Awards

• Commended for Wainwright Prize 2017
• Commended for Wainwright Prize 2017.
• Long-listed for The Wainwright Prize Book Prize 2017 (UK)

Overview

Longlisted for the Wainwright Prize 2017 As one of the largest predators left in Britain, the fox is captivating: a comfortably familiar figure in our country landscapes; an intriguing flash of bright-eyed wildness in our towns. Yet no other animal attracts such controversy, has provoked more column inches or been so ambiguously woven into our culture over centuries, perceived variously as a beautiful animal, a cunning rogue, a vicious pest and a worthy foe. As well as being the most ubiquitous of wild animals, it is also the least understood. In Foxes Unearthed Lucy Jones investigates the truth about foxes in a media landscape that often carries complex agendas. Delving into fact, fiction, folklore and her own family history, Lucy travels the length of Britain to find out first-hand why these animals incite such passionate emotions, revealing our rich and complex relationship with one of our most loved - and most vilified - wild animals. This compelling narrative adds much-needed depth to the debate on foxes, asking what our attitudes towards the red fox say about us and, ultimately, about our relationship with the natural world.

Full Product Details

9781783961498

Table of Contents

Reviews

A fantastic tour of the fox and us - Lucy Jones takes an intelligent, measured and humane look at the intimate, contradictory and occasionally crazy relationship between Homo sapiens and Vulpes vulpes -- Patrick Barkham, author of Badgerlands and The Butterfly Isles; A foxy little book, offering a rich brew of nature and history and culture. An exemplary instance of fine research leading to balance and sanity on a subject usually lacking in either. Deeply enjoyable and informative -- Sara Maitland, author of Gossip from the Forest: The Tangled Roots of Our Forests and Fairytales; Brave, bold and honest - finally the truth about foxes -- Chris Packham, TV presenter and naturalist; Lucy Jones' investigative study explores the romantic myth and harsh reality of the fox with the unflinching rigour of a true journalist and heart of a poet - Benjamin Myers, author of Beastings and Pig Iron

Jones writes with real feeling about the hold of foxes on the human imagination, and her own deep affection for the beguiling creatures - Jane Shilling, Daily Mail; The fox has for centuries been held as the incarnation of such unlovely traits as deviousness, cunning and cruelty. ... However, the characteristic that emerges most strongly from the nature writer Lucy Jones's book about Vulpes vulpes is its ambiguity. ... [An] intriguing compendium of fox lore. - Michael Prodger, The Times; A fantastic tour of the fox and us - Lucy Jones takes an intelligent, measured and humane look at the intimate, contradictory and occasionally crazy relationship between Homo sapiens and Vulpes vulpes -- Patrick Barkham, author of Badgerlands and The Butterfly Isles; A foxy little book, offering a rich brew of nature and history and culture. An exemplary instance of fine research leading to balance and sanity on a subject usually lacking in either. Deeply enjoyable and informative -- Sara Maitland, author of Gossip from the Forest: The Tangled Roots of Our Forests and Fairytales; Brave, bold and honest - finally the truth about foxes -- Chris Packham, TV presenter and naturalist; Lucy Jones' investigative study explores the romantic myth and harsh reality of the fox with the unflinching rigour of a true journalist and heart of a poet - Benjamin Myers, author of Beastings and Pig Iron; A sensitive and illuminating investigation into our complex and ever-evolving relationship with the most intriguing, incredible and intractable of British mammals. Through a keen eye and bright prose, Jones traces the trail of the fox through history, myth and current debates, exploring the roots of our love and hate from all perspectives. This is a beautiful book that will change the way you think about the fox, whatever you think about the fox. - Rob Cowen, author of Common Ground and Skimming Stones; A commendably impartial book ... expresses [Jones's] sincere love of the countryside and the animals in it - Patrick Scrivenor, Literary Review; A page turner [and] a timely examination of one of our more iconic animals ... A well balanced, well researched book ... it's also a pleasure to read - desperatereader.blogspot.uk; A distinctly human story ... Through spending time with those who would lay down their lives for a fox and those who range from appearing non-plussed to hell-bent on bloody extermination, Jones brilliantly (and often bravely) captures two uniquely British subcultures. Being buried in these opposed worlds, enables Jones to fuse her talent for research with journalistic reporting. ... It is also worth mentioning Jones' refreshing honesty -- Matt Gaw, journalist and columnist; A thorough and captivating history of our relationship with the fox. It is satisfying that a book which conveys an uncomplicated delight in the natural world ... simultaneously sends such a sobering message -- Diva Harris, Caught by the River

Author Information

Lucy Jones is a nature writer and journalist based in London. She was Deputy Editor at NME.com and previously worked at the Daily Telegraph. Her writing on culture, science and nature has been published in BBC Earth, BBC Wildlife, the Guardian, TIME and the New Statesman, and she has contributed to programmes on BBC Radio 4 (Woman’s Hour, Today), 6 Music and Radio 1, the BBC World Service, VICE, Channel 5 and Channel 4. She runs the Wildlife Daily blog, featuring wildlife, nature and environment news from around the world, and is the recipient of the Society of Authors’ Roger Deakin Award for Foxes Unearthed.

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