What do you think?
Rate this book
Irreplaceable: The Fight to Save Our Wild Places
All across the world, irreplaceable habitats are under threat. Unique ecosystems of plants and animals are being destroyed by human intervention. From the tiny to the vast, from marshland to meadow, and from Kent to Glasgow to India to America, they are disappearing.
Irreplaceable is not only a love letter to the haunting beauty of these landscapes and the wild species that call them home, including nightingales, lynxes, hornbills, redwoods, and elephant seals, it is also a timely reminder of the vital connections between humans and nature, and all that we stand to lose in terms of wonder and well-being. This is a book about the power of resistance in an age of loss, a testament to the transformative possibilities that emerge when people unite to defend our most special places and wildlife from extinction.
Exploring treasured coral reefs and remote mountains, tropical jungle and ancient woodland, urban allotments and tallgrass prairie, Julian Hoffman traces the stories of threatened places around the globe through the voices of local communities and grassroots campaigners as well as professional ecologists and academics. And in the process, he asks what a deep emotional relationship with place offers us--culturally, socially and psychologically. In this rigorous, intimate, and impassioned account, he presents a powerful call to arms in the face of unconscionable natural destruction.
Irreplaceable is not only a love letter to the haunting beauty of these landscapes and the wild species that call them home, including nightingales, lynxes, hornbills, redwoods, and elephant seals, it is also a timely reminder of the vital connections between humans and nature, and all that we stand to lose in terms of wonder and well-being. This is a book about the power of resistance in an age of loss, a testament to the transformative possibilities that emerge when people unite to defend our most special places and wildlife from extinction.
Exploring treasured coral reefs and remote mountains, tropical jungle and ancient woodland, urban allotments and tallgrass prairie, Julian Hoffman traces the stories of threatened places around the globe through the voices of local communities and grassroots campaigners as well as professional ecologists and academics. And in the process, he asks what a deep emotional relationship with place offers us--culturally, socially and psychologically. In this rigorous, intimate, and impassioned account, he presents a powerful call to arms in the face of unconscionable natural destruction.
416 pages, Hardcover
First published June 1, 2019
26 people are currently reading
866 people want to read
About the author
Julian Hoffman
9 books49 followersJulian Hoffman lives beside the Prespa lakes in northern Greece. His writing explores the relationships between humans and the natural world, alongside the cultures and communities of place, and is a lyrical blend of nature, travel, history and landscape. His upcoming book, LIFELINES, will be published in May 2025 and is set around the borderland region of Prespa where he and his wife moved in the year 2000 with little idea of what would come next on their journey. His previous book, IRREPLACEABLE, was the Highly Commended Finalist for the 2020 Wainwright Prize for Writing on Global Conservation and a Royal Geographical Society 'Book of the Year'. His first book, THE SMALL HEART OF THINGS, won a 2014 National Outdoor Book Award and was selected by Terry Tempest Williams as the winner of the AWP Award for Creative Nonfiction, described by her as a "tapestry of embodied stories...a book of faith in the natural histories of community."
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
April 19, 2020
If you read one 2019 release, make it this one. (It’s too important a book to dilute that statement with qualifiers.) Species and habitat loss are hard to comprehend even when we know the facts. This book is a way of taking stock, taking responsibility, and going beyond the numbers to tell the stories of front-line conservation work. From the Kent marshes to the Coral Triangle off Indonesia, Hoffman discovers the situation on the ground and talks to the people involved in protecting places at risk of destruction. Reassuringly, these aren’t usually genius scientists or well-funded heroes, but ordinary citizens who are concerned about preserving nearby sites that mean something to them. Irreplaceable is an elegy of sorts, but, more importantly, it’s a call to arms. It places environmentalism in the hands of laypeople and offers hope that in working together in the spirit of defiance we can achieve great things. It takes local concerns seriously, yet its scope is international. But what truly lifts Hoffman’s work above most recent nature books is the exquisite prose.
See my full review at Shiny New Books.
See my full review at Shiny New Books.
February 12, 2020
A beautifully written book with many things to like about it besides the lyrical cadence of the writing. Hoffman takes you to places that you may have never heard of before, which may not have been the sort of places you would've imagined as "wild places", depicts the conservation battles being fought and won or lost by local people and conservation champions, bringing place and people vividly alive. I was kicked to read about Pakke, Arunachal Pradesh, in India and the work on hornbills. His description of the Great Hornbill is one of the most evocative I've ever read, and I was secretly kicked to see a Western writer hold up Indian models and conservation examples for Europe and the west (from Cyprus, UK and beyond) to emulate.
November 19, 2020
Starting as dusk gathers on Brighton pier and the evening strollers are transfixed by a murmuration of starlings, Julian Hoffman takes us around the world showing us how human activity is ravaging the wonders of nature that both nourish our sense of wonder and are vital to our health and wellbeing as part of a thriving ecosystem.
