The Writer’s Garden

Description

Great things happen in gardens. No one can doubt the importance of the garden in Roald Dahl’s life as it was here where he worked, and here that he created James and the Giant Peach. And where would Jane Austen have been if she had never seen a ‘ walk’ , an ornamental lake, or a wilderness?

Gardens hold a special place in many author’ s lives. For Beatrix Potter, Hill Top house was made possible by the new found freedom and wealth that a literary career can bring; for Sir Walter Scott, laying out his garden at Abbotsford was a way of distracting himself from mounting debts.

In this book of 18 gardens and 20 writers, the author examines how the poet, writer, novelist derived a creative spirit from their private garden, how they tended and enjoyed their gardens, and how they managed their outdoor space.

Jane Austen at Godmersham and Chawton Rupert Brooke at Grantchester John Ruskin at Brantwood Agatha Christie at Greenway Beatrix Potter at Hill Top Roald Dahl at Gipsy House Charles Dickens at Gad’ s Hill Place Virginia Woolf at Monk’ s House Winston Churchill at Chartwell Laurence Sterne at Shandy Hall George Bernard Shaw at Shaw’ s Corner Ted Hughes at Lumb Bank Henry James followed by E.F. Benson at Lamb House John Clare at Helpston Thomas Hardy at Hardy’ s Cottage and Max Gate  Robert Burns at Ellisland William Wordsworth at Cockermouth and Grasmere Walter Scott at Abbotsford Rudyard Kipling at Bateman’ s

In this book of 25 gardens, the author examines how the poet, writer, novelist derived a creative spirit from their private garden, how they tended and enjoyed their gardens, and how they managed their outdoor space.

Jackie Bennett is a former editor of The Garden Design Journal, the English Garden Magazine and Gardening with the National Trust. She began her career in television, producing gardening and natural history programmes before become a full time writer. In 1990, she won an award for nature writing in the BBC Wildlife Magazine Awards and her books include The Wildlife Garden Month by Month (David & Charles 1990 – reissued in 2011), The Cottage Garden and Wild About the Garden (1997 a Channel 4 tie-in book for the TV series presented by Carol Klein).  She won the Garden Writer’s Guild Gardening Column of the Year 2009 for a series about her own Norfolk garden. Jackie has studied garden design and landscape history. She runs writing workshops for the Society of Garden Designers and for the Cambridge and Oxford Botanic Gardens.

“a delightful and enlightening exploration of British literature and horticulture.”

“combines biography with the story of each garden, and the photos give a real sense of place … I loved it.”

“Bennett is an excellent guide leading you to all the right places and weaving biography with garden tales.  Like all good gardening books it leaves you wanting to explore the gardens for yourself, in this case with some favourite novels clutched firmly in hand.”

“Bennett is an excellent guide leading you to all the right places and weaving biography with garden tales.  Like all good gardening books it leaves you wanting to explore the gardens for yourself, in this case with some favourite novels clutched firmly in hand.”

“enjoy a visual feast”

“I recommend it”

“a pleasing tour that dips into the lives of some of our favourite literary figures”

“a beguiling blend of biography, history and garden portraiture, with magnificent photographs by Richard Hanson.”

“combines biography with the story of each garden, and the photos give a real sense of place … I loved it.”

“a delightful and enlightening exploration of British literature and horticulture.”

Additional information

Dimensions	0.75 × 10.25 × 10.25 in
Imprint	Frances Lincoln
Format	General Trade
ISBN-13	09780711234949
ISBN-10	0711234949
Author	Jackie Bennett, Richard Hanson
Audience	General / adult
BISAC	BIO007000
Subjects	BIO007000, Jane Austen, Beatrix Potter, Charles Dickens, Virginia Woolf, William Wordsworth, Thomas Hardy, Agatha Christie, Rudyard Kipling