HIDDEN NATURE

By Alys Fowler

In a journey of self-discovery, Fowler chronicles her exploration of Birmingham's canal network. Paddling along in her inflatable raft, she confronts her identity as a gay woman and finds solace among the wildflowers as her 12-year marriage to her husband dissolves.

I enjoyed the mix of realism and romanticism in Secret Nature. Exploring inner city nature always sounds more romantic in a book than it is in real life.

It's an enchanting idea to pore over maps, discover hidden rivers and secret pools, encounter shy wildlife a stone's throw from a bustling city centre. But often the reality you find is bleak. I spent six months in and around the inner city rivers of Sheffield and the reality wasn't one of uncovering wonder. There was some of that, sure. But the overwhelming feeling was one of utter sadness verging on hopelessness.

After only days of hefting car tires out of polluted mud or pulling invasive species the despair starts to set in. After a few months the magic of uncovering city nature wore away and below the veneer I saw it for what it was: desperation. It felt desperate and heart-wrenching to be searching so hard for signs of life in such an industrialised place.

Fowler perfectly captures this dichotomy of wonder and despair. She finds moments of transcendent beauty but doesn't shy away from including the roaring motorways, the litter, pollution, animal carcasses.

She does something else, too. She - ever so gently - introduces the history and intrigue of our industrialised canal network.

Some books are like flint, able to spark an interest. I found myself finally leaving the house on day four of having Covid to venture along my local canal, afterwards trawling through its history online.

There are strong themes in the book - of coming out, certainly, but also of making a change and feeling grief or loss as a result.