to come. If you want a book to read that has those evocative smells and the whiff of bonfire then this is absolutely perfect. Great little book, another beautiful cover and a cracking series.
October 30, 2024
Mission accomplished for 2024, I set out to read all four seasons within their relevant seasons and I have managed to do it without getting distracted by other books. This series has been great fun and very informative, I have learnt a huge amount and discovered all kinds of little creatures, in Autumn there is a beetle that squeaks when you pick it up, how did I not know of that before?
Autumn was the final book for me, this is one of those fun seasons, piles of leaves to kick through, fungi popping up everywhere and those long walks in the cold/wet weather with the end result of being wrapped up warm with a hot chocolate at home, nothing like that horrible Summer where it is too hot to do much. When I think of Autumn it conjures up so many memories from my childhood and if I was asked what defines Autumn for me it would keep changing as I remembered something else, Louise Baker has written a small piece for this book and I think that it captures perfectly what autumn means, a list of beautiful descriptions that had me nodding in agreement the whole time, a perfect piece of writing.
As in the previous books Harrison has put together a stunning collection of prose and poetry that captures the essence of this wonderful season. I think out of the four books this one contained more authors that I recognised and I was able to look all smug when I recognised Amy Liptrot’s writing before looking up the author. My favourite thing about this book has to be all the pieces on the wee bugs, I’m a big fan of bug hunting and it was great to see so many people out there who love this dangerous sport just as much.
I highly recommend this series of books and also suggest you do as I did and read the whole collection throughout a single year.
Blog review: https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2024...
Autumn was the final book for me, this is one of those fun seasons, piles of leaves to kick through, fungi popping up everywhere and those long walks in the cold/wet weather with the end result of being wrapped up warm with a hot chocolate at home, nothing like that horrible Summer where it is too hot to do much. When I think of Autumn it conjures up so many memories from my childhood and if I was asked what defines Autumn for me it would keep changing as I remembered something else, Louise Baker has written a small piece for this book and I think that it captures perfectly what autumn means, a list of beautiful descriptions that had me nodding in agreement the whole time, a perfect piece of writing.
As in the previous books Harrison has put together a stunning collection of prose and poetry that captures the essence of this wonderful season. I think out of the four books this one contained more authors that I recognised and I was able to look all smug when I recognised Amy Liptrot’s writing before looking up the author. My favourite thing about this book has to be all the pieces on the wee bugs, I’m a big fan of bug hunting and it was great to see so many people out there who love this dangerous sport just as much.
I highly recommend this series of books and also suggest you do as I did and read the whole collection throughout a single year.
Blog review: https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2024...
October 30, 2016
A superb anthology, filled with detailed descriptions of many aspects of autumn as seen from a British and Irish perspective. The contributions are, in the main, from contemporary writers but Melissa Harrison (the excellent editor) has also sourced material from books written in previous centuries such as The Naturalists Journal, kept by Rev. Gilbert White in 1792. There are poems too but for me the prose was far more interesting and I reveled in the beautiful, sharply evoked descriptions of this magnificent, richly coloured season of change and decay.
April 16, 2023
A poignant exploration of Autumn’s beauty.
November 17, 2024
A lovely addition to the bookshelf to dip in and out of
September 23, 2017
Autumn [...] is a thousand leaves falling to the ground and nourishing the soil beneath; it is heavy rainfalls that catch you off guard and drive you to shelter; it is the refreshing winds that sweep the haze of summer away; it is the calm before the storm - Louise Baker, 2016.
Autumn: An Anthology for the Changing Seasons is a collection of poetry and prose that celebrates the transforming months of September, October and November, otherwise known as Autumn. The editor, Melissa Harrison, has collected a range of writing from across the last few centuries to capture the very essence of the season. Included in this anthology is the likes of Horatio Clare, John Lewis-Stempel, Ted Hughes, Percy Bysshe Shelley and Nan Shephard, to name but a few.
I really enjoyed this. I love nature writing, so I appreciated 200-and-odd pages worth of it. But what made this so special was the season - I love Autumn. I love how it transforms, looks, smells, feels like, and so on - so getting to read hundreds of people capturing their own Autumn was a wonderful reading experience. My favourite piece was Louis Baker's who you see quoted above - she just listed things that epitomise Autumn. It was endearing to read, and made me super excited for all that Autumn has to offer this year.
I'd definitely recommend this, especially in these upcoming months!
