Wild Things
A Geography of Grief
by Barbara Wansbrough
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Pub Date Nov 11 2025 | Archive Date Dec 31 2025
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Description
B loves M, her favorite sister.
Then M is gone—taken too young, too suddenly, under the strange and quiet shroud of the pandemic. In the absence that follows, B sets out each day into the vast wilds of Griffith Park with her dog,
walking uphill and down in search of understanding, of peace, of reconciliation.
She talks to her sister in the language of the landscape, sports with her in the shape-shifting form of the wild animals
and plants of the park—rabbits, coyotes, snakes, owls, oleander, dodder, nettle, walnut. She leaves gifts—shells, stones, tokens of memory—and finds them answered in unexpected ways.
B now finds herself open to the mystery of change—willing to release old habits, weary truths, impossible expectations, and the comforting fictions of family. She revisits her life as an anxious and dutiful daughter, sister, wife, mother, and artist,
pausing to linger, to glance sideways, to laugh. She walks onward, guiding us gently toward a place we all must reach—where much can be left behind and a new wisdom awaits. And then she writes.
Wild Things is the result: 59 letters to her sister, one for each year of her life, alive with grief, wonder, and transformation. A book about loss and about the radical clarity that comes when everything falls away––a luminous, unforgettable work.
Advance Praise
"Wild Things is a strange, beautiful, sorrowful book—a love-song to sisterhood and a hymn to the consolation that comes from opening heart and eyes to the nearby wild world."
-- Robert MacFarlane, author of The Old Ways
"Wild Things gripped me like a series of tender letters from a dearest friend… an exquisite book that lifts the spirit and reminds us our loved ones walk alongside us as closely as sorrow does. Unforgettable and life-changing."
-- Naomi Shihab Nye, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Lifetime Achievement Award
"That grief and a curiosity about, and passion for, the natural world should be inextricable Wild Things makes abundantly clear. Wansbrough's voice is lucid, straightforward, and strangely visionary… Wild Things is not merely consoling, but a kind of inspiration."
-- Adam Phillips, author of On Giving Up
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781967751044 |
| PRICE | $22.00 (USD) |
| PAGES | 188 |
Available on NetGalley
Average rating from 4 members
Featured Reviews
Wild Things by Barbara Wansbrough
is a book with 59 letters written to a beloved sister lost too soon, carried by the rhythms of grief and the quiet wisdom of the natural world.
I love reading books in the form of letters. Wild Things is a little different in structure, but still feels like a collection of personal letters. What I love about this form is that the author isn’t trying to impress the reader - we’re simply outsiders, invited to peek into something intimate. We don’t need to catch every reference or know the background of everyone mentioned. It’s enough to witness. It’s a privilege, really. Especially when the letters are written out of mourning, as a way to heal…there’s nothing to judge, nothing to nitpick. You just read, reflect on your own life and loved ones, and root for them on their journey.
Debbie J, Reviewer
Beautifully written series of letters from the central character to her sister who has died. It interspersed musings and nature watching with reflections from the writer about herself and her relationships specifically her sister. Perfect for readers that enjoy the letter form for a novel. Thank you to the author. Thanks to #netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.
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