It is not a happy book. The awe that Hoffman superbly captures at the beauty of the natural world only underlines what we are destroying by our wilful blindness and our obsession with economic growth and measuring everything with a short-term monetary value. From a previously unknown species of spider in an abandoned English quarry to the magnificent Balkan lynx and the few scraps of tallgrass prairie in the American midwest, we are pushing out irreplaceable biodiversity with roads and shopping malls and monocultured crops.
The author makes it clear he is not merely arguing for preservation for nature for its own sake, but because it is vital to human health and survival in the short, medium and long term. In one chapter he writes about an established set of allotments in London that not only provides food for locals but an area of green growth teeming with life, and an area of abandoned "waste ground" in Glasgow that nearby residents have turned into a park and nature reserve. Both are under threat from development and he begins by telling us "Of the following two places, one will be saved, the other destroyed."
He does show us successes, and how small groups of determined people can fight and even sometimes win against the encroachment - as well as the above, there is some success on those tallgrass prairies, a patch of ancient woodland not five miles from where I write this (which, along with mention of other Sheffield woods in which I played as a child and have visited regularly since really brought home the value, as if that personal connection were needed), the former British Army testing site that, due to the danger of left-over munitions has remained undeveloped and become a remarkably vibrant and important habitat. The rejection of a new motorway that would destroy much of the Gwent Levels on the South Wales coast.
However, despite this, I was left feeling bleak at the prospects. Yes, I am a depressive and currently managing a particularly low patch which may feed into my pessimism, but these patches seem so fragile, so vulnerable, so at odds with the economic forces that see everything as a resource to be exploited. In his final chapter he points out how many pieces of good fortune were needed to ensure that we still have a few slivers of the Cambridgeshire Fens that are undeveloped, and when we see that a drug for cattle is approved in Europe despite evidence that it is responsible for almost eradicating vultures when used in India, or that - despite a law and specific court orders making mining small islands in Indonesia completely illegal, this is openly ignored and corporations land heavy equipment to strip the vegetation and topsoil to scour the minerals beneath, causing run-off that buries and poisons the most valuable reefs on the planet, I find it difficult to hold out hope of change.
I have known since I was young that talk of "destroying the Earth" is pure hubris. We are a blip on this planet and, whatever we do, it will continue and repopulate itself with new organisms, new diversity. We are here now, for this moment, and have a choice of how to treat our home and the creatures we share it with, a choice for the legacy we leave our children and grand children and great grand children.
Still, as the cartoon says, for a brief glorious moment we had great shareholder value.
Increasingly, I think I'm on the side of the David Morse character in 12 Monkeys.
It is not a happy book. The awe that Hoffman superbly captures at the beauty of the natural world only underlines what we are destroying by our wilful blindness and our obsession with economic growth and measuring everything with a short-term monetary value. From a previously unknown species of spider in an abandoned English quarry to the magnificent Balkan lynx and the few scraps of tallgrass prairie in the American midwest, we are pushing out irreplaceable biodiversity with roads and shopping malls and monocultured crops.
The author makes it clear he is not merely arguing for preservation for nature for its own sake, but because it is vital to human health and survival in the short, medium and long term. In one chapter he writes about an established set of allotments in London that not only provides food for locals but an area of green growth teeming with life, and an area of abandoned "waste ground" in Glasgow that nearby residents have turned into a park and nature reserve. Both are under threat from development and he begins by telling us "Of the following two places, one will be saved, the other destroyed."
He does show us successes, and how small groups of determined people can fight and even sometimes win against the encroachment - as well as the above, there is some success on those tallgrass prairies, a patch of ancient woodland not five miles from where I write this (which, along with mention of other Sheffield woods in which I played as a child and have visited regularly since really brought home the value, as if that personal connection were needed), the former British Army testing site that, due to the danger of left-over munitions has remained undeveloped and become a remarkably vibrant and important habitat. The rejection of a new motorway that would destroy much of the Gwent Levels on the South Wales coast.
However, despite this, I was left feeling bleak at the prospects. Yes, I am a depressive and currently managing a particularly low patch which may feed into my pessimism, but these patches seem so fragile, so vulnerable, so at odds with the economic forces that see everything as a resource to be exploited. In his final chapter he points out how many pieces of good fortune were needed to ensure that we still have a few slivers of the Cambridgeshire Fens that are undeveloped, and when we see that a drug for cattle is approved in Europe despite evidence that it is responsible for almost eradicating vultures when used in India, or that - despite a law and specific court orders making mining small islands in Indonesia completely illegal, this is openly ignored and corporations land heavy equipment to strip the vegetation and topsoil to scour the minerals beneath, causing run-off that buries and poisons the most valuable reefs on the planet, I find it difficult to hold out hope of change.
I have known since I was young that talk of "destroying the Earth" is pure hubris. We are a blip on this planet and, whatever we do, it will continue and repopulate itself with new organisms, new diversity. We are here now, for this moment, and have a choice of how to treat our home and the creatures we share it with, a choice for the legacy we leave our children and grand children and great grand children.
