The remarkable story of the rare and ancient little horned sheep, known as Orkney Boreray and the wool obsessed woman who moved to Scotland’s wildest island to save them.
A delightful and fascinating read - loved how the book gave some factual evidence of the rare sheep breed but was also interspersed with funny moments and glimpses into her life as a farmer and shepherd.
Loved her determination and efforts, the research undertaken into the origins of the primitive breed will certainly help to secure their future.
I now want to move to a remote Scottish island and make things with real wool.
Thanks @orkneyboreray @chelseagreenbooks and @netgalley for the eARC

The Orkney Boreray is a rare breed sheep. The author decides to move from Newcastle to Orkney and breed her own flock. We follow her through the highs and lows of her new life and learn about her determination to ensure a future for this particular breed. This is a delightful and interesting book and a reminder of what can be achieved with a little initiative and a lot of tenacity.

As a sometime spinner, and a lifetime knitter, I was drawn to this title by the premise of "saving" a flock of sheep. This is a fascinating read - not least because of the dedication of the author to her chosen course of action.

The book can be a little hard-going at times (there is a lot of factual information, as well as the tale) but it's worth a read.

Recommended for anyone who has an interest in yarn, textiles and human interest true stories.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC. All opinions my own.

A lovely book detailing the author's work with a largely unforgotten breed of sheep. As someone who loves and works with wool, I found her journey engaging and inspirational and I liked her conversational tone.

Jane Cooper had no idea where her passion for knitting and wool would lead her. A knitting workshop was the start of a series of chance meetings that led to her increasing interest in rare sheep and their wool and finally to Orkney Boreray sheep and 'the lost flock.' The Orkney islands are an archipelago of islands 10 miles off the northeastern tip of Scotland. On one of these islands, there was a flock of feral Boreray sheep. These are small sheep with naturally short tails. Eventually, she discovered a couple of who had a flock of Boreray sheep. She developed a passion for saving the sheep--expanding their numbers and spreading them around. When a position opened up on one of the islands, her physician husband applied, got the job, and they sold their suburban home and bought land for a sheep farm. The book is the story of that experience and the story of the sheep. The book has three strands that intertwine throughout the book. There is the story of the author herself--her growing interest in the sheep and her increasing desire to save them, her decision to uproot her life and become a shepherd, her learning curve as she went from being a beginner to an experienced sheep farmer, the creative and cooperative ways people came together to utilize all parts of the sheep, her setbacks along the way, and her determination to keep at it, even when faced with sometimes formidable obstacles. Another strand of the story is that of the history of the Boreray sheep themselves--they are a unique breed and it can be difficult to get information about them. Finally, there is some discussion of the prehistory of the breed. There is a lot packed into this book and it is fascinating.

I read this book from the perspective of someone who works with wool myself (crocheting, knitting, needle felting) and I will admit that I was more interested in the parts of the book where she was talking about her experiences and the behavior of the sheep than in some of the scientific information about sheep biology. That's just a personal preference, though and the book is quite well researched. Cooper had to do a lot of digging to get to some of the information she uncovered--obscure articles and papers in old journals. What I found most delightful about the book was the way her determination to make her sheep farm successful led to connections between many different creative people--artists, chefs, wool producers, tanners, and more--all committed to both a creative life and a sustainable one. I found the book to be quite inspirational and I highly recommend it.

A charming story of one woman's determination to save a rare breed sheep - the Orkney Boreray.

Jane did not come from a farming background, but her mother had always encouraged Jane's love of nature.

The book charts the author's journey from Newcastle where she lived with her husband, up to Orkney to acquire a small flock of Orkney Boreray sheep. Jane had always been a keen knitter and it was through her love of wool that she first heard about the breed.

Jane had much to learn about managing a flock as it grew. Tasks ranged from putting up electric fencing,,taming the sheep to come when needed, lambing, dealing with the loss of her ram Boris and taking on the council when her local abattoir was shut down.

Throughout the book, Jane's passion and affection for the breed is infectious and from her 'Lost Flock' there are now a few more flocks being established. Jane is still looking into the origins of the Orkney Boreray.

A delightful story.