The Garden in the Clouds: Confessions of a Hopeless Romantic - Softcover

Woodward, Antony

3.87

141 ratings by Goodreads

9780007216529: The Garden in the Clouds: Confessions of a Hopeless Romantic

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0007216521 ISBN 13: 9780007216529

Publisher: HarperPress, 2011

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Winner of the National Trust Outdoor Book of the Year 2011
The story of one man’s unlikely quest to create out of a mountainous Welsh landscape a garden fit for inclusion in the prestigious Yellow Book – the ‘Gardens of England and Wales Open for Charity’ guide – in just one year.

The son of two passionate gardeners, Antony Woodward was born with chlorophyll running through his veins. Unfortunately, growing up with Latin plant names took its toll, and he was ingrained early on with a profound loathing of both gardens and gardening.

Buying Tair-ffynnon, a derelict smallholding 1,300 feet up in the Black Mountains of Wales, changed everything. Hooked by its beauty – when not buried in cloud – Woodward battles to meet the strict requirements of the famous ‘Yellow Book’ in this unlikely terrain. He finds himself driven by apparently inexplicable compulsions: wood chopping, hauling a 20-tonne railway carriage up a mountain, even beekeeping. Soon, his voyage along the rocky path to his own patch of paradise takes on a more personal tenor as he unearths the deep roots linking gardening and his childhood in this warm, funny and unlikely memoir.

Beautifully written and effortlessly engaging, 'The Garden in the Clouds' is a compelling read for anyone who has ever gardened – or ever dreamt of doing so.

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Review:

‘Side-splitting brilliance ... up there with Proust as a shimmering example of classic remembrance of things past’ Val Hennessy, Daily Mail

‘Uplifting...hilarious...testimony to what can be achieved with a dash of imagination and a very British refusal to admit defeat.’ Sara Wheeler, Mail on Sunday

‘I set out determined to dislike the book, and I completely failed to do so. There can be no higher praise than that’ Byron Rogers, Spectator

‘Woodward’s tongue-in-cheek account of finding, making and growing his own little patch of heaven is right on the button’ The Times

‘The funniest book I have read this year; and touchingly brave...the very best of self-deprecating British humour’ Sir Alistair Horne

‘Hilariously told...perfect bedtime reading: all aspiration and perspiration’ Best Gardening Books, Stephen Anderton, The Times

‘Very few people are brave enough to live a realisable dream and then to write about it in such a way that readers feel deep laughter and admiration. Antony Woodward has done just that’ Rory Knight Bruce, Country Life

‘Laugh-out-loud comedy...A book for anyone intrigued by the impetus behind the making of gardens, and for anyone who just enjoys a really good read.’ Lia Leendertz, Gardens Illustrated

‘A tale for all gardeners battling seemingly insuperable odds, the lesson being: “The trick of garden making, as of life, is not to moan about what you haven’t got, but to make the most of what you have.”’ Oxford Times

Review:

‘Woodward’s tongue-in-cheek account of finding, making and growing his own little patch of heaven is right on the button, as is his nostalgic, romantic, down-to-earth attitude of make do, mend, maintain and modernise, making a life worth living and a garden worth showing right here at home in the mud’ The Times

‘Very few people are brave enough to live a realisable dream and then to write about it in such a way that readers feel deep laughter and admiration...Anthony Woodward, once an award winning advertising copywriter and ‘Country Life’ columnist, has done just that...an energetic tale of an innocent abroad’ Country Life

‘His progress is told with side-splitting brilliance that only a truly gifted writer can achieve...not one dull page...his lovely epilogue is up there with Proust as a shimmering example of classic remembrance of things past’ Daily Mail

‘I set out determined to dislike the book, and I completely failed to do so. There can be no higher praise than that...I read it in one sitting, at first from malice, then for enjoyment’ Byron Rogers, Spectator

‘Hilarious...uplifting...The Garden in the Clouds is much more than a horticultural tale. It is testimony to what can be achieved with a dash of imagination and a very British refusal to admit defeat’ Sara Wheeler, Mail on Sunday

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