The real story behind the best-known—and least-understood—battle in British history.If ever there was a year of destiny for the British Isles, 1066 must have a strong claim. King Harold faced invasion not just from William and the Normans across the English Channel, but from King Harald Hardrada of Norway.Before he fought the Normans at Hastings in October, he had fought at York and neighboring Stamford Bridge in September. It was a year of dramatic changes...

Much more than just another field guide or a natural history of butterflies Rainbow Dust explores the ways in which butterflies delight and inspire us all, naturalists and non-naturalists alike.Beginning with the author's own experience of hunting and rearing butterflies as a boy, Peter Marren considers the special place of the butterfly in art, literature, advertising and science, and, latterly, our attempts to conserve them.Rainbow Dust ...

Bloomsbury presents The Devil’s Garden: The World's Most Sinister Plants and Fungi by Peter Marren, read by Justin Avoth“Peter Marren is a master storyteller … he was destined to write The Devil’s Garden.” Richard MabeyA lively exploration of the poisoners, tricksters, stingers, stinkers and invaders of the plant world and how their lives intertwine with ours.Some plants and fungi – those we cultiv...

A look at what world history might have been like if not for the fall of the Western Roman Empire.This is a fascinating exploration of how the history of Europe, and indeed the world, might have been different if the Western Roman Empire had survived the crises that pulled it apart in the fourth and fifth centuries.The author starts by showing how that survival and recovery might plausibly have happened if several relatively minor things had been different....

“Peter Marren is a master storyteller … he was destined to write The Devil's Garden.”Richard MabeyA lively exploration of the poisoners, tricksters, stingers, stinkers and invaders of the plant world and how their lives intertwine with ours.Some plants and fungi – those we cultivate in farms, gardens and allotments – are pretty, useful or edible. Others are more troublesome: poisonous, or with painful stings, sinister looks or foul smells. In the m...

**ONE OF THE GUARDIAN’S BEST BOOKS OF 2018**Join renowned naturalist Peter Marren on an exciting quest to see every species of wild plant native to Britain.The mysterious Ghost Orchid blooms in near darkness among rotting leaves on the forest floor. It blends into the background to the point of invisibility, yet glows, pale and ghostly. The ultimate grail of flower hunters, it has been spotted only once in the past twenty-f...

The past, present and future of extinction from a world-leading naturalist.We are in the midst of an extinction event: the sixth mass extinction on earth and one entirely caused by mankind. All species become extinct sooner or later, but we have accelerated that natural process several hundredfold and now, it is happening right in front of our eyes.Extinction has a terrifying finality to it. And many species have already been lost to us forever; there is li...

Mushrooms, the first of a major new series of books on British natural history, provides a remarkable insight into the natural and human world of fungi.Peter Marren, in his inimitable, relaxed style, guides the reader through the extraordinary riches of this often overlooked group, from the amazing diversity of forms and lifestyles that populate the fungal landscape, to the pursuit of edible fungi for the pot, and the complexities of identification thrown ...

'Wise, challenging and offering some unexpected laughter in the dark, this is a rational and insightful account of the sixth great extinction event. Peter Marren is a brilliant writer and a national treasure.' PATRICK BARKHAM'Thoughtful, fascinating and very timely.' STEPHEN MOSS'Important and thought-provoking.' CAROLINE LUCAS, GREEN PARTY MP'Essential reading. Marren makes a page-turner out of Armageddon.'...

ONE OF THE GUARDIAN'S BEST NATURE BOOKS OF 2020SHORTLISTED FOR THE RICHARD JEFFERIES SOCIETY & WHITE HORSE BOOKSHOP LITERARY PRIZE'Lovely: full of fascinating detail and anecdote, but the undertow of the virus moving in real time beneath its sunlit surface gives it a unique emotional heft.'-The Times'A literary window into the wonderful wild world during lockdown... ...

Nature took on a new importance for thousands of people when the coronavirus pandemic arrived in Britain, providing solace in a time of great anxiety - not least because the crisis struck at the beginning of spring, the season of hope and renewal; and furthermore, in an extraordinary conjunction, the spring of 2020 turned out to be the loveliest spring ever recorded in Britain.Three nature writers, living like everyone else under lockdown, but walking out each day to exercise, reso...

The historian and archeologist presents a vivid and comprehensive account of warfare in early Medieval England.In this compelling new study, Paull Hill reveals what documentary records and the growing body of archaeological evidence can tell us about war and combat in the age of the great Anglo-Saxon kings. The violent centuries before the Norman Conquest come to life in this detailed account of how and why the Anglo-Saxons fought, how their warriors were armed and ...