Aurum swoops on Bourne-Taylor’s 'heartfelt' nature memoir

Aurum, an imprint of The Quarto Group, has acquired Hannah Bourne-Taylor’s debut nature memoir, Fledgling. 

Katie Bond, publisher, acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Sophie Lambert at the C&W Agency. 

The memoir will transport readers from the English countryside to the Ghanaian grasslands where the author rescued, hand-raised and released a swift and a mannikin finch back into the wild and will tell the story of how rescuing the birds and immersing herself in their care gave Bourne-Taylor hope when, without a job or purpose of her own, she sank into depression and anxiety.

Bond commented: "Nature and wildlife were at the heart of my National Trust publishing and judging the Wainwright Prize for several years was a total joy. Since joining Aurum, I have been hunting for a nature memoir that’s heartfelt, compelling and beautifully written. Fledgling is that book."

Bourne-Taylor said: "Especially after the year that we’ve had, I hope my book can provide doses of joy and glimmers of hope. I have tried to bottle the spirit of these two remarkable and very different wild birds. They showed me how to embrace the everyday and the book is a celebration of them."

Fledgling will be published in April 2022.