God Is An Octopus: Loss, Love and a Calling to Nature

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This is probably my own fault as I went into the book expecting a lot more content about nature and the rewilding process than I found in the book.

I’m not so sure I would ever be persuaded to take the psychedelic substance that Goldsmith takes at the end of the book - not once, but twice. Covid-19 is likely to be remembered as one of the most significant global crises since the second World War. Gavanndra Hodge * The Daily Telegraph * Simply the most powerful and profound words I’ve ever read on grief. That evening, on my daily sunset hike, I saw the forest I walked through and the rolling hills I climbed with fresh eyes. Whilst many suffered hardships in the pandemic, he enjoyed a commune of sorts on his land and a bubble of time to heal.Nature doesn’t judge you – how urban nature supports young people’s mental health and wellbeing in a diverse UK city. Now Caine delves into the real stories behind the gangs we think we know so well, revealing the hidden realities behind the myths. With so much retrospective analyses of what has happened over the last three years, many parallels can be drawn between a disaster like Covid, the slow violence of the natural world’s destruction and a faster tragedy like the death of a family member. In a way this was comforting too as it made me work through everything that happened and realise I wasn’t alone in feeling as I had. Reading this book enhanced my connections with nature and I have been wandering around my garden looking at it differently since.

What Ben experienced is a parents worst nightmare and it's hard to imagine how you could continue with life after.

A compelling journey from the very heart of loss to the sanctuary and hope that only the natural world provides - emotive, raw and captivating. I've always been one for being in nature myself, but after reading this, I have already planted some wildflower seeds in my garden. I have learnt so much about the ‘nature-of-all-things’ and the spiritual hope that is open to all of us, and I have been utterly moved forever after reading Ben’s beautiful and eloquently written story, both deeply sad and uplifting, it is admirable that such a book now exists.

When it fills with rain for the first time, he’s greeted by “an unfamiliar sense of joy that coyly hovered, tentatively awaiting permission to wash over me”.The Iris Project was established by Ben Goldsmith and Kate Rothschild in partnership with the Global Greengrants Fund in loving memory of their daughter, Iris Goldsmith, a young environmentalist who loved the natural world.