Autumn: An Anthology for the Changing Seasons is a collection of poetry and prose that celebrates the transforming months of September, October and November, otherwise known as Autumn. The editor, Melissa Harrison, has collected a range of writing from across the last few centuries to capture the very essence of the season. Included in this anthology is the likes of Horatio Clare, John Lewis-Stempel, Ted Hughes, Percy Bysshe Shelley and Nan Shephard, to name but a few.
I really enjoyed this. I love nature writing, so I appreciated 200-and-odd pages worth of it. But what made this so special was the season - I love Autumn. I love how it transforms, looks, smells, feels like, and so on - so getting to read hundreds of people capturing their own Autumn was a wonderful reading experience. My favourite piece was Louis Baker's who you see quoted above - she just listed things that epitomise Autumn. It was endearing to read, and made me super excited for all that Autumn has to offer this year.
I'd definitely recommend this, especially in these upcoming months!
October 7, 2019
A wonderful anthology, deftly edited, with an excellent selection of familiar names and new talent. I was especially glad to see Amy Liptrot, Benjamin Meyers and Helen Macdonald in there, having read books by each of them recently. It's made me yearn for autumn, for the turn from green to red, the 'decay and fall', the thrumming days of rain and wind. Apples, blackberries, acorns and horse chestnuts -- I can't wait to see it all again and go foraging.
November 5, 2022
Quote:
…
It turned away from the blithe country
And down the other air and the blue altered sky
Streamed again a wonder of summer
With apples
Pears and red currants
And I saw in the turnings so clearly a child’s
Forgotten mornings when he walked with his mother
Through the parables
Of sun light
And the legends of the green chapels
And the twice told fields of infancy
That his tears burned my cheeks and his heart moved in mine.
These were the woods the river and sea
Where a boy
In the listening
Summertime of the dead whispered the truth of his joy
To the trees and the stones and the fish in the tide.
And the mystery
Sang alive
Still in the water and singing birds.
…
~ Dylan Thomas, 1946
…
It turned away from the blithe country
And down the other air and the blue altered sky
Streamed again a wonder of summer
With apples
Pears and red currants
And I saw in the turnings so clearly a child’s
Forgotten mornings when he walked with his mother
Through the parables
Of sun light
And the legends of the green chapels
And the twice told fields of infancy
That his tears burned my cheeks and his heart moved in mine.
These were the woods the river and sea
Where a boy
In the listening
Summertime of the dead whispered the truth of his joy
To the trees and the stones and the fish in the tide.
And the mystery
Sang alive
Still in the water and singing birds.
…
~ Dylan Thomas, 1946
October 21, 2025
3.5* some pieces more interesting to read than others. my favourite being the 1792 diary listing farming changes and events with one line in the middle noting the French revolution before going in depth in the following entries for bog standard natural things.
October 29, 2024
Wonderful book showing the beauty of autumn.
November 21, 2023
A lovely collection of non-fiction and poetry. I'd have probably enjoyed some autumnal short stories more, but I'm glad I read this during November, with its crunchy leaves, crisp air, and warm jumpers.
September 6, 2016
Everyone probably has a favourite season – and I think Autumn might just be mine, kicking leaves, watching the glorious colours, and watching nature’s cycle slowing down again for another year. This gorgeous little book is a diverse collection of autumnal prose and poetry, perfect to give as a gift to a lover of nature or literature, or to keep on your own shelves as a little treat to dip into from time to time.
Some of my personal favourites? I loved Alexi Francis’ piece about badgers, Louise Baker’s wonderful descriptive prose and her description of “textured treasure” and Jane Adams and the mysterious scratching in her attic. There’s a lovely piece from Will Harper-Penrose on the finding of nature in the heart of the city, and I loved Lucy McRobert’s really moving account of dolphin watching in the Scillies. And I enjoyed the extract from Nan Shepherd’s The Living Mountain, a real feast for the senses. Poetry too – good to rediscover some familiar ones from Yeats, Shelley and Tennyson, but some lovely ones that were new to me too, with my particular favourite being Alison Brackenbury’s Lapwings.
I really liked the way the book was punctuated by extracts from Reverend Gilbert White’s 1792 Naturalist’s Journal and Thomas Furly Forster’s 1827 Pocket Encyclopaedia of Natural Phenomena. The line drawings were simply lovely, and I also liked the addition of an appendix of biographies for further exploration.
Not the kind of book I usually review, but I really loved it. The next – and last – in the series, Winter, will be published on 20th October.
Some of my personal favourites? I loved Alexi Francis’ piece about badgers, Louise Baker’s wonderful descriptive prose and her description of “textured treasure” and Jane Adams and the mysterious scratching in her attic. There’s a lovely piece from Will Harper-Penrose on the finding of nature in the heart of the city, and I loved Lucy McRobert’s really moving account of dolphin watching in the Scillies. And I enjoyed the extract from Nan Shepherd’s The Living Mountain, a real feast for the senses. Poetry too – good to rediscover some familiar ones from Yeats, Shelley and Tennyson, but some lovely ones that were new to me too, with my particular favourite being Alison Brackenbury’s Lapwings.
I really liked the way the book was punctuated by extracts from Reverend Gilbert White’s 1792 Naturalist’s Journal and Thomas Furly Forster’s 1827 Pocket Encyclopaedia of Natural Phenomena. The line drawings were simply lovely, and I also liked the addition of an appendix of biographies for further exploration.
Not the kind of book I usually review, but I really loved it. The next – and last – in the series, Winter, will be published on 20th October.
November 12, 2016
I mainly enjoyed reading this anthology. I think, inevitably, there are going to be pieces that I don't like, and, certainly, ones that stand out more than others.
I've previously read Spring: An Anthology for the Changing Seasons and Summer: An Anthology for the Changing Seasons, and look forward to Winter: An Anthology for the Changing Seasons.
I think rather than singling out pieces and writing about why I like them, it's important to reflect on the overall effect. That is, these have inspired me to get out and take more notice of what is happening around me. I will never know or recognise birds or trees; indeed, my knowledge of nature is sketchy. But the cumulative effect of the different pieces is to make me see more. I have a better feel for the cycles of life, and I see (and appreciate) more details, even if I can't name them.
I've previously read Spring: An Anthology for the Changing Seasons and Summer: An Anthology for the Changing Seasons, and look forward to Winter: An Anthology for the Changing Seasons.
I think rather than singling out pieces and writing about why I like them, it's important to reflect on the overall effect. That is, these have inspired me to get out and take more notice of what is happening around me. I will never know or recognise birds or trees; indeed, my knowledge of nature is sketchy. But the cumulative effect of the different pieces is to make me see more. I have a better feel for the cycles of life, and I see (and appreciate) more details, even if I can't name them.
November 18, 2018
There are some really lovely pieces in here, and the mixture of classic, fresh, and unheard of authors is great. As an anthology it soars, but as a book to sit and read from cover to cover, it becomes repetitive. Best to put this on your coffee table at the start of the season and dip into it periodically.
November 19, 2021
This is the third anthology in this series I have read. I have previously read Summer and Winter. I aim to read Spring in the spring!
I love these anthologies. I am a sucker for nature writing and a like a nice poem every now and then. This one has both, though it is mostly non-fiction nature writing.
Autumn is the most magical of seasons, even if it’s not my favourite season! It shows in this anthology. There are so many beautiful things to write about that lend themselves to poetic imagery; mushrooms, the leaves, the rain, animals getting ready for winter, etc, and this little book has it all.
I thoroughly enjoyed this and really captured the autumn feel for me. Of course there were some bits and pieces I loved more than others, as generally is the case with anthologies, but overall, this was a joy to read.
I love these anthologies. I am a sucker for nature writing and a like a nice poem every now and then. This one has both, though it is mostly non-fiction nature writing.
Autumn is the most magical of seasons, even if it’s not my favourite season! It shows in this anthology. There are so many beautiful things to write about that lend themselves to poetic imagery; mushrooms, the leaves, the rain, animals getting ready for winter, etc, and this little book has it all.
I thoroughly enjoyed this and really captured the autumn feel for me. Of course there were some bits and pieces I loved more than others, as generally is the case with anthologies, but overall, this was a joy to read.
October 24, 2016
Autumn has always been my favourite season - even over and above that of Spring - the quality of the light, the temperature, and the smells of autumn make it the best ever. Melissa Harrison's anthology, Autumn, is a beautiful and inspiring miscellany of poetry, prose, and non-fiction both collected from past writings, and specially commissioned for this collection.
We are taken on a series of personal journies that are about, inspired by, or are rememberances of how Autumn is. This is a book about Autumn to be read at Autumn.
There are sister books to this for all four seasons which I intend to read, in sequence as the year progresses.
