- Publisher: Birlinn
- Year: 2025
- Format: Hardback
- Pages: 240pp
- Illustrated: Yes
- Dimensions: 222x143mm
- Condition: New
- Weight: 0.3kg
- ISBN: 9781780279565
- Product code: 547162
The Edge of Silence
In Search of the Disappearing Sounds of Nature
Neil Ansell New Hardback Illustrated
Postscript summary
The haunting call of a great northern diver was something nature writer Neil Ansell never expected to hear and the thrill of it made him realize that despite his hearing loss there was more in his future than a descent into silence. Here he describes his travels in northern England, Wales and Scotland, undertaken to build a ‘library of unforgettable sounds’ that includes the bubbling call of black grouse and the booming of bitterns.
Product information
Full publisher description
A journey like no other.
Acclaimed nature writer Neil Ansell has suffered from progressive hearing loss his whole life. As his world is becoming ever more silent, he suddenly hears something quite unexpected - the haunting call of the great northern diver. It is this extraordinary experience which makes him realise that there might still be remarkable sounds in nature within his reach - if he can only find himself in the right place at the right time.
This moving book charts Neil's mission to hear rare and elusive creatures that he had not previously encountered. This journey takes him from the mountaintops and islands of the Scottish Highlands to the marshes of England and the hills of Wales. Many of these species are in grave danger of extinction, so the future Neil faces, devoid of their distinctive calls, is one we all must fight to prevent.
LOCATIONS AND ANIMALS:
Great northern diver (Nether Lochaber, Scottish Highlands), Ptarmigan (Ardgour, Scottish Highlands), Little Grebe (Ardgour, Scottish Highlands), Bittern (Morecambe Bay, Lancashire), Natterjack toad (The Wirral), Red-throated diver (Ardgour, Scottish Highlands), Corncrake (Coll), Snipe (Coll), Black grouse (North Wales), Greenshank (Ardgour, Scottish Highlands), Puffin (Canna and Sanday), Storm petrel (Mousa, Shetland), Whimbrel (Shetland), Red kite (Perthshire), Otter (Sunart, Scottish Highlands), Manx shearwater (Rum)
Longlisted for the Highland Book Prize 2025
Acclaimed nature writer Neil Ansell has suffered from progressive hearing loss his whole life. As his world is becoming ever more silent, he suddenly hears something quite unexpected - the haunting call of the great northern diver. It is this extraordinary experience which makes him realise that there might still be remarkable sounds in nature within his reach - if he can only find himself in the right place at the right time.
This moving book charts Neil's mission to hear rare and elusive creatures that he had not previously encountered. This journey takes him from the mountaintops and islands of the Scottish Highlands to the marshes of England and the hills of Wales. Many of these species are in grave danger of extinction, so the future Neil faces, devoid of their distinctive calls, is one we all must fight to prevent.
LOCATIONS AND ANIMALS:
Great northern diver (Nether Lochaber, Scottish Highlands), Ptarmigan (Ardgour, Scottish Highlands), Little Grebe (Ardgour, Scottish Highlands), Bittern (Morecambe Bay, Lancashire), Natterjack toad (The Wirral), Red-throated diver (Ardgour, Scottish Highlands), Corncrake (Coll), Snipe (Coll), Black grouse (North Wales), Greenshank (Ardgour, Scottish Highlands), Puffin (Canna and Sanday), Storm petrel (Mousa, Shetland), Whimbrel (Shetland), Red kite (Perthshire), Otter (Sunart, Scottish Highlands), Manx shearwater (Rum)
Longlisted for the Highland Book Prize 2025
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547162
The Edge of Silence
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/New Arrivals
/New Arrivals/Non-Fiction New Arrivals
/Non-Fiction/Categories/Biography & Memoirs
/Non-Fiction/Categories/Biography & Memoirs/Autobiographies & Memoirs
/Non-Fiction/Categories/Science & Nature
/Non-Fiction/Categories/Science & Nature/Nature & The Natural World
/Non-Fiction/Categories/Science & Nature/Nature & The Natural World/Flora & Fauna
The haunting call of a great northern diver was something nature writer Neil Ansell never expected to hear and the thrill of it made him realize that despite his hearing loss there was more in his future than a descent into silence. Here he describes his travels in northern England, Wales and Scotland, undertaken to build a ‘library of unforgettable sounds’ that includes the bubbling call of black grouse and the booming of bitterns.
Hardback
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rrp_info:£15.99
productId:187577
bic_code:RNKH1, VXH, WNC, WND, WTL
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£15.99
Neil Ansell
General
222x143mm
Birlinn
No
Hardback