Still, as the cartoon says, for a brief glorious moment we had great shareholder value.
Increasingly, I think I'm on the side of the David Morse character in 12 Monkeys.
April 3, 2020
Of all the creatures on this planet, humanity is the one that has been able to change the very face of the earth in a way that no other animal is able to. We can raze the densest forests, cut holes through rock, change the course of rivers and obliterate mountains. The only other thing that has this ability to change the very landscape is the earth-changing events of volcanos, earthquake and tsunamis or the out of this world asteroids.
Hoffman heads all over the world from his home in Greece to find these places that are right at the very end of their existence. He visits Kansas to watch the mating ritual of the leks or prairie chickens on the Konza prairie. This place has been under threat since the 1800s as the European settlers saw that the land was rich and put it under the plough. There is almost none (around 0.1%) of the original grasslands left.
We hear a lot about the tropical jungles, how it is being devastated by logging and agriculture. Hoffman travels to the northeasternmost state of India, Arunachal Pradesh where he is there to see the landscape of the Himalayan flood plain. The people here, the Nyishs, have managed to co-exist in this landscape with tigers and elephants for years. But it is only in the past few years that the realisation that the elephants have started to raid crops so they have reluctantly retreated from their rice paddies and plots. Their state bird is the hornbill, a species that is essential to their identity, customs and beliefs. This bird has a casque on its bill and it is this part of the bird that is used on the headdress of the tribe. The bird is under threat though and the Nyish tribe are looking at other ways of replicating this part of the dress.
It is not just exotic places that are under threat, closer to home we have woodlands in the UK that have been in existence for hundreds of years. The British have a deep love for woodlands, as was seen when the government a few years ago thought it was a good idea to privatise the Forestry Commission. The backlash from the public forced a U-turn and a backtrack on this. The woodland he visits is just outside Sheffield and has been in existence since the 100’s. It was split in two after the M1 carved its way through it, and has recently been suffering because of those that go there for their leisure activity or riding through it with quad bikes. It is under threat again and local residents have formed groups to resist this, applying for village green status to protect what is left. Sitting with his back resting on an old oak watching the breeze ripple the bluebells is a perfect way to spend the evening.
Stories about these and the other places strongly underline the main argument of the book that all of these places are utterly Irreplaceable. With wholesale destruction of these places comes the loss of habitats. Even if you were to plant the same species of trees in a field a couple of miles up the road in Sheffield, you can’t replicate an ancient woodland. The myriad species and underground mycelia that live in it along with the complex interactions that have developed over the past 400 or 500 years cannot just be reproduced. These unique ecosystems are disappearing under the machines of mankind and when they are gone, that is it, finito, no more.
Hoffman has written an eloquent series of essays taken from his first-hand experience of seeing places that are under threat from human activity. It is partly a celebration of our diverse world but is also a call to arms for those that care about this planet. He shows how local people are fighting back against the things that are happening to their area. Most importantly, it is a book that needs to be read and more importantly a stepping stone to inspire us to action and to pressurise our political leaders into doing something when the places we live are threatened.
Hoffman heads all over the world from his home in Greece to find these places that are right at the very end of their existence. He visits Kansas to watch the mating ritual of the leks or prairie chickens on the Konza prairie. This place has been under threat since the 1800s as the European settlers saw that the land was rich and put it under the plough. There is almost none (around 0.1%) of the original grasslands left.
We hear a lot about the tropical jungles, how it is being devastated by logging and agriculture. Hoffman travels to the northeasternmost state of India, Arunachal Pradesh where he is there to see the landscape of the Himalayan flood plain. The people here, the Nyishs, have managed to co-exist in this landscape with tigers and elephants for years. But it is only in the past few years that the realisation that the elephants have started to raid crops so they have reluctantly retreated from their rice paddies and plots. Their state bird is the hornbill, a species that is essential to their identity, customs and beliefs. This bird has a casque on its bill and it is this part of the bird that is used on the headdress of the tribe. The bird is under threat though and the Nyish tribe are looking at other ways of replicating this part of the dress.
It is not just exotic places that are under threat, closer to home we have woodlands in the UK that have been in existence for hundreds of years. The British have a deep love for woodlands, as was seen when the government a few years ago thought it was a good idea to privatise the Forestry Commission. The backlash from the public forced a U-turn and a backtrack on this. The woodland he visits is just outside Sheffield and has been in existence since the 100’s. It was split in two after the M1 carved its way through it, and has recently been suffering because of those that go there for their leisure activity or riding through it with quad bikes. It is under threat again and local residents have formed groups to resist this, applying for village green status to protect what is left. Sitting with his back resting on an old oak watching the breeze ripple the bluebells is a perfect way to spend the evening.
