The Wisdom of Sheep & Other Animals (Hardback)

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.

Made up of short chapters on aspects of farm life, from the sheep and cows to the abundant wildlife, this is a delightful book to dip into . . . One thing is certain: after reading this book, you will look at sheep in a different way.

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.

Elegiac, funny, warm and wise, The Wisdom of Sheep will delight country folk and city dwellers alike.

Full of surprises and wonderfully life-enhancing. It gives a glimpse into a real but timeless agricultural world where wildflower meadows still thrive, work is hard and where an intuitive relationship between animals and humans makes the difference between success and failure. I heartily recommend it.

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.