The Silver Curlew

Had an unusually busy day today, and didn't get a chance for an outdoor blip, so I'm going to cheat a bit. A few weeks ago I had a visit from my oldest (we were at primary school together) friend, who now lives in Devon. One of the things we got to talking about was the books we had read and enjoyed as children. Two in particular came up in conversation; one was The Little Grey Men by BB. The other was The Silver Curlew by Eleanor Farjeon, both a gentler kind of magic than in Harry Potter's adventures. Imagine my delight when, a few days after her departure, a copy of The Little Grey Men arrived in the post - a wonderfully thoughtful thank you gift. The author Denys Watkins-Pitchford, who wrote under the pen name BB, was a knowledgable writer on wildlife, who also aimed to imbue in children a love of the countryside with his charming stories.
When I took this photo last weekend, I took it as a sign that I should do my best to get the other volume we discussed. I looked on Amazon, as I had done before, where I had found only prohibitively expensive editions - I think it must be out of print - and found a second hand copy for just a few pounds: yellowing, watermarked and sans dust jacket, but perfectly readable. Those brought up with Winnie The Pooh and Christopher Robin will recognise the name of Mr Shepard as the illustrator. It arrived today.