As an ecologist I’m always on the look out for books involving nature. I knew a lot about swifts already but since I’m from The Netherlands and I’m more working in roadbuilding instead of the housing industry I didn’t know how dire the circumstances were. This book goes mostly into why swifts need us but I really liked how we could read along with Hannah Bourne-Taylors road to activism. Working on getting legislation is a long road and that truly needs passion. Hannah also gives some attention to other species that can be saved if the right measures are taken which shows that saving biodiversity isn’t a one-species solution. Conservation efforts are needed all around the tree of life. I felt that the book perfectly balances love for nature, frustration with politicians, personal stories and hope for the future.

Recently the legislation for swift bricks in the Netherlands was canceled by our last right-wing cabinet that found it “too difficult to implement”. I truly hope that the new election and government will implement the legislation. Never forget that your right to vote also impacts the ones that can’t vote.

Having started this a month or two ago and getting sidetracked, I picked it up again after finding it had been long listed for the Wainwright Prize this year. I’ve just raced through it in a couple of days. Having followed Hannah online and heard her speak in person once or twice, I knew what a brilliant force of nature and important advocate for swifts (and more) she was already, and this book is a perfect example of that. An inspiring and incredibly frustrating read. Read if you love nature and you want to feel politicised…!

The Common Swift. The much loved screaming birds, who bring summer with them all the way from Africa ☀️

The birds who have soared our skies for 60 million years 🦖

The birds who undergo a nine month, 6,500 hour long flight every single year, before they come home to us 🪶

The birds we share our homes with, while they breed and raise their young, before they set off again on that same long flight 🌍

The birds who are returning year upon year and finding their homes no longer exist 🪺

The solution? A simple 'Swift Brick' - literally a brick with a hole in it - an easy & affordable solution to implement into development plans that will save a species from national extinction 🧱

In Nature Needs You, Hannah Bourne-Taylor shares her own flight into the tricky world of politics, to make Swift Bricks the norm in new developments 🏡

After promising two swiftlets that she would do everything she could to save them. Hannah joined swift conservation groups, became a parish councillor, performed the feather speech, walked naked through London and got 100,000 signatures on a petition in just 6 months - only to be told 'no' by the government time and time again 🚫

The most shocking thing in this book isn't that Swifts are in decline, but just how much time and effort Hannah had to put in to get the government to even consider listening to her - and she is still fighting today 🌿

Nature Needs You has excitingly just been longlisted for the @wainwrightprize and rightly so. This is absolutely vital, essential reading 📚

It will have you crying, screaming, shouting, smiling, cheering and sighing alongside Hannah as she fights for the survival of our swifts, and will leave you wanting to fight alongside her too!

Hannah is an absolute inspiration. She has given her life to the swifts. Please follow her page to keep updated on how you can join the fight @writerhannahbt ✨️

Thank you @elliottandthompson for the #gifted review copy 💛

This was book was so magically written, I cried several times and though swifts have never been a main focus in my interest of british wildlife, they will be now.

So beautifully written Hannah Bourne -Taylor has written a beautiful book about her fight for these birds.At times sad at times your cheering a really wonderful read.#NetGalley #elliottandthompson.

I picked this up as an ARC because of its focus on swifts—something close to my heart after a recent project at work, where we created swift boxes for homes alongside an art trail with the local community.

Nature Needs You tells the story of The Feather Speech, Bourne-Taylor’s campaign to make swift bricks mandatory in new builds and renovations. These bricks provide vital nesting spaces for swifts—now on the UK Red List—who’ve adapted to buildings after the loss of their forest homes. But today, the sealing of wall cavities is rapidly removing their last refuge.

Working in the housing sector, this really hit home. It’s such a simple, effective intervention—yet Bourne-Taylor shows just how hard it is to get political support, even for common-sense solutions. Her story offers a rare and accessible insight into how UK politics really works: the role of lobbyists, political indifference, and the persistence required to make meaningful change.

I found it deeply emotional. I teared up more than once following the highs and lows of her journey. And to learn she’s based just outside Oxford—campaigning for the very birds we’ve been trying to support- it hits very close to home.

If you care about nature, want to understand our political system better, or simply hope to be a more informed citizen, Nature Needs You is essential reading. It answers the question so many of us ask: What can I do to help?

I’ve pre-ordered a physical copy to share with family—and another for one of the Little Free Libraries at work.

What a fascinating story. The story of one woman campaigner fighting to save the swift and have swift bricks installed in homes in the UK proving roosting nests for the birds. Thank you to the author for this book and her work. Thank you to #netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.