Stories about these and the other places strongly underline the main argument of the book that all of these places are utterly Irreplaceable. With wholesale destruction of these places comes the loss of habitats. Even if you were to plant the same species of trees in a field a couple of miles up the road in Sheffield, you can’t replicate an ancient woodland. The myriad species and underground mycelia that live in it along with the complex interactions that have developed over the past 400 or 500 years cannot just be reproduced. These unique ecosystems are disappearing under the machines of mankind and when they are gone, that is it, finito, no more.
Hoffman has written an eloquent series of essays taken from his first-hand experience of seeing places that are under threat from human activity. It is partly a celebration of our diverse world but is also a call to arms for those that care about this planet. He shows how local people are fighting back against the things that are happening to their area. Most importantly, it is a book that needs to be read and more importantly a stepping stone to inspire us to action and to pressurise our political leaders into doing something when the places we live are threatened.
October 17, 2020
This book gave me sunburn.
I take a book when I walk and read when I rest. The compelling stories of fragility, carelessness and commitment to conservation are so powerful, I sat too long, forgot about the sun and got burnt.
There’s clearly years of work gone into this not only by those trying to highlight and help their natural world but also by the writer who introduced me to exotic places I’d never heard of, as well as the everyday places that play a vital part in nature and our existence.
From motorway service stations and town allotments to distant mountains and prairies, it took me months to read as there was so much to think about between the diverse stories.
One of the most thoughtful and thought-provoking books on the state of nature and the state of us.
It deserves a far wider audience and far more than any of the recent headline-grabbing titles.
Buy it, read it, pass it on, please.
I take a book when I walk and read when I rest. The compelling stories of fragility, carelessness and commitment to conservation are so powerful, I sat too long, forgot about the sun and got burnt.
There’s clearly years of work gone into this not only by those trying to highlight and help their natural world but also by the writer who introduced me to exotic places I’d never heard of, as well as the everyday places that play a vital part in nature and our existence.
From motorway service stations and town allotments to distant mountains and prairies, it took me months to read as there was so much to think about between the diverse stories.
One of the most thoughtful and thought-provoking books on the state of nature and the state of us.
It deserves a far wider audience and far more than any of the recent headline-grabbing titles.
Buy it, read it, pass it on, please.
August 10, 2019
I’ve just finished reading Irreplaceable. I’m not skilful enough to write an articulate review but enjoyed it very much and it left me with a feeling of hope. I can find the state of nature and its doomed future a bit depressing but I loved the way this book showed me that there are people successfully fighting all over the globe and that the more people are encouraged to care and connect with it the more we will save. I enjoyed every chapter for different reasons some reminding me of my own childhood experiences. The descriptions of people and places were so evocative you felt you were there in each location with them fighting for their own corner of nature. Collectively the book showed that there is hope if we care enough to fight.
February 13, 2021
Sometimes environmental books try to tackle huge subjects - climate change, sea level rise, and other global topics. This book covers many small, and easily overlooked, regional fights to save wild places. It focuses on the relationships that local people have with their regional species, urban parks, and community gardens. In that, I think the message is really successful - people protect what they love. The writing was beautiful and lyrical which fit well with the focus on people loving the land. As a wildlife biologist, I actually hadn’t heard of most of the stories in this book and my eyes were opened about the plight of the Egyptian vulture and other wild areas under threat. I even learned something new about where I’m from in California - I never knew that California elephant seals were only protected first by Mexico and I have visited the elephant seal beaches my entire life.
I read a lot of environmental books and this one was a nice fresh breath of air in a genre where many books can be quite similar.
I read a lot of environmental books and this one was a nice fresh breath of air in a genre where many books can be quite similar.
July 24, 2023
A well researched and well written book about the places that might be lost - soon - as nature is under threat. I enjoyed the musing about place and space and might even use them in my PhD project. Having said that, I enjoyed the parts that dealt with places somewhat more known to me more. I would've enjoyed pictures to help me imagine the places that I do not know, especially those a long way from the UK, better (I try to put my phone away when reading as googling disrupts my flow). "Irreplacable" also gives voice to all the volunteers and professionals alike that try to stop places from being replaced, from being destroyed, from being forgotten. A good book. 3.5 stars
October 31, 2020
There is no doubt that this is a must read book, but be prepared for the emotional rollercoaster that comes with it. I had to pause halfway through as I was drained. It will leave you wanting to do more and play your part.
October 1, 2019
An important book, lyrically written, about our disappearing habitats. Hoffman has travelled the world in search of such places. But whether it's an Indonesian island with exotic flora and fauna, or a London allotment, the message is the same. Once the habitat has gone, it's gone. He describes such losses eloquently and movingly. Ultimately though, there is hope. And this hope is vested in ordinary people who care about the piece of the planet that they live on, and who campaign, and simply roll their sleeves up and do whatever is practically necessary to ensure the continuing diversity and richness of the area they know and cherish so well. Some are educated scientists or campaigners, but more are simply citizens, doing what they can to ensure the continued future of the habitat they love. Read this book.
