Praise for Earthworks

“If everyone thought as deeply as Karen Lloyd does about our complex relationship with nature, the world would be a far better place. Wisely observed and powerfully expressed, these essays form a map to navigate the anthropocene.” Lee Schofield, author of Wild Places

“Lloyd has packed the explosives, lit the fuse and lobbed in our direction the bravest and boldest volume of Nature writing this century. And then she's walked towards the fire. This is fearless writing at its Orwellian best.” Mark Cocker, author of Birds Britannica

“An intensely optimistic book, where hope comes not from denial, but from a careful and studied attention to the natural world - both the writing and the thinking are precise, vivid and engaging: it's a delight to spend time in the company of this writer.” Jenn Ashworth, award-winning author of Ghosted

“In this brilliant collection ... Lloyd’s writing is realistic, unsentimental, and refuses any romanticisation of ‘nature’ but, at the same time, evinces a deep love of, and respect for the environment in all its complexities.” Professor Charlie Gere, Lancaster University

“In Earthworks, Karen Lloyd again confirms herself as one of our most vital and ambitious writers on nature and place... Few writers evoke so powerfully, and so personally, both the wounds and the wonder of the living world.” Professor Ian Convery, IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management Vice Chair

Praise for Abundance, longlisted for the Wainwright Prize for Conservation Writing

“It is noteworthy for its impressive lyricism, the experimental nature of its format and for the philosophical richness and variety of its content.” Spectator

“If I was to recommend one book people should read for their well-being, it would be this.” Tim Smit, The Eden Project

“Engaging, thought-provoking writing ... which should open up the discussion of what we value.” Cumbria Life

“Abundance explores the wealth of nature in recovery and challenges the inevitability of biodiversity loss.” Sunday Post

Karen Lloyd is an award-winning writer of non-fiction and poetry based in Kendal, Cumbria. Her books on the natural world have twice won Lakeland Book Awards as well as a nomination for the prestigious Wainwright Prize for Conservation Writing and have been selected as books of the year in the Observer and the Birdwatcher’s Handbook. She has contributed to the Guardian Country Diary, Royal Geographical Society magazine, BBC Wildlife and Countryfile, and she edited and produced Curlew Calling Anthology to raise awareness of curlew restoration. Karen gained her PhD from Lancaster University, where she taught on the Creative Writing MA and was writer in residence at the university’s Future Places Centre.

On Bewilderment: on our conflicting attitudes to the natural world

The Fortingall Yew: on an ancient yew tree, considered one of the oldest living trees in Europe

Sloth City: on sloths and biodiversity in a Costa Rican rainforest

Levelling Up: on balancing social justice and environmental projects in a primarily working-class town

Shooting Horses with the Hungarians: on the world’s only truly wild horse species

Inside the Rockpool Shrimp there Is a Dying Star: on the impact of microplastics on coastal fauna

I'm Blue: You're Yellow: on restoration of wildflowers in urban settings

Rights of Nature: on the arguments for non-human species rights, at the MOTH (More than Human) festival of ideas conference

Prospect and Refuge: on balancing wildlife and agriculture in a national park

The Convex View: on cultural considerations vs biodiversity and ecological restoration

Everything Trembles: on art as “truth to nature”

Eighty Fragments on the Pelican: on pelicans, from fossil records to observing pelicans in Greece

To Receive the Wolf: on rewilding the wolf and other apex predators

Coda

The Bear, the Taxi Driver and the Custard Cream: on bears in Romania

Incoming: on seabirds

The Helsfell Wolf: on preserving our natural heritage in museum collections

The Gift: on a winter sighting of the Northern Lights