It’s no secret that I have for years been deeply impressed by the writing and editorial taste of Melissa Harrison. From her quartet of seasonal nature-themed literature, to her novels – most recently the captivating as well as somewhat haunting All Among the Barley – to her recently published collection of of her Nature Notebook column from The Times titled The Stubborn Light of Things – which also shares the name of her superb 2020 podcast series that helped so many of us, myself included, to endure the mental and emotional strains of the CoVid-19 lockdowns, she has demonstrated over and again her remarkable creative talents. For most any other author, achieving such praise-worthy levels of quality in a such a diverse body of work would be sufficient for a life’s accomplishment, however for Ms. Harrison it clearly is not, as she has now seen publication of By Ash, Oak and Thorn, her first book written primarily for children.
I write “primarily” as I would by no means confine such a book as I have already found this book to be only to being read by or to children. As I have noted previously, over the past year I have taken to selecting books written ostensibly for young readers as my “before bed” reading. And as such, I have been presently reading from By Ash, Oak and Thorn each night before blowing out the candle – and on one occasion thus far relighting it as I simply had to know what happened next before I could drift off to sleep.
Revisiting some of the characters and adventures originally found in The Little Grey Men and Down the Bright Stream, two of the novels penned by Denys Watkins-Pitchford, MBE, the prolific British author of nature and fantasy stories who wrote under the pen name B.B., Ms. Harrison appears to have added new characters of her own creation and given them adventures that don’t replicate B.B.’s but expand upon their world. “Appears” that is as I have not yet had the pleasure of reading B.B.’s works for myself… yet. Indeed, prior to taking up this present book, I was wholly unaware of the extensive bibliography of B.B.’s books. However, with copies of both these book now on order from Blackwell’s, I shall most certainly be taking them up immediately upon arrival and completing both prior to drafting a full review of By Ash, Oak and Thorn (just trying to be thorough in my background knowledge, of course).
For those who would like to jump right in to Ms. Harrison’s new book (and I couldn’t possibly say that I’d blame you whatsoever for doing so), if you are in the U.K., pop right down to your local bookshop and pick up a copy. If you are in the U.S., or elsewhere outside of the Commonwealth aegis of publishing, well… like so many fine works of nature-inspired literature that are published in the U.K. these days, Ms. Harrison’s Ash, Oak and Thorn is not yet available through bookshops in the U.S. However it appears that it will eventually be so from Scholastic Books. I will, of course, update this entry when such availability occurs. Of course, you could also, like I often do, take advantage of Blackwell’s generous terms of sale and shipping to the U.S. …
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