[dawninspain]

We all have our favourite 'how to' gardening books but what about those that you can sit down and read like a novel. Good ones can be hard to come across. The following are mine - what are yours?

Derek Jarman's Garden by (surprise, surprise) Derek Jarman

The Jewel Garden by Sarah and Monty Don

Beth Chatto's Garden Note Book

The Well Tempered Garden by Christopher Lloyd

Dawn

[Fenland Girl]

Not exclusively garden-focused, but I love the following:

Fat of the Land - John Seymour
Garden in the Hills - Elizabeth West
The Good Life - Helen and Scott Nearing

Haven't read any on your list, will see if I can order them at the library!

[GreenOwl]

The Urban Gardener by Elspeth Thompson

[Trillium]

The Good Life - Helen and Scott Nearing

Scott Nearing died at the age of 100 and still gardening, so I guess he got it right. Not sure what happened to Helen.

[splodger]

the heligan vegetable bible - by tim smit & philip mcmillan browse

[dawninspain]

I've never come across Helen and Scott Nearing or Splodger or Greenowl's favourites. I shall have a look at Amazon.

Fenland Girl - I like Elizabeth West as well - do you know her Hovel in the Hills which precedes, I think, Garden in the Hills?  

John Seymour's always a good read - I think he's still going strong and must be late 80s or even into his 90s.

[Fenland Girl]

I think Helen Nearing has died now as well, I am sure I read something a few years ago about them looking for people to take over their farm and carry on their work.

John Seymour died at the age of 90 in 2004. His son-in-law contacted me after I posted a book review on Amazon and I was lucky enough to get a signed copy of Fat of the Land just a few months before his death. It is wrapped up in tissue paper waiting to be passed on to my sons one day!

Dawn, I've got 'Hovel' as well! I think there was also one called Kitchen in the Hills but I've never been able to get hold of it.

[dawninspain]

Fenland Girl - the Kitchen in the Hills book must have had a very small print run as it is classified as a rare book - I've seen copies for sale for about £60 or more - so if you every see one going cheap snap it up!

Dawn