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Burn

A Story of Fire, Woods and Healing
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( 153 ratings, 18 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Ben Short, once entrenched in the fast-paced life of advertising and city living, battles anxiety and seeks a radical change. He finds solace in the English countryside, learning traditional woodland crafts like coppicing and charcoal burning. Living modestly with just a rescue dog for company, Ben undergoes a profound transformation by embracing manual work and the rhythms of nature, ultimately rediscovering peace and purpose.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book will resonate with readers interested in personal transformation, nature, crafts, and memoirs of overcoming anxiety. It appeals to those who appreciate eloquent, honest storytelling about reconnecting with traditional skills and rural life.

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A frank and inspiring memoir about letting go of what we're told to want, risking everything to find happiness and the brutal salve of nature.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

An extraordinary and powerful book, full of vitality. Every page celebrates the way traditional skills can shape who we are β€” Tristan Gooley

Lyrical, moving and never self-pitying . . . a lovely book The Times

Ben Short has a successful career in advertising, a flat in a trendy part of London, a flashy motorbike. But after years of suffering with anxiety, he's a wreck. A drastic change is needed.

For a time, he finds solace working with a forester, then as an apprentice to a Gypsy woodman, setting up home in a dilapidated wagon with just a rescue dog for company. However, it is not until he feels the call of the furnace, a glowing charcoal kiln in the Dorset woods, that he can truly re-forge his thoughts, put the years of suffering behind him, and start afresh by immersing himself in the old ways of woods and fire.

Exquisitely written and deeply honest, Burn is a hopeful story of transformation, a celebration of manual work and craft, and a love letter to the English countryside.

Beautifully written . . . reading it leaves you feeling ruffled but alive Mail on Sunday

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Burn is praised as a lyrical and deeply moving memoir that celebrates the power of traditional skills to reshape one's life. The Times calls it 'a lovely book,' while the Mail on Sunday highlights its beautiful writing that leaves readers 'ruffled but alive.' Reviewers commend its candidness and hopeful tone as Ben moves from darkness to light, embracing simplicity and craft amidst the English countryside.

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781529370379

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 16 February 2023

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Sceptre

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 26.0mm

Width: 128.0mm

Height: 196.0mm

Weight: 186g

Pages: 256

About the Author

Ben Short is a charcoal burner and woodsman, working in the Dorset countryside. A decade ago he worked as an advertising copywriter in London. He has lived in huts and old wagons, spent summers off-grid in woods, hauled his water from wells and had to forage for his supper. He lives in Dorset with his partner and son. benshortcharcoal.co.uk

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