August 13, 2020
This should be compulsory reading for everyone. Julian Hoffman PAINTED a picture with his words, I travelled the UK and beyond reading his wonderful story telling and descriptions of nature. I loved how this book was about the irreplaceable places in the world, so Hoffman wrote about the glamorous stuff like the Lynx and beautiful butterflies, but also the not very glamorous bits like allotments and spiders. And also, the places that are important ecologically but also the places that are irreplaceable for their cultural, historical and spiritual reasons. Places that support a person’s livelihood and mental health are just as important that a place that is the home of an endangered animal. At times, this read like a horror story but the overall feeling I got was one of hope.
The book serves as a reminder: We need the natural world a whole lot more than it needs us.
The book serves as a reminder: We need the natural world a whole lot more than it needs us.
August 4, 2019
This book is a wake up call for those wild places that we might lose to what some call progress or improvement. Why even those places that in theory are protected by designation are not safe and those places that have been around for centuries are no safer than the next piece of land.
I was saddened to realise that I recognise many of the places the author describes, either because I was familiar with what was happening or had happened there or because I knew of somewhere where the same thing was happening.
A great book and a warning about just how we should be defining progress.
I was saddened to realise that I recognise many of the places the author describes, either because I was familiar with what was happening or had happened there or because I knew of somewhere where the same thing was happening.
A great book and a warning about just how we should be defining progress.
September 12, 2020
I can’t put this simply enough. READ THIS BOOK. You will not be disappointed. As well as being deeply significant for conservation, the writing is sublime; truly transporting you out of your armchair and into the natural world
May 8, 2022
Irreplaceable is a beautifully written book by award-winning author, Julian Hoffman.
This is a magnificent collection of enlightening and heart-warming stories about some of the last remaining wild places and species on earth, and the people who know them well and care for them.
These are remarkable stories that flow from the pages of eleven chapters, taking you on a journey through some incredible places with detailed descriptions, explanations and conversations about the natural world here in the British Isles and overseas.
The stories are made all the more poignant by the fact that these habitats and the species who thrive there are increasingly in danger of being destroyed. You cannot feel anything but respect and love for the people and communities who are fighting for them. Their knowledge of the land, the history and how to work successfully with nature is nothing but inspiring. Their tenacity, creativity and commitment to nurture and protect nature is heart-warming, with many hours invested for no more reward than to see nature thrive. It is a sad reality that despite being respected by locals, specialists and visitors alike - as areas of outstanding natural beauty with long histories of local husbandry - the struggle to maintain wild places and keep the (many) threats at bay is relentless.
While this theme runs true throughout the book, it does not detract from the rich and informative descriptions of habitats, ecosystems and people who are championing wild places and wild things here and overseas. With delightful narrative, Julian invites us to fall in love with the beauty of nature in collective unison and acknowledge that our treasured wild places deserve the right to flourish unhindered. This is unavoidable as you learn about the magical connections forged between people, animals, wildlife, micro-organisms and the natural seasons, and when you understand that it is these connections that make natural environments so richly diverse, bountiful and beautiful.
Wild places are part of our collective natural heritage and Julian eloquently described this as the transformational power of place or 'what grounds us, holding us close to the Earth.' There is a name for this connection which is 'topophilia' or 'the love of place' which is 'a desire to forge attachments to landscapes that impart personal meaning, value and identity as they intertwine with our lives and communities.'
Irreplaceable brings to light many focal points of wonder, a dynamic lens into natural worlds where humans live in harmony with nature and everyone reaps the benefits. In these pages you will discover treasures to be found in nature and how connections are made and horizons expanded. I love the cited quote by Dara McAnulty, a fourteen-year-old Northern Ireland naturalist and writer who says: 'My roots are shaped by place and the freedom to explore. My mind is expanded by the sparks and connections which follow.'
It can take a special wild place or a show-stopping natural event to bring the beauty and ingenuity of nature to our notice. Nature's ability to attract attention with her immaculate colours, scents, shapes and designs is not only for the benefit of wildlife but for us too. We are an intrinsic part of nature and our health and well-being depends on being able to connect to nature's energy on a mental, physical, spiritual and emotional level. As Julian says: 'The wild places we hold dear instil feelings of joy, calm, peace, rejuvenation, security and belonging in those who frequent them.'
And so we are awakened in the introduction by one such show-stopping natural event that had the power to attract everyone's attention on Brighton Pier one afternoon in late Winter. Not one person in a sea of small crowds, day-trippers and city residents failed to look up and watch the stunning murmeration of several hundred starlings sweeping across the skies in a fast-moving display that looked like a 'fusing into a mass of rippling black felt ... [a] growing assembly in an endless process of self-replication.'
