All in all a worthy read and it certainly has made me watch what is going in my garden more closely. And I loved every page; I learned something new from just about every page, which at my age is no mean thing. If, in our own modest back yards, we can help preserve and treasure our natural world then we will make the world a better place -- not just for ourselves but for every living creature. I really enjoyed this book as it was a revelation into the personality of Monty as well as a wonderful account of the nature he encounters throughout the year in his garden. The chunky dark orange hardboard cover with colourful dust-jacket opens to 422 matte finish pages, split over the months of the year within the 4 seasons (image below refers).

This book is an amazing naturalists account of all the many birds, plants, and mammals that are to be found at different times of the year and in all the many places, in and around farms, gardens, woodlands and environments both familiar, and unfamiliar. Tales and insight into his childhood, gardening and daily life were interesting in the most part but I did find certain parts of the book like trawling through an encyclopedia and it did tend to drag at those points.This is not so much Monty the gardener and celebrity but more the naturalist and country man, in the manner of a latter day Jack Hargreaves. Recent times have given us the enforced opportunity to learn more about the fascinating natural world around us. A handful of full colour plates are included in small batches, including the very last one of that special one the book is dedicated to, succeeding in bringing a tear to the eye of many a reader, I think, as potentially will the closing chapter😢 coming just before the short but sweet ½ page of ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.

There are full page colour photos for each season included in the book and Monty's descriptions and anecdotes are more than enough to bring to life the magic he sees and observes as a outdoors man submerged in nature. My Garden World is Monty Don's personal journey through the natural year, month by month, season by season, observed from the immediate world around him. We learn Monty is partial to a whiskey in the garden on a summer’s evening, smokes a pipe when attacked by midges and loves spotting birds of prey swooping for a kill. I'm not comfortable with his ambivalence about huntin' and shootin', but then I don't own a large estate in Shropshire and a farm on the Welsh hills.But a joy to finish in January 2022 under a blanket with a cup of tea in front of the fire as the snow piles up outside. His lifelong enthusiasm and fascination with nature (the cute bits and the harsh bits) shines through. Monty has sectioned the book into the four seasons with a month by month observations of what he may or may not have been seen in the garden and up at the farm. qualified in the last portion of the INTRODUCTION:🌱 ‘…This book is personal, selective, and based on my own particular interests rather than trying to be a reference book of any kind.

Along with his home and garden in Long Meadow, there is a farm in Wales which provide endless opportunities to observe the comings and goings of plants and wildlife as the seasons change. This is a feel-good book, one that catapulted me away from a stressful week straight into the peace of the natural world.Evocative for me because I grew up in the Welsh Marches and really, really miss seeing the changes across the seasons. I love this book, it takes you on an amazing journey through the natural year learning about all the creatures and plants that inhabit a garden and farmland through the course of one year.

In this book he talks more about the wildlife he observes both at his home and at the farm he owns in Wales. If, in our own modest back yards, we can help preserve and treasure our natural world, then we will make this planet a better place ~ not just for ourselves but for every living creature. Wildlife is not something that we watch happening in remote and exotic parts of the world on our screens, but right here in our own back yards and the more that we encourage it and learn to live with it, the more rewarding it becomes.Overall this is an easy book to dip in and out of as well as one you can throw yourself into for a lengthier session of quiet escapism. Monty never wrotes that he is for the hunting of any animal (and in fact often states otherwise), but simply tries to explaon that the situation of conservation is more complicated than a yes or no answer.