Once Upon a Raven's Nest

This is a rich, beautiful and deeply moving book. I read it in one sitting, then was sorry that I had not drawn it out for longer, as I enjoyed it so much. – George MonbiotFrom the wonderfully evocative title to the heart-rending yet spirit-lifting conclusion, Catrina examines, with great empathic power, how colossal forces work on the individual. In one man, we are shown vast epochal change; in him, we see the concerns and defiance and activities that were once considered as solely the province of gods. A brilliant and necessary book. – Niall GriffithsStunning. Urgent. Unforgettable. Through this complex and loving portrait of a rural working man, Catrina Davies gives voice to all that has been lost and damaged in his lifetime, ours. She is a true successor to John Berger in writing with love and anger on behalf of threatened species and communities. – Tanya Shadrick, author of The Cure for SleepOnce Upon a Raven’s Nest is a genuinely captivating tale of rural-lore - told through the thrilling narrative of one man’s life; a good ol’ country boy, a right character whose scraps and scrapes litter the pages. Chainsaws and tractors and torn love affairs fill the book, as Tommy’s story is laid bare in a series of episodes and fractured snapshots carefully scattered within a timescale of environmental decline. There is a tough, brutal beauty here in Davies’ depiction of the ways of the British countryside but love, and delight and the best of humanity, too. – James CantonOriginal and powerful, I loved this book. This is a beautiful, powerful and truly original book which is nature writing at it’s truest and finest. – Clover StroudThis has the unmistakable smell of a classic. Davies has restored my flagging faith in the ability of language to tell the unvarnished truth. Here’s a book worthy of Exmoor ravens and rivers and of the big, bold, dignified story it tells. I have no higher praise. * Charles Foster, author of Cry of the Wild, Being a Human and Being a Beast *There is a raw energy here which is very appealing. Exmoor very rough and very ready. Pulses with life at every turn. Expertly told, the fragmentary collision Of lives and a planet, deer, salmon, trees, tractors and a chainsaw or two. Exmoor verbatim as you never seen it before. Outdoors means out doors. – James CrowdenSuperb … listen to Tommy, recorded or scripted by Davies, and something gripping and honest emerges … a vivid picture of nature in the raw. * Spectator *It is a beguiling, earthy tale of a lost world, one rarely examined in print. Hedley’s outlandish yarns about brawling and risk-taking mix with stories that reveal his complex relationship with nature. * Independent (April Book of the Month) *A tremendous book, both gritty and lyrical and often darkly funny * Daily Mail *

Catrina Davies was born in Snowdonia and grew up around Land’s End, Cornwall. She has worked as a DJ, gardener, circus cellist, cleaner, TEFL teacher, dog walker, flower-picker, builder and waitress. She has also released two records. Her first book Fearless is a memoir about busking from Norway to Portugal. riverrun published Homesick in 2019 and it went on to be longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize, Once Upon a Raven’s Nest is her third book.

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