Moments like these demonstrate the transforming effect nature has on every one of us and, as a perfect introduction, sets the scene for the stories that unfold. Julian takes you on a journey through peninsulas and marshes, woodlands and National Parks, coral reefs and meadows, moorlands and prairie, mountains and fens to experience the beauty of such places. You will be lulled into the gentle rhythm of nature, and warm to those who work in harmony with nature, often carrying forward ancient traditions, wisdom and knowledge to ensure its ongoing health and survival. Such wisdom can only be of benefit as we seek ways to live with and look after the wild places and things we so adore and depend on. In fact, we would all do well to think about the wild places we hold close to our hearts and what we can do to appreciate them more and protect them.
By doing so, we not only play a part in helping nature to flourish but we also discover new things about ourselves and the natural world around us, learning about wild things and making friends in the process. As Julian so rightly says: 'What matters, as always, is the quality of our connections, honouring wonder, relationships and community in the face of potentially immense loss, the sustaining ties forged between people, nature and place.'
In essence, Irreplaceable opens our minds to the invaluable and lasting benefit of living closer to nature; it opens our hearts to the enriching connections that can be nurtured between people, animals, wildlife and the natural world around us; and it reminds us that we have an individual and collective duty to protect the wild places and living things we love so dearly (both near and far), that we must stand up for them and, above all, experience them to the full and enjoy them.
This is a magnificent collection of enlightening and heart-warming stories about some of the last remaining wild places and species on earth, and the people who know them well and care for them.
These are remarkable stories that flow from the pages of eleven chapters, taking you on a journey through some incredible places with detailed descriptions, explanations and conversations about the natural world here in the British Isles and overseas.
The stories are made all the more poignant by the fact that these habitats and the species who thrive there are increasingly in danger of being destroyed. You cannot feel anything but respect and love for the people and communities who are fighting for them. Their knowledge of the land, the history and how to work successfully with nature is nothing but inspiring. Their tenacity, creativity and commitment to nurture and protect nature is heart-warming, with many hours invested for no more reward than to see nature thrive. It is a sad reality that despite being respected by locals, specialists and visitors alike - as areas of outstanding natural beauty with long histories of local husbandry - the struggle to maintain wild places and keep the (many) threats at bay is relentless.
While this theme runs true throughout the book, it does not detract from the rich and informative descriptions of habitats, ecosystems and people who are championing wild places and wild things here and overseas. With delightful narrative, Julian invites us to fall in love with the beauty of nature in collective unison and acknowledge that our treasured wild places deserve the right to flourish unhindered. This is unavoidable as you learn about the magical connections forged between people, animals, wildlife, micro-organisms and the natural seasons, and when you understand that it is these connections that make natural environments so richly diverse, bountiful and beautiful.
Wild places are part of our collective natural heritage and Julian eloquently described this as the transformational power of place or 'what grounds us, holding us close to the Earth.' There is a name for this connection which is 'topophilia' or 'the love of place' which is 'a desire to forge attachments to landscapes that impart personal meaning, value and identity as they intertwine with our lives and communities.'
Irreplaceable brings to light many focal points of wonder, a dynamic lens into natural worlds where humans live in harmony with nature and everyone reaps the benefits. In these pages you will discover treasures to be found in nature and how connections are made and horizons expanded. I love the cited quote by Dara McAnulty, a fourteen-year-old Northern Ireland naturalist and writer who says: 'My roots are shaped by place and the freedom to explore. My mind is expanded by the sparks and connections which follow.'
It can take a special wild place or a show-stopping natural event to bring the beauty and ingenuity of nature to our notice. Nature's ability to attract attention with her immaculate colours, scents, shapes and designs is not only for the benefit of wildlife but for us too. We are an intrinsic part of nature and our health and well-being depends on being able to connect to nature's energy on a mental, physical, spiritual and emotional level. As Julian says: 'The wild places we hold dear instil feelings of joy, calm, peace, rejuvenation, security and belonging in those who frequent them.'
And so we are awakened in the introduction by one such show-stopping natural event that had the power to attract everyone's attention on Brighton Pier one afternoon in late Winter. Not one person in a sea of small crowds, day-trippers and city residents failed to look up and watch the stunning murmeration of several hundred starlings sweeping across the skies in a fast-moving display that looked like a 'fusing into a mass of rippling black felt ... [a] growing assembly in an endless process of self-replication.'
Moments like these demonstrate the transforming effect nature has on every one of us and, as a perfect introduction, sets the scene for the stories that unfold. Julian takes you on a journey through peninsulas and marshes, woodlands and National Parks, coral reefs and meadows, moorlands and prairie, mountains and fens to experience the beauty of such places. You will be lulled into the gentle rhythm of nature, and warm to those who work in harmony with nature, often carrying forward ancient traditions, wisdom and knowledge to ensure its ongoing health and survival. Such wisdom can only be of benefit as we seek ways to live with and look after the wild places and things we so adore and depend on. In fact, we would all do well to think about the wild places we hold close to our hearts and what we can do to appreciate them more and protect them.
By doing so, we not only play a part in helping nature to flourish but we also discover new things about ourselves and the natural world around us, learning about wild things and making friends in the process. As Julian so rightly says: 'What matters, as always, is the quality of our connections, honouring wonder, relationships and community in the face of potentially immense loss, the sustaining ties forged between people, nature and place.'
