by Richard Baines
We've all been there - you know, when one of your best friends creates something (art, music, writing) that they've put their life and soul into, and you're cornered into either hurting their feelings with genuine honesty or (more likely) hollowly placating them with disingenuous platitudes. It's a no-win.
But there is, very occasionally, a third alternative - and that's when the something in question happens to be fucking great, and you couldn't be more proud of or enthusiastic about it. The Rarity Garden, by my dear friend and birding brother Richard Baines, is one of those rare gems, and if you've got a few minutes I'll try and explain why.
For a decade, Rich lived in one of the old coastguard cottages up on the tip of Flamborough Head (the 'Great White Cape'), where he nurtured both his wildlife-magnet of a garden and his love of watching, enjoying and recording the dramas that played out within it.
The Rarity Garden is a distillation of the journal he kept throughout that time - a Greatest Hits, in chronological order, of the birds and wildlife of the garden (and the wider area), from Isabelline Shrike and Blyth's Reed Warbler bathing in the stream to movements of Little Auks and Sooty Shearwaters from the back of the shed!
But it's much, much more besides. As Rich is at pains to stress, a 'rarity' is very much in the eye of the beholder - and can be just as much about a special moment with a common species, or a personal epiphany at the least likely of times or places.
Full disclosure - I've known of its quality for some time, as I've had the privilege of editing it throughout the course of its journey from rough cuts to the lush, sexy publication that lies before me now.
My part in the process, spread over these last few years, could've backfired terribly - imagine enthusiastically agreeing to do your friend a favour, only to discover you're in for a prolonged and excruciating firefighting journey... But, thank the gods, that couldn't be further from the truth. It's been an absolute joy to work on, and genuinely inspiring to see it grow and blossom into the uniquely wonderful book I can hