A thrilling novel set in NEW YORK / USA
GIVEAWAY – 3 copies of The Heeding (poetry and illustration)
27th March 2022
We are delighted to offer 3 copies of The Heeding by Rob Cowen and Nick Hayes (illustrator)
Open UK
Over the past couple of years or so, many of us have found solace in nature and have perhaps paid attention to it in a way that we haven’t before…..
The world changed in 2020. Gradually at first, then quickly and irreversibly, the patterns by which we once lived altered completely.
Across four seasons and a luminous series of poems and illustrations, Rob Cowen and Nick Hayes paint a picture of a year caught in the grip of history yet filled with revelatory perspectives close at hand. A sparrowhawk hunting in a back street; the moon over a town with a loved one’s hand held tight; butterflies massing in a high-summer yard – the everyday wonders and memories that shape a life and help us recall our own.
The Heeding leads us on a journey that takes its markers and signs from nature and a world filled with fear and pain but beauty and wonder too. Collecting birds, animals, trees and people together, it is a profound meditation to a time no one will forget.
At its heart, this is a book that helps us look again, to heed: to be attentive to this world we share, to grieve what’s lost and to hope for a better and brighter tomorrow.
HOW TO ENTER
- You need to be a member of TripFiction. Simply go to www.tripfiction.com and scroll down to the JOIN NOW tab. And we do check!
- Share with us in the COMMENTS below, what you have found particularly comforting in Nature over the past couple of years – the birdsong, the green countryside, the blossom and blooms…
Enter by midnight, 9 April 2022 and the three winners will be chosen at random. Open UK – good luck!
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Winners:
mumliz
Annette Oliver
LadySpirit
Being near the sea – I always feel so much happier there!
Being able to see our dragonflies emerge out of their cases in our pond. We wouldn’t be able to do that usually working in an office but working from home we’ve been able to see a lot more and it’s so satisfying and so relaxing.
the quiet!
Having an allotment I find joy in watching flowers and vegetables grow, watching birds flying overhead and seeing insects and bees enjoying the wildlife garden.
The beach, how it changes with each tide and the fossils that I have found
Nature is consistent in a world that simply isn’t following the rules any more: celandines shine; sun warms; nestlings fledge – that’s my big comfort.
Everything in nature has felt comforting over the past couple of years but I think the wildlife in our garden – from the hedgehogs in the bushes to the newts in the pond – has brought us the most joy in our everyday lives.
I always find the sights and sound of water in nature thoroughly comforting, especially when you see animals using it. It reminds me that we’re all connected and we all need this basic resource.
I’ve loved watching nature change during the seasons, especially in Spring when everything starts growing.
Birdsong is very comforting.
Long walks at the end of a day working from home are so good for my mental health
walking the dog along the riverside is so relaxing
I love seeing birds, especially when they get close, like wagtails when they’re wagging their tails on the path in front of me 🙂
The wildflowers on the verges have been lovely, particularly as there was no Council grass cutting during the pandemic. I have a lovely patch of self seeded primroses on the bank behind my back fence
For me it’s the birdsong. No matter how crazy the world is or how much life changes, the birds still sing.
The greening of spring showing me, once again, that all is not lost.
i love listening to the birds first thing in the morning
i love feeding the swans and ducks
Definitely the sound of the birds (especially springtime) I’m lucky enough to have a garden where the birds frequent and sometimes nest so I’m able to see and hear them
Yes ! Always find comfort ✨️ from watching the birds and bees to planting seeds of joy – my mental wellbeing is raised always in nature
The Cotswolds
We live in a lovely fenland village and Covid forced us to abandon our daily gym and swim (and 20 mile trip) and take up walking around our local area. So much to see with nature’s ever changing seasons. The highlight for us was watching a pair of swans from July into the New Year and their brood who we came to call the Magnificent Seven. We were lucky enough to see them from their first few days right up to flying lessons! What a privilege 🙂
Watching the hedgerows change through the seasons the anticipation, the ephemeral beauty.
Being in woodland – I love the greenery and the dappled shade.
Attracting wildlife into the garden, love blue tits, robins, blackbirds and we even have a hedgehog – so relaxing and fascinating x
Guerilla gardening! Not lucky enough to have a proper garden of my own so started weeding, watering and planting one of the scruffy shrubberies in the car park. It has been a joy seeing the new shrubs and flowers I planted flourish. It has also been a joy seeing pollinators attracted to them. It’s not mine and it’s not much but, heck, it’s really comforting.
