With each passing decade, history becomes less real for us, less immediate and essential to our way of life, and so, like 'green' nature, more of a commodity or an advertising gimmick. John Burnside advertisecommoditydecade Change image and share on social
When you have a child, you think about your personal history and what you offer them as a larger narrative, and I realised I knew nothing about my father's circumstances other than what he'd told me. John Burnside childcircumstancefather Change image and share on social
Thatcherite economic policy was most acutely felt in the coal industry, where tens of thousands of jobs were lost as pits were shut down. John Burnside acutelycoaleconomic Change image and share on social
I went for a walk in the Arctic Circle without map or compass. Fortunately, I was only lost for hours, not days. John Burnside arcticcirclecompass Change image and share on social
It may be a cliche, but cliche or not, I fear the day when the only marsh harriers or peregrines I can look at are in paintings by Joseph Wolf or Bruno Liljefors - and no matter how beautiful those works may be, life is the great thing: life, life, life. John Burnside beautifulbrunocliche share on social
The conventional, and painfully artificial, separation of the human realm from the natural other is bound to perish, albeit over a period of time, until we are obliged to learn how to cultivate our gardens under the most demanding conditions. John Burnside albeitartificialbind share on social
The Botanischer Garten in Berlin has one of Europe's finer winter trails, leading in careful order from glasshouses devoted to African-American and Australian desert species, through a fine collection of tropical plants, and on to the orchid house. John Burnside africanamericanaustralian share on social
As attractive as it is, the idea that nature can exist beyond our dangerous 'instinct for happiness' is never the whole story. John Burnside attractivedangerousexist Change image and share on social
My second, third and fourth novels were mistakes, essentially. John Burnside essentiallyfourthmistake Change image and share on social
