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The Wisdom of Sheep: Observations from a Family Farm Audiobook
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“Elegiac, funny, warm and wise, The Wisdom of Sheep will delight country folk and city dwellers alike.” —Katherine May
A touching, wise and surprising chronicle of the rich inner lives of animals, drawn from Rosamund Young’s extraordinary lifetime as an organic farmer
We talk a lot about sheep: following the herd, counting sheep to fall asleep and looking out for wolves in sheep’s clothing. But, just like people, animals don’t always follow the pack. Some are affectionate while others butt heads; some follow the leader while some guide the whole flock home. With startling beauty and tenderness, Rosamund Young reveals the remarkable emotional and intellectual complexity of the animals she lives with on her family farm, and the story of her life’s work, with the intimacy of a personal diary.
Just as she did in her acclaimed book, The Secret Life of Cows, Young transports readers to the wild meadows of Kite’s Nest Farm, where she has worked as an organic farmer for over forty years, at the beck and call of the abundant wildlife, living in direct contact with the consciousnesses of her beloved animals. Through tender portraits of her sometimes eventful but always rewarding days at Kite’s Nest, Young recounts a multitude of discoveries, such as how cows converse with one another, why sheep are so strongheaded—and why you should never, ever text whilst milking. That’s a lesson you need learn only once.
This is a story of joy, discovery, cooperation and, sometimes, heartbreak. But through it all, The Wisdom of Sheep is a fresh and delightful tribute to the miraculous inner worlds of the animals all around us and what we can learn about them, and about ourselves, by watching them more closely.
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"Young’s work is infused with poetry and literary illusions . . . [and] is down to earth, in every sense, as you might expect from someone who believes that “grass is the answer to everything” . . . Written in short, episodic chapters, which are more like diary entries, this is a thoughtful [and] pleasing book . . . every page is tethered to Young’s experiences with animals and her love for them . . . The Wisdom of Sheep is both beguiling and compulsive. The product of decades of hard work, it is filtered through a shrewd but generous perspective on the world, and how to make it a better place."
— Rosemary Goring, Herald
Quotes
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Evocative . . . As Young, the author of The Secret Life of Cows, recounts, farming and a love of farm animals are in her blood . . . . she decided to keep a journal about the “daily farm events” at the heart of the stories in this volume . . . the pieces are united by the undivided, always affectionate attention Young gives to her world . . . . Nature and its simple joys reign supreme throughout this charming text. Warmhearted and charming, Young’s essays offer a gentle country antidote to the tumult of contemporary life. A delightful modern-day pastoral.
— Kirkus -
“Elegiac, funny, warm and wise, The Wisdom of Sheep will delight country folk and city dwellers alike.
— Katherine May, author of Enchantment -
Rosamund Young has been shovelling muck since she was a child, always carries a penknife and can be found delivering hay in the “stolen hours after midnight” . . . The joy of Young’s writing is in her observations . . . The Wisdom of Sheep is a pastoral. It is a testament to the power of slow observation, and that’s a lesson for us all.
— Helen Davies, Sunday Times -
Made up of short chapters on aspects of farm life, from the sheep and cows to the abundant wildlife, this is a delightful book. . . One thing is certain: after reading this book, you will look at sheep in a different way.
— Daily Mail -
“A wonderful antidote to the hectic pace of modern life . . . there's gentle humour, stoicism and countryside wisdom to be found on every page. Rosamund writes with an easy skill, and the short anecdotal nature of the book can be quite addictive . . . Packed full of delightful conversation.
— James Oswald -
Kite’s Nest in the Cotswolds is a family farm whose definition of family is wide: included are a host of inquisitive and characterful animals . . . The book is a collection of scribbled diary entries, memoir, and poems – Young’s own, as well as others from popular literature. Young’s love of her profession and the creatures who depend on it is unmistakable.
— New Statesman -
Rosamund Young continues to spread a little bit of magic, courtesy of her organic farm, menagerie of livestock and supporting cast off flora and fauna . . . An uplifting read.
— Countryfile -
Sheep are good judges of character and they have long memories . . . A meadow is made up of many parts, ‘whose heart you can hear only when you become part of it too’ . . . Never mind the wisdom ofsheep, these are only a few of the many droplets of lore from organic farmer Rosamund Young . . . A series of gentle, sometimes random, musings. Soothing.
— Country Life -
If you’ve read Rosamund Young’s charming anecdotal book The Secret Life of Cows about growing up on a Cotswold farm, then you simply have to read this . . . a joy to read.
— Cotswold Life -
A gorgeous book . . . Conversational in style, Rosamund’s narrative leads you through meadows abloom with wildflowers . . . to a bird-table crowded with great spotted woodpeckers, dunnocks, tits and goldfinches, plus observations from frosty and snowy pastures when winter arrives.
— The Simple Things -
As a follow up of sorts to Rosamund Young’s surprise 2018 hit The Secret Life of Cows, The Wisdom of Sheep applies the same intimate perspective to the ways of sheep . . . From Kite’s Nest Farm, her small organic agricultural base in the Cotswolds, she reports back on the activities of the livestock, including sheep which it has taken her “more than half a century” to get round to keeping.
— Strong Words -
Evocative . . . As Young, the author of The Secret Life of Cows, recounts, farming and a love of farm animals are in her blood . . . she decided to keep a journal about the “daily farm events” at the heart of the stories in this volume . . . the pieces are united by the undivided, always affectionate attention Young gives to her world . . . Nature and its simple joys reign supreme throughout this charming text. Warmhearted and charming, Young’s essays offer a gentle country antidote to the tumult of contemporary life. A delightful modern-day pastoral.
— Kirkus -
Kite’s Nest in the Cotswolds is a family farm whose definition of family is wide: included are a host of inquisitive and characterful animals . . . The book is a collection of scribbled diary entries, memoir, and poems – Young’s own, as well as others from popular literature. Young’s love of her profession and the creatures who depend on it is unmistakable.
— New Statesman
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About Rosamund Young
Rosamund Young runs Kite’s Nest Farm is on the edge of England’s Cotswold escarpment with her brother Richard and her partner Gareth. Nature is left to itself as much as possible and the animals receive exceptional kindness and consideration.