This should be taught in schools and given out on prescription. A wonderful book about all the health and healing benefits of nature no matter where you live.

Great start but for me it petered out and I got very very bored so I did not finish - I really wanted to like this and have given 3 stars as I found it informative to start but ..... sorry I so wanted to like.

Here is something that we have all realised during lockdown...how much better we feel when we are out in nature. Some really good ideas to take from it.

First half of the book is pretty good. However I mostly liked it because I kept googling them plants and getting inspired for my next road trip.
Then it becomes very repetitive in my opinion.. Running works and here's why, but not for everyone... cycling works and here's why, but not for everyone... and so on..
I think it would make a great book if it was half a size and wouldn't go into so many little details...
The message is "Get out more! Nature is good for you!"

It’s hard to explain what this book is about beyond the title and that is very clear. The book is about getting outdoors - but it isn’t a manifesto or a polemic. It is a gentle stroll through some stories of people with mental health issues who wanted a way forward that didn't involve drugs. The way forward involves nature and becoming more aware of our surroundings - and what we are missing.

The stories are about walking, running, hiking etc but also about just “being”. I think this is the most important part as it is something we can all do - we can all just walk somewhere with trees, plants etc and just settle in to the surroundings and ground ourselves. I think during Covid - whether full lockdown or not - this is vital to our well being and the book is very timely.

I went out to my garden, which is nothing special, and stood beside a trellis and looked around. I saw things I hadn’t noticed before and I was amazed at the different shades and hues of green within a very small area. I also felt refreshed. It isn’t all simple and it won’t work every time for everyone but I think this book is important.

I was given a copy of the book by Netgalley in return for an honest review.

DNF

I found the premise of the book interesting and genuinely have considered more outside time to be more with nature. However, I felt the book was very repetitive and took far too long to cover areas that could and had been covered in s short space of time.

I got to about 65% of the book and just couldn't read anymore. However it's good to see more books about mental health and anything that might assist.

I really enjoyed this novel. Although I have always enjoyed being outside and getting out in nature, it has given me a new appreciation for the natural world and all the things we might take for granted. I found it a little heavy on the science at times, although this is more a reflection on what I wanted to read, and not a criticism of the author. A thoroughly researched and interesting read, with an interesting and frank personal tale behind it.

Interesting book about how a connection with nature and the outdoor can help combat mental ill health – depression and anxiety. Fairly well trodden ground but the author writes in an engaging manner and the overall effect was an uplifting book about managing mental illness conditions.

This was a delightful book about nature and its benefit for mental health. I had already read 'Losing Eden' (Lucy Jones) which covers a similar topic but found this one had more of an emphasis on the science behind it. The personal stories intertwined with the facts made it easily readable. I only wish I had read it earlier during the lockdown!

At 05:30 this morning, I dashed down my front steps and briskly walked up the road to my car, my thoughts consumed by whether or not I’d find a parking space, if the tubes would be running infrequently because it was a bank holiday, if this would make me late for work, what the knock on effects of this would be, and as I flipped my wing mirror out, I paused - the dawn chorus was almost DEAFENING. I stood in the road, the humans my street sleeping around me, and I paused to listen to the birds waking up and shouting at one another. This is what Isobel Hard man’s book is about, really: making time for ourselves every single day to appreciate our natural world. Taking pause to listen, look or feel what is around you can drastically alter your frame of mind. Nature has such a calming effect, and this book does a wonderful job of reminding us of all the ways we can benefit from its warm embrace.

A really interesting book with some great tips. Particularly useful during lockdown I think to see how nature can help our wellbeing. Definitely worth a read.

This book is very simple to understand. No matter what your illness you can help to heal yourself with time in nature. Spending time outside in nature can help to heal you without the use of drugs and things like walking outside bring you more benefits than popping pills. It’s an easy read with lots of suggestions to add easy changes into your life to help heal yourself.

A very timely read during the current situation. Really relevant to life as open spaces are the only form of exercise we have. I liked the link between mental health and the outdoors. Lots of practical advice and suggestions of things to do outside.

Lots of ideas that I am sure will help many people suffering with mental health problems. For me there was a bit too much of the authors problems in this book.

This book didn’t start great for me, it discussed gardening, birdwatching and these aren’t activities that I’ve ever really been interested in, nor did I find myself interested in them when they were being discussed, however, I am interested in more active aspects of nature, such as running and wild swimming, both of which I found really interesting and relatable aspects of the books. I really enjoyed the different perspectives and the studies that have been done so far to show the perks of being outside on our mental health.

Definitely a book worth reading if you need a few ideas that may or may not help with your mental health but it’s got some very interesting and different suggestions. I have actively begun looking at the nature that exists when I’m out a walk, noticing the birds that are around (though I wouldn’t personally enjoy spending time researching birds or plants to identify them or find rare plants). I like that the book opens up the conversation about mental health and doesn’t aim to fix it, it gives us all a call to action and has some great tips for friends of those with mental illnesses.

A great read, definitely one to recommend!

As someone who definitely found that spending time outdoors in nature helped with my own physical and mental health recovery after a trauma it was fascinating to read about other activities that I could have tried and to see how inadvertently I had tapped into some recognised cures.
While the placebo effect is not to be scoffed at I did also enjoy reading about the science and evidence behind a natural cure. It was also enlightening to realise just what a middle class, privileged thing it is to have the time & money for these activities

This eminently helpful book couldn’t be more timely, arriving as it has during a pandemic which has adversely impacted people’s mental health with its horrendous effects. The author is a political journalist who developed crippling severe depression and PTSD in 2016, causing her to have to stop work and recover as best she could. Her journey back to better health is mentioned fleetingly here because the primary focus is on other people’s stories instead.

Yet her own experience of mental health problems has made her an acute, empathetic, and informed observer of what helps and what hinders recovery. At a time when the NHS is overwhelmed and undermanned due to Covid-19, with most departments not opening or operating as they did before, many are seeking an alternative route to better health.

It’s no secret that nature has calming and healing qualities. The fresh premise being shared here is how we can deliberately harness it for our good in various ways that support our mental health, with methods as diverse as cold-water swimming, horse riding and running. Outdoor activities, especially gardening, have a proven beneficial effect on both mind and body.

By means of thorough research, good investigative journalism, and anecdotal stories, threaded with her own responses to trying different measures to help herself, the author reveals how immersion in nature needs to become an integral part of our lives and a general experience rather than a fancy add-on we often fail to fully appreciate. It’s a beautifully written, thought-provoking and captivating read. Grateful thanks to NetGalley and Atlantic Books for the ARC.

This book is especially relevant to life in pandemic, where walks in parks and open spaces are often the only form of exercise we have, and really brings home the link between mental health and engaging with nature and the natural world. I like the practical advice, and the suggestions of things to do outside, which is desperately needed at the moment.

I had requested this book thinking it was going to be a self help tips and tricks book or at least some way in helping but it was more of a memior. I struggled with this one as with mental health issues myself it near sent me deeper having to hear someone else's issues. But some of it was interesting and other bits I had to skim past.

This is such a powerful book and one that I certainly have benefitted from reading. Her mental exhaustion that ended up with her unable to deal with words that being a journalist was devastating is truly a lesson that I think we all need to be aware of. Not everyone will have her experiences but the techniques that she pulled together to mend herself are pertinent for all of us. I'm very glad I have read this.