We are taken on a series of personal journies that are about, inspired by, or are rememberances of how Autumn is. This is a book about Autumn to be read at Autumn.
There are sister books to this for all four seasons which I intend to read, in sequence as the year progresses.
October 31, 2022
I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this anthology as much as I did. It was a delight to read, introducing me to new authors, as well as encompassing old favourites. I particularly enjoyed the poetry included, which had classics like Shelley’s ‘Ode to the West Wind’ and Tennyson’s ‘Tithonus’, but also poets new to me, Alison Brackenbury (apt name for a nature poet) who I now need to read more of.
Of course, there is some repetition of themes inevitably, but also new angles, like Amy Liptrot’s excerpt on the effects of the autumn tides on Orkney.
I’m now looking to read the other three seasonal anthologies.
Of course, there is some repetition of themes inevitably, but also new angles, like Amy Liptrot’s excerpt on the effects of the autumn tides on Orkney.
I’m now looking to read the other three seasonal anthologies.
November 5, 2022
This collection of poetry, journal entries, essays by UK authors is an absolute delight. One of four seasonal books by same author, it educates on the natural history and resources of Britain and encourages one to look for the small wonders in the landscape around you seasonally. Whether a literary book lover, a naturalist or ecological student of the world, this book will hold your interest as you read one of more selections a day through the season. I've read Summer, Autumn and will be moving on to the next in the series, Winter.
November 29, 2022
"The valley was ablaze with the colour of brilliant decay as the cycle of winter began with a fresh palette...."
I've really enjoyed reading these seasonal anthologies over the last year. Each one has captured the best of the season and deepened my appreciation of nature.
It's been great to dip into this book on lunch breaks or over morning coffee - like a little literary snack to inspire and delight.
I've read all 4 in the series now and in each one I've marked my favourites so that every year I can reread them in their appropriate season.
I've really enjoyed reading these seasonal anthologies over the last year. Each one has captured the best of the season and deepened my appreciation of nature.
It's been great to dip into this book on lunch breaks or over morning coffee - like a little literary snack to inspire and delight.
I've read all 4 in the series now and in each one I've marked my favourites so that every year I can reread them in their appropriate season.
October 24, 2023
Beautiful anthology of autumnal nature writing. I loved how it rotated between pieces written in the year of publication (maybe for the book itself?) and older pieces. I found that I enjoyed the older pieces best, but that’s no surprise, as modern books usually leave me quite empty. Still, even the modern pieces were beautiful and left me wishing that I was more in tune with the changes that happen when we move between the seasons.
October 26, 2021
I thought this book was going to be about what autumn meant to the different authors in this book. Instead it was about their lifestyle and surroundings during autumn. It was a nice read, but very boring for me. Honestly after each page I read I don’t remember any details. I’m sad I didn’t enjoy this book more.
November 12, 2025
Not quite as good as the Spring edition. There was a lot of repetition in the earlier pages of Autumn colours and the smell in the air, it should've been edited in such a way that this was spaced out more. I did thoroughly enjoy the essays that felt more like storytelling, focusing on one unique experience or aspect of the season distinctive from the other contributions. 3.5 stars/
October 27, 2019
A varied and delightful journey through all things autumn. I was surprised by the diversity of content. The only critique I have is that I wish there had been more diversity in years the pieces were written as most came from 2016. However, George Elliot made a cameo so my life is complete!
May 5, 2020
Some lovely nature writing and poetry from a variety of authors based in the autumn season. The balance between contemporary and classic authors is not quite right (too many contemporary) but otherwise a very good read.
October 8, 2022
Wieder eine richtig schöne Sammlung mit neuer und alter Prosa sowie Gedichten zum Thema Herbst. Diese Anthologie ist bisher mein Favorit aus der Reihe, was natürlich ABSOLUT NICHTS mit meiner Lieblingsjahreszeit zu tun hat.
March 12, 2024
3.5 stars.
A lovely book to dip in and out of throughout autumn. Some nature writing I enjoyed more than others but overall it reminded me to slow down, savour and appreciate nature and the changing seasons.
A lovely book to dip in and out of throughout autumn. Some nature writing I enjoyed more than others but overall it reminded me to slow down, savour and appreciate nature and the changing seasons.
September 27, 2025
I was so excited for this but it has disappointed me, big time. More of it seems like “im so sad summer is over, but I have to try to see the beauty in autumn” than a real autumn-loving writings. Just no.
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