Chicken Boy

<b>A captivating, beautifully illustrated memoir of a life in nature, and a testament to the mutual rewards and delights of keeping chickens, by the <i>Sunday Times</i> bestselling author of <i>The Flower Yard</i></b><br><br>''I am a toddler the first time I meet a chicken, and we are equal in size and height. The hen has tiny eyelashes, a strawberry-jam face and a voice of purring clucks. I sense a happy spirit of inquisitiveness and smile in fascination. From that moment on, I will always love the company of chickens. I have found my tribe''<br><br>Most of us want a dog, or a cat, or a pony when we are young - for Arthur Parkinson, it was always hens. Growing up in an ex-mining town in Nottinghamshire, the other kids in the playground called him ''Chicken Boy''. But the quiet fulfilment of keeping hens became his sanctuary, a tonic for mental and physical health, a connection with his family and the natural world. From the local allotments and his nan''s back garden, to Chatsworth and an unlikely friendship with the late Duchess of Devonshire, a famous hen-keeper, <i>Chicken Boy</i> tells the story of the love and satisfaction to be found in caring for living things.<br><br>Illustrated with Arthur''s own characterful watercolours and photographs of his ''girls'', and laden with practical hen-keeping tips, gardening advice and introductions to common, rare and pure breeds,<i> Chicken Boy </i>is a one-of-a-kind memoir of a life in nature.