The Running Hare: The Secret Life of Farmland

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The Running Hare is just the most sumptuously gorgeous book. John Lewis-Stempel is simply the best of the many outstanding nature writers we have today. His forte is writing in great detail about very small areas - by concentrating our minds on the detail he expands our knowledge and view of the world around us. Fans of Lewis-Stempel's bestselling Meadowland will find here the same easy-reading prose fuelled by daft-as-a-brush enthusiasm and embellished with lyrical flourishes ... the mud-spattered details of a farming life lend The Running Hare a unique realness." ( Mail on Sunday) Nothing beats a classic British Carvery. Ours is served fresh and features succulent slow-cooked meats, home-made Yorkies & veg that changes to suit the season! That John Lewis-Stempel is one of the best nature writers of his generation is undisputed." ( Country Life) Nearly 3.5) This is the record of a year of old-fashioned farming: Lewis-Stempel rented a several-acre field called Flinders, planted wildflowers in with his wheat and corn, and plowed it himself. Not a pesticide in sight. He attracted hares and other mammals, as well as numerous species of birds – all in all, much more life than your average field farmed by modern methods.

It can be a bitter cupful to swallow, even for those who understand some of the ecological cost of our modern ways of agriculture and science and intensive farming practices. Most people don’t even see the changes to our entire ecosystem these “progressive” practices have wrought in less than a single generation. The decimation of animal habitat and species and the equal decimation of plant variety and habitat. This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living people that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately.Joyfully this does not prevent or spoil John's efforts to turn his newly acquired 'Flinders' field into a glorious and abundant wheatfield enjoyed by birds, wild animals, wildlife, wildflowers, wild herbs and all that comes with a worm-filled rich soil and the care of someone who understands the needs of the land and how to nurture it through the seasons.

In The Running Hare he 'borrows' a field to experiment growing corn along with wildflowers - the idea is to see how this old fashioned idea of doing things impacts on the wildlife of the area. Modern farming is all about yield, but Lewis-Stempel spells out loud and clear (often with statistics) the terrible effect this is having on our animals, birds and flowers. The farmers next door to his field are known as The Chemical Brothers for a reason! A beautifully observed book, full of poetic descriptions. Brilliant and galvanising." ( Sunday Express)

As we read The Wood through the eyes of a Master Woodsman so we read The Running Hare through the eyes of a skilled Farmer and Landsman bringing forth a wealth of sacred knowledge that will serve us well into the future. Englightening and stylish...Readers who enjoyed the author’s last book, Meadowland: The Private Life of an English Field, will find much in the same vein here: a mix of agricultural history, rural lore, topographical description and childhood memories. I learned a good deal.... Lewis-Stempel is a fine stylist, adroitly conjuring scenes in which “medieval mist hangs in the trees” or “frost clenches the ground”..." (Sara Wheeler Observer) Six Weeks: The Short and Gallant Life of the British Officer in the First World War: The Life and Death of the British Officer in the First World War (2011) However, this book brings with it much hope; that old traditions never die and can be resurrected amongst our polluted rolling hills. It is confirmation that Nature is a miraculous living being in her own right and that she will flourish when we take the trouble to learn her ways and how to work with her through the seasons. Went to The Village for a 2 night stay and decided to visit the Running Hare for my wife’s favourite meal “A Carvery” when were out . Very surprised to find 2 carverys for a tenner! What a bargain! This price for a medium but for an extra few pounds there is a large carvery on offer.

Such vulnerability is unable to survive in the modern landscape of mass farming and incessant chemical sprays. Our overworked and abused farmlands have long been avoided and abandoned by wildlife and birds who have gradually lessened or even disappeared with the removal of old traditions. In terms of how to best work with the land and Nature, we are in safe hands. The author is knowledgable, wise and experienced in this regard, representing the human-hand needed to tend and enhance natural environments where Nature is free to thrive without interference. The diary form of The Running Hare facilitates impressionistic and spontaneous prose as the rural year unfurls. Problems queue up for recognition, of course, but Lewis-Stempel ploughs on (sorry), sowing, among other things, to encourage the eponymous hare. And the animal comes. “Have hares, have our national landscape.”Shortlisted for the Richard Jefferies Society White Horse Bookshop Prize 2016. John Lewis-Stempel was winner of the Thwaites Wainwright Prize 2015 for MEADOWLAND.