Hidden Nature by Alys Fowler

As I had just finished Chris Packham's memoir, I was in the mood to continue on a natural theme so when I spotted Alys Fowler's book on the 'Recommended' table in the library, I decided to give it a go.

This one doesn't have the gripping intensity of Packham's book as Alys Fowler has a much gentler tone and there are sections that are so laid back that I almost got the impression that she was hoping I wouldn't notice what she had written.

The full title of the book is: 'Hidden Nature, A Voyage of Discovery' and that clearly has the dual meaning of both environmental and personal discovery. There are two themes running all the way through as Alys takes up paddle boating through the network of canals around Birmingham at around the same time she began to think that she is probably gay. This would not normally be a problem, but Alys was married to a man at the time, and although she still loved her husband, she couldn't deny her changing sexuality.

Naturally her husband was surprised and confused when she came out to him, and their situation was further complicated by the fact that her husband had cystic fibrosis involving a lot of medical treatment including frequent hospital visits. How would he cope without her support? How would she cope with the guilt?

Her new found hobby of paddling about on the old industrial waterways gave Alys time to learn how to accept her new identity as a lesbian and she still found space in her head to observe the nature around her. There are some really interesting sections on the kind of flora and fauna she came across, and I certainly learnt a good bit about eels at one point, then just as I was distracted by nature, Alys threw in the odd life-changing moment such as her husband moving out of the marital home or being admitted to hospital.

This is a pleasant read and her Alys Fowler's writing is well observed and who knew you could buy a paddle boat that you can easily collapse and carry onto a bus?

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