“An inspiring call to throw caution to the wind....Lifelines is not just beautiful, it is quite literally encouraging. It will make you brave. To those waiting for the right moment, the safe path, the clearly marked route, Hoffman offers a challenge: throw yourself towards the dangerous edge of things.”

—The Observer

“A reflective, encouraging and exquisitely written memoir full of astute observations on our flawed relationship with the wild.”

—The Times

“The narrative ripples out to tell of other wild and endangered places on Earth. Along the way, it inspires readers ‘to hold, to learn, to love’ a place—to become sheltered by it and to, in turn, bravely shelter it.”

—Orion

“Set against the spectacular mountains and lakes of northern Greece, this remarkable book describes Julian and Julia’s odyssey as they meet others on similar quests to find home, be they bears, pelicans or humans. Utterly relevant to our times.”

—Lee Durrell, MBE

“An exquisite exploration of belonging and what ‘home’ means in a world convulsed by change. Every page shimmers with beautifully evoked stories and insights. Mountains, bears, birds, people, flowers, and more converge and come to vivid life in these pages full of love and wisdom.”

— David George Haskell, author of How Flowers Made Our World

“A rich journey into the meaning of shelter and finding it in an unsteady world—Lifelines is part memoir, part homing-manual, told through encounters with bears and rivers, wrens and people. A remarkable and beautiful read.”

—Bathsheba Demuth, author of Floating Coast

“A tender, powerful story of love for a place and a way of being, and a bracing call to the barricades—for enemies are closing in. An urgent, important and compelling read.”

—Charles Foster, author of Being a Beast: Adventures Across the Species Divide

“Julian Hoffman’s writing is knockout beautiful, perceptive, sensitive, thoughtful, beguiling, deeply smart, full of humanity, and a lifeline in itself.”

—Keggie Carew, author of Beastly: The 40,000-Year Story of Animals and Us

“Hoffman observes the world around him with such sensitivity and he brings to every natural encounter—be it a Greek landlord, a moth, a Juniper tree or a brown bear - a child’s sense of wonder and respect....Lifelines is a book that will refresh your soul.”

—Carol Drinkwater, author of The Olive Farm: A Memoir of Life, Love, and Olive Oil In the South of France

“A marvellous work of love and reflection on the wild places we share with nature, the ordinary and extraordinary people and creatures, and the magic of our living world.”

—Gaia Vince, author of Nomad Century: How Climate Migration Will Reshape Our World