I love walking by open water. I find it so peaceful and calming
Watching / Listening to nature, in the woods, in complete silence, in awe.
When the world stopped nature just kept on going. There was something comforting about just seeing it do it’s thing when the world changed for is humans.
I live in the city centre and during lockdown loved looking more closely at the pops of nature in the city (Manchester) than I never noticed before the pandemic. Was particularly taken by the purple flowers near the cathedral.
Just watching the various birds visiting the garden. Love the squirrels too.
loved growing my own fruit and veg and watching it from small seeds grow into something delicious we can eat
The waves- that rhythmic sound of them breaking- watching them creep a tiny bit further and further up the beach. It reminds me that so much has changed but tides still come in and out, seasons still happen, life does indeed go on.
Growing my own fruit and vegetables has been comforting as this took me outside through lockdown and gave me something else to focus on.
I love petalled pioneers, little flowers that escape from their garden cages, and pop up where least expected, along pavements, in walls, on beaches, under fences…
The most comforting thing about nature is there is so much to look at that takes your mind off worries
I have a night camera in my garden and watching the hedgehogs come to feed has been wonderful.
The badgers that keep coming to our garden, they are a joy to see at night especially this time of year when they start bringing their little ones
Seeing a red squirrel when walking in the lake district something money can’t buy.
Seeing colourful flowers and the leaves growing back on the trees
Just being able to walk through the woods and hear nothing but the nature around me is so peaceful.
Definitely the birdsong. I was in bed for 10 weeks at the very beginning of covid and looked forward to the birds singing in the morning. It’s so soothing
During the first lockdown, on the days where I wasn’t working, I enjoyed watching the birds in my garden. I bought bird feeders to encourage them, and I still feed the birds now, two years later.
flowers and greenery
Being able to get out in the sunshine at lunch time whilst working from home.
Now retired hubby and I swapped our daily gym and swim for long walks around along the farm tracks and country lanes of our fenland village when Covid started. We love that no two walks are alike, nature always shows us something new. Although we miss the swimming we are as fit and healthy as ever. Walking in the countryside is great for both our physical and mental health….and considerably cheaper than the gym!
The family of Red Kites which fly over our road several times a day.
No matter what the weather the garden life continues.
Being able to walk and escape the four walls of the house
The peace and quiet on the county lane near where I live, but sadly that didn’t last long.
Has to be the birdsong.
the changing of the seasons – makes the same walks look different every time
The abundance of bird life after the first few weeks or so of the first lockdown was the only redeeming feature of it. I love Rob Cowen’s work and very much look forward to reading this collaboration.
The sounds of the animals and the sea along the coast
I’ve found birdsong in my back garden is so valuably therapeutic.I’m never having another cat as they do kill the birds.
The Heeding sounds like a lovely book to read. Many times when we are anxious or worried if we only stopped to take heed of the beauty that is all around us, it would make us more tranquil to appreciate all the things we have instead of things that are out of our reach.
The Heeding sounds such a lovely book to read because there is so much beauty surrounding us that if we just stop and take note all our anxieties and troubles can be diminished by enjoying what we have and not what we lack.
I find that walking (alone) in the quiet surroundings of the countryside and being at one with Nature and spending time with ‘Her’ can greatly improve my memory and it is a great way to de-stress and relax.
Watching birdlife in my back garden. It’s reusing bird boxes, visits from greater spotted woodpeckers, parakeets and ravens. And foxes who know me by sight and come to be fed.
Nature never ceases to amaze me. The Seasons especially Spring, demonstrate growth, and fills me with positivity. Although the squirrels are very naughty and insist on burying all manner of things in my lawn ( then forget where ) they amuse me. I enjoy watching them every morning whilst they perform acrobatic routines on my twisted hazelnut tree.
I just love the wildlife and if I’m really lucky can watch the deers when I take my walk
Watching the birds that visit our garden has been a joy and a godsend during the past few years. I’ve particularly enjoyed watching the fluffy fledglings who sit on a branch and nag the parent birds to feed them from the fat balls etc.
I have been comforted by the changing moods and colors of the sky. Every day I sit in a special place and look for a while up away from all my little and big worries of the day. A Higher Power paints everyday.
Simply birdsong and the changing seasons!
We’ve been lucky enough to see many birds – particularly robins and magpies and squirrels – especially baby ones – in the garden.
Nature provides a distraction from the troubles of life and an opportunity to learn new things, I’ve found it particularly comforting to be able to identify more and more of the wildflowers and butterflies I see when out and about.