Chicken Boy: My Life With Hens

Product Information

I have neither inclination nor conducive circumstances to raise chickens anytime soon (although I generally enjoy reading about agrarian life and have always been fond of chickens), but Chicken Boy ranks among my favorite reads in recent memory. Parkinson is charming and knowledgeable, passionate about chickens and the way of life he has chosen and he is very generous in the way he shares it with the reader.

Came away with a much deeper understanding of my hens, what they need and how I can improve their lives for the better. Arthur Parkinson is well known for his flamboyant garden designs, and this book includes many of his own drawings and photographs with his ‘girls’, alongside lots of practical hen keeping advice.But the quiet fulfilment of keeping hens became his sanctuary, a tonic for mental and physical health, and in this memoir he details his connection with hens, his family and the natural world. Arthur Parkinson is a young British gardening expert who, judging by his six-figure Instagram follower number (which I now count myself amongst), is apparently pretty well known, although he was unfamiliar to me before I encountered Chicken Boy. 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, Chicken Boy is a one-of-a-kind memoir of a life in nature. The whole point of this book is to build a generous, nurturing relationship with the natural world and to rebalance things in favour of a world of we have so long taken from and not given back to.

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, Chicken Boy is a one-of-a-kind memoir of a life in nature. I really enjoyed this book and can also highly recommend his previous books The Flower Yard and The Pottery Gardener. Arthur Parkinson is the author of The Pottery Gardener and The Flower Yard , and the co-host, with Sarah Raven, of the popular Grow, Cook, Eat, Arrange podcast.As a life-long aviculturist, I laud this book for everything it offers, including the exercise of conscience and strategic engagement with the keeping of poultry. Kudos to the publisher for creating a book that feels special and high quality, with a gorgeous cover design and color scheme that complement Parkinson’s top notch chicken illustrations and photographs, which are included on at least every other page and add so much to the experience of the book. This is for more than that, lovely narrative and packed with information that’s given in a warm and friendly way. And to be able to walk round a garden full of flowers and chickens with him talking and laughing and sharing stories.

We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. If the initial age verification is unsuccessful, we will contact you asking you to provide further information to prove that you are aged 18 or over. Arthur Parkinson is the author of The Pottery Gardener and The Flower Yard, and the co-host, with Sarah Raven, of the popular Grow, Cook, Eat, Arrange podcast.Would love to have chickens but not enough space unfortunately and having read this book I would want only the best for my chickens! His writing and photography are regularly featured in the Daily Telegraph, and have appeared in The Times, Country Life and Country Living, among other magazines and newspapers; he has also featured in BBC Two's Gardeners' 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, Chicken Boy tells the story of the love and satisfaction to be found in caring for living things.

His writing and photography are regularly featured in the Daily Telegraph , and have appeared in The Times , Country Life and Country Living , among other magazines and newspapers; he has also featured in BBC Two's Gardeners' World . You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice.It also made me realise that I am not in a position to get chickens and that to get them would be entirely for my own pleasure and that is not the point. Although it might seem like a book on hen keeping would appeal to only a niche audience, I feel confident that most readers would thoroughly enjoy it. It is also the book for people who already keep hens as there is something to learn on almost every page.