Diary of a Young Naturalist
Dara McAnulty
2020 • Little Toller Books
We all have different ways of expressing our frustration at the system. We need everyone to come together in order to solve the problems. I want to share my point of view as a young person in this frightening world. My activism is writing because writing is really, really powerful.
— Dara McAnulty
Diary of a Young Naturalist
Dara McAnulty
2020 • Little Toller Books
We all have different ways of expressing our frustration at the system. We need everyone to come together in order to solve the problems. I want to share my point of view as a young person in this frightening world. My activism is writing because writing is really, really powerful.
— Dara McAnulty
Description
Diary of a Young Naturalist chronicles the turning of 15-year-old Dara McAnulty’s world. From spring and through a year in his home patch in Northern Ireland, Dara spent the seasons writing. These vivid, evocative and moving diary entries about his connection to wildlife and the way he sees the world are raw in their telling. Diary of a Young Naturalist portrays Dara’s intense connection to the natural world, and his perspective as a teenager juggling exams and friendships alongside a life of campaigning.
Excerpts
Interviews
- The Guardian: ‘Natural Talent - The 16 Year-old Writer Taking the World by Storm’
- Penguin: Meet the author - Dara McAnulty
- The Irish News: ‘Naturalist Dara McAnulty - Only When the Last Person Stops Caring are we Truly Lost’
- The Telegraph: ‘Meet Dara McAnulty, the 16-year-old Naturalist set to Steal Greta Thunberg's Crown’
- The Irish Times: ‘Dara McAnulty, 16, wins Wainwright Prize – “Miraculous things can happen”’
- The Impartial Reporter: ‘Painting pictures with words, Dara Immerses his Readers in Nature’
- The Irish Times: Dara McAnulty - ‘I want to Campaign for Wonder, for the Love of the Natural World’
Prizes & Awards
- Winner of the Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing, 2020
- Winner of the Sunday Independent Newcomer of the Year, An Post Irish Book Awards 2020
- Winner of the Books are my Bag Readers Award for Non-Fiction, 2020
- Winner of the Hay Festival Book of the Year, 2020
- Shortlisted for Waterstones Book of the Year, 2020
- Longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize, 2020
Reviews
- Alex Preston, The Observer
- Amanda Bell, The Irish Times
- Hilary A. White, Irish Independent
- Jane MacRae, Bloom
- Hannah Stephenson, The Irish News
- Naomi Faulkner-Felgate, Climate Museum UK
- Síne Quinn, Books Ireland
- Charlotte Moore, The Spectator
- The Herald Scotland
Audio
- BBC: The New Normal – Back to Nature
- Penguin Books UK: Intro to Winter
- BBC: 1800 Seconds on Autism - All Colour-Coded and Catalogued in my Brain
- Trees a Crowd: Dara McAnulty - The Young Naturalist Providing new Perspectives on old Problems
- ABC: Dara McAnulty and the Joys of Nature
Video
- The Wainwright Prize: Full Interview with Dara McAnulty
- BBC World Service: How Nature Helped my Autism – Dara McAnulty
- Barnes Childrens Literature Festival: Dara McAnulty in Conversation with Lauren St John
- Foe Northern Ireland: Nature’s Keepers – Dara McAnulty
- Blackwell’s Bookshops: Dara McAnulty Diary of a Young Naturalist
- At Home with 4 Indies: At Home with Dara McAnulty
- Books Are My Bag: Books Are My Bag Readers Awards 2020 winner Dara McAnulty shares his favourite bookshop
- Stroud Book Festival: Diary of a Young Naturalist with Dara McAnulty
- The Secret Bookshelf: Dara McAnulty in Conversation
- The Secret Bookshelf: Dara McAnulty reading at The Secret Bookshelf
- RTÉ Young Peoples: Dara McAnulty | RTÉ Home School Hub
- NI Science Festival: Diary of a Young Naturalist with Dara McAnulty
- France 24 English: Dara McAnulty, the Autistic Teenager Taking the Literary World by Storm
