A WATERSTONES BEST BIOGRAPHY OF 2024

My son's death will never make sense to me. But it has taught me that it's possible to find meaning, collectively and individually, in the loss of what we love. And in finding them, transform. Resilience is a seed that we all bear inside us. It germinates in emergencies. It sets down roots in astonishing and unexpected ways. And if we notice it, and tend to it, it blooms.

Liz Jensen's son, a zoologist, conservationist and ecological activist, was twenty-five when he collapsed and died unexpectedly. She fell apart. As she grieved, forest fires raged, coral reefs deteriorated, CO2 emissions rose and fossil fuels burned.

Your Wild and Precious Life is the story of how a mother rebuilt herself, reoriented her life and rediscovered the enchantment of the living world. Set against the backdrop of climate and ecological catastrophe, it's an argument for agency, legacy and the wild possibility of hope.

"A mother's unflinching account of finding meaning in her son's unexpected death. His is not the only death to haunt the pages of this raw and urgent memoir. Jensen's focus shifts between her own grief, and a mourning for lost nature" - * Guardian *

"Written with power and emotion, [this] beautiful and moving book explores how we live, love and grieve" - * Stylist *