A Year with Gilbert White: The First Great Nature Writer | Book Talk

Friday 4th February 2026 | 6pm

A Year with Gilbert White: The First Great Nature Writer

A talk with author Jenny Uglow

In 1781, Gilbert White was a country curate, living in the Hampshire village he had known all his life. Fascinated by the fauna, flora and people around him, he kept journals for many years, and, at that time, was halfway to completing his path-breaking The Natural History of Selborne. No one had written like this before, with such close observation, humour, and sympathy: his spellbinding book has remained in print ever since, treasured by generations of readers.

Jenny Uglow illuminates this quirky, warm-hearted man, ‘the father of ecology’, by following a single year in his Naturalist’s Journal. As his diary jumps from topic to topic, she accompanies Gilbert from frost to summer drought, from the migration of birds to the sex lives of snails and the coming of harvest.

Fresh, alive and original – and packed with rich colour illustrations – A Year with Gilbert White invites us to see the natural world anew, with astonishment and wonder.

A LIVE Lit & Phil Event | £7 / £5 (concession)

(If you would prefer to book directly over the phone, please call the Library Desk team on 0191 232 0192 and they will be happy to help)