Wild Child: A Journey Through Nature; Dara McAnulty, illustrated by Barry Falls

From Dara McAnulty, the award-winning author of Diary of a Young Naturalist, comes another wonderful non-fiction read that is sure to inspire future generations of nature-lovers, conservationists and naturalists.

Dara McAnulty invites you on a multi-sensory walk to find and experience the nature that is thriving in local spaces. From tiny insects to amazing birds, incredible flowers to brilliant trees, our gardens, woods, grasslands and rivers are wildlife paradises all just waiting to be explored. Put on your sturdy boots, grab your backpack and let’s see what we can find…

Beginning in Dara’s back garden before gradually venturing further away from home, this is a wonderful walk on the very gentle wild side. Through a mix of storytelling, poetry, science and nature projects the young naturalist encourages us all to embrace our inner wild child, to be curious about the natural world and to fall in love with nature. ​

Beautifully written by McAnulty and featuring full colour illustrations by Barry Falls, Wild Child: A Journey Through Nature is a very special book that any nature-loving child will treasure. The passion that author and illustrator have for their subject shines from every page and by the time the last page is turned most children will feel just as passionately about nature and why we need to protect it.

Unlike many non-fiction books targeted at children, this one is not loaded with content. It is more the opening of a door into the wonderful world of nature and one that the author hopes the reader will walk through and be left wanting to discover more. Links to helpful organisations can be found at the end and a message from Dara has all sorts of top tips to support and encourage young naturalists.

The content that is included is rich and informative as it carefully guides the reader to identify and discover plants, animals and insects and to awaken their senses to the wonders of the natural world. Each section, of which there are five in total, focuses on a different location. Beautiful poetic openings are followed by facts and information about the plants and animals that can be found there. Enhancing learning and enjoyment further is a practical activity at the end of each section that provides children with delightful opportunities to get hands-on with nature. Suggested activities include making a terrarium, exploring an oak tree and pond dipping. The inclusion of scientific content will be welcomed by those scientifically-minded children with explanations on classification in the animal kingdom, trees and propagation, migrations, metamorphosis and the collective nouns for birds.

A superb, accessible and highly engaging read that is sure to make any child want to go out and explore!

Recommended for 8+.