Shepherd's Life [Hardcover]

W.H. Hudson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 18, 1978

William Henry Hudson lived form 1841 to 1922. He was an author, naturalist and ornithologist. Hudson's parents settled in Argentina where Hudson spent his youth studying the flora and fauna of the area. Hudson later moved to England where he helped found the back to nature movement. In 1918 he wrote Far Away and Long Ago, which was an autobiography of his early life. A Shepherd's Life begins, "Wiltshire looks large on the map of England a great green county yet it never appears to be a favourite one to those who go on rambles in the land." W H Hudson takes his reader on a magical tour of this area of England. His descriptions of the rural area are beautiful to read. Hudson brings the past alive for his readers. There are many descriptions of the relationship between shepherds and their dogs, peculiar behaviors of various animals, tales of strange people, and extensive descriptions of the land itself. A lot of the stories in this book come from an old shepherd.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

W. H. Hudson is the author of Far Away and Long Ago, Green Mansions, The Naturalist in La Plata, and The Purple Land.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 215 pages
• Publisher: Compton Press Ltd (May 18, 1978)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0900193506
• ISBN-13: 978-0900193507
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,881,389 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars an obscure classic, May 13, 2008

By 

Ted Byrd - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Shepherd's Life (Dodo Press) (Paperback)

A Shepherds Life deals with a time and place which seems quite obscure, the Salisbury Plain of the 19th century. W. H, Hudson assembled this history from the tales and remembrances of some of the aged residents, particularly an old man who had been a shepherd his entire life. There are many descriptions of the relationship between shepherds and their dogs,peculiar behaviors of various animals,tales of strange people, and extensive descriptions of the land itself. There are stories of the humble lives of the sheepherders and their many hardships. There is condemnation of the hoggish practices of the large landowners who lived in luxury and hoarded all the land and the rights thereof, yet denied the common people even a decent living. Shining through all this is the pride these simple workmen felt in their craft and expertise. The book had a slow start and seemed rather mundane at first, but gradually built up a mood which drew me in to this world. It is a very quaint change of pace to our modern existence. The quality of writing was excellent. I read this book because I enjoyed the author's natural history classic,The Naturalist in La Plata. I felt rewarded that I did.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Smatterings, November 8, 2006

By 

Julie A. Smith "avidreader" (Boston, MA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Shepherd's Life (Paperback)

I love the pieces that are included in this edition; however, they are merely smatterings taken from A Shepherd's Life. I had hoped the book I ordered was unabridged. That aside, W.H. Hudson was a masterfull writer and his prose, in most instances, magnificent and highly descriptive.