In essence, Irreplaceable opens our minds to the invaluable and lasting benefit of living closer to nature; it opens our hearts to the enriching connections that can be nurtured between people, animals, wildlife and the natural world around us; and it reminds us that we have an individual and collective duty to protect the wild places and living things we love so dearly (both near and far), that we must stand up for them and, above all, experience them to the full and enjoy them.
March 16, 2022
A powerful testament to the conservation work being undertaken by individuals and communities across the world to ensure our habitat, wildlife and wild spaces do not continue to be lost at a continually alarming rate. Each chapter is much more than the story of action and conservation- it is a call to all of us to do what we can, wherever we are, to ensure future generations are not left with even less than we have now.
This book made me so thankful for the wild spaces and places I have enjoyed in the past and currently enjoy - but also acted as a reminder of the past I need to play in preserving it moving forwards.
A wonderful book and loved every single page of it.
This book made me so thankful for the wild spaces and places I have enjoyed in the past and currently enjoy - but also acted as a reminder of the past I need to play in preserving it moving forwards.
A wonderful book and loved every single page of it.
wish-list
June 20, 2019
The glorious Gwent Levels features in @JulianHoffman's latest book:
Publishing next Thursday, IRREPLACEABLE has finally landed. And I'd like to thank all those around the world whose connections to nature and place helped shaped this book. Without your stories of loss, hope, grief, wonder and resistance, it wouldn't exist. https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/303/3... …
October 12, 2024
Many tears were shed, thankfully some were happy
September 18, 2019
I highly recommend this book because it was so very well researched, and the author took great care to have many conversations with the ordinary people whose daily lives were very much connected to the places and the experiences represented in the book, so much so that they would go to any lengths explain how much these wild places meant to them on a personal level, and also how important it was to preserve and promote whatever was left for the benefit of humanity, ecology, wildlife , habitat preservation, mental health and to preserve a sense of wonder for future generations. Of course, many conservation groups were represented, eg RSPB, ancient woodlands. urban meadows, relict prairies, coral reefs. allotments and much more. The list of places and species worthy of protection is endless, due to the way they enrich ordinary peoples lives and help us to have a sense of connection with the natural world that we neglect at our peril.
October 17, 2025
I fully understand, agree with, and support the book's thesis and the author's arguments. I really, truly do. I think his idea for the book was great, a really sweet concept even.
Unfortunately, this book didn't hit the spot for me, for a variety of reasons:
- It was definitely too long. Too much data and so many places and people that I ended up not being able to follow everything properly. Also I think the author was slightly showing off how many plants and trees and birds and insects he can identify, just basing myself on how many he named.
- A solid 70% of the places visited ended up being in the UK: one in Wales, one in Scotland, and like 6-7 in England. My hot take is that he could've just written a book based in the UK, which would've been a very valid endeavour, instead of writing one which mostly talks about the UK but sometimes includes other places.
- The writing was too overly descriptive. It mixed metaphors, poetic descriptions of nature, scientific descriptions, people descriptions... Paragraphs went on and on and on, and chapters felt like they'd never end. Brevity is the soul of wit sometimes.
Overall, I'm rating it a 3/5. Good idea, clumsy execution.
Unfortunately, this book didn't hit the spot for me, for a variety of reasons:
- It was definitely too long. Too much data and so many places and people that I ended up not being able to follow everything properly. Also I think the author was slightly showing off how many plants and trees and birds and insects he can identify, just basing myself on how many he named.
- A solid 70% of the places visited ended up being in the UK: one in Wales, one in Scotland, and like 6-7 in England. My hot take is that he could've just written a book based in the UK, which would've been a very valid endeavour, instead of writing one which mostly talks about the UK but sometimes includes other places.
- The writing was too overly descriptive. It mixed metaphors, poetic descriptions of nature, scientific descriptions, people descriptions... Paragraphs went on and on and on, and chapters felt like they'd never end. Brevity is the soul of wit sometimes.
Overall, I'm rating it a 3/5. Good idea, clumsy execution.
January 5, 2022
Why read books which makes one Angry and Sad?
This is a hard thing to explain, particularly to people, who read solely for escapism.
This week serendipitously brought it home to me why it is worth doing it.
No sooner had I shelved "Irrelplaceable" on the shelf to gather dust, than one of the major characters from it graced us with it's presence.
An Egyptian vulture turned up beside a lake in the south of my county. Within the pages of the book I had left his family on a cliff under a monastery in Greece. I had travelled to Sky Burials in India and learned of their near extinction because of poisonings. Then the horror of seeing the few chicks hatching out in the Balkans drowning within a few km from the coast of Africa .
South Roscommon is in the heart of Ireland along the ancient passage of the Shannon river, about as far away from Egypt as one can imagine, particularly in winter. The presence of an Egyptian vulture feels more like the ripping of dimensional portal than anything natural. It is almost like he is a scout sent out to see if there is anywhere safe for his species.
I read books about our magical world so I can keep my feeling of joy and wonder, I read sad and challenging books so that I can rejoice and understand when something remarkable happens
This is a hard thing to explain, particularly to people, who read solely for escapism.
This week serendipitously brought it home to me why it is worth doing it.
No sooner had I shelved "Irrelplaceable" on the shelf to gather dust, than one of the major characters from it graced us with it's presence.
An Egyptian vulture turned up beside a lake in the south of my county. Within the pages of the book I had left his family on a cliff under a monastery in Greece. I had travelled to Sky Burials in India and learned of their near extinction because of poisonings. Then the horror of seeing the few chicks hatching out in the Balkans drowning within a few km from the coast of Africa .
South Roscommon is in the heart of Ireland along the ancient passage of the Shannon river, about as far away from Egypt as one can imagine, particularly in winter. The presence of an Egyptian vulture feels more like the ripping of dimensional portal than anything natural. It is almost like he is a scout sent out to see if there is anywhere safe for his species.
I read books about our magical world so I can keep my feeling of joy and wonder, I read sad and challenging books so that I can rejoice and understand when something remarkable happens
February 4, 2021
Wow. I see it took me a long time to read this book. And not because it isn't a worthwhile read. Rather, the subject matter is difficult to digest without being depressed. Though Hoffman throws in enough hope there is still so much that humanity is doing to ruin this planet that it is hard on a reader who cares about the natural world. As in his other writings, Hoffman's prose are wonderfully written. He certainly has a gift for language and he can evoke far away places well and place you there alongside him in his travels. Many people are doing amazing work all over the world to save habitat, species and culture and Hoffman introduces us to some of these amazing people in Irreplaceable. I fear though it won't be enough for us to change direction.
August 14, 2024
Stunning, beautifully written account of human impacts on a wide range of natural places and the struggles of those who strive to preserve and rejuvenate them. By turns poignant and hopeful, Hoffman delivers, through captivating prose, a call for everyone to stand up and advocate for our wild places to be enjoyed for generations to come.
"Like those starlings cork-screwing into the upper reaches of the fen country sky, change can begin with single voices - yours, mine, hers, or his. And when we raise our voices we empower others to join in, swelling to a chorus, a coalition, a murmuration."
February 18, 2024
This was picked for my bookclub and it was a book I enjoyed.
The passion and emotion from the author is evident in the passages, case studies and examples he uses. Certain passages were so descriptive I saved them. I liked reading about the community spirit and campaigning in areas where natural spaces were being threatened and the inspiration such places gave to authors, artists and the public in the past and present. Ultimately we can not recreate ancient woods, areas and such places they are 'Irreplaceable' so it is very important to preserve them.
A very thought provoking read
The passion and emotion from the author is evident in the passages, case studies and examples he uses. Certain passages were so descriptive I saved them. I liked reading about the community spirit and campaigning in areas where natural spaces were being threatened and the inspiration such places gave to authors, artists and the public in the past and present. Ultimately we can not recreate ancient woods, areas and such places they are 'Irreplaceable' so it is very important to preserve them.
A very thought provoking read
August 18, 2022
An unspeakably moving and transformative book and poetic to a degree stunning me completely speechless. I genuinely don’t have any words, but it’s moved me to tears several times and it’s written with such affection and poignancy and feeling and relevance and reverence it’s my absolute favourite of the year, if not among my 3 favourite books ever. I’m so glad I have it physically to cherish and reread again and again as I’m utterly certain I will.
June 11, 2021
A beautifully written book but I often found the content difficult. Such courage and commitment from those who seek to protect our world from that destructive animal man. Fighting against vested interests and governments that cannot see the importance of the natural world around us. Ultimately there is hope though and we should all take heart from the stories told within this book.
March 12, 2020
Hopwas wood, bear Tamworth.
Balkan lynx Mavrovo National Park, Macedonia.
Nightingales of Lodge Hill
Hoo Peninsula, Thames estuary
Smithy Wood, near Sheffield Yorkshire
At the moment I am writing a list of the irreplaceable places
Balkan lynx Mavrovo National Park, Macedonia.
Nightingales of Lodge Hill
Hoo Peninsula, Thames estuary
Smithy Wood, near Sheffield Yorkshire
At the moment I am writing a list of the irreplaceable places
June 5, 2020
This is an important book, an urgent read, an exquisite tribute to some wonderful natural habitats around the world that are sadly under serious threat of destruction and loss by man. A worthy candidate for the Wainwright prize!
Read
May 25, 2024the catalyst that converts any physical location - any environment if you will - into a place, is the process of experiencing deeply. A place is a piece of a whole env that has been claimed by feelings
November 7, 2020
Excellent. A call for each one of us to fight to protect nature.
June 12, 2023
Really captivating stories, complied together to send such an important message. I'm so glad I bought this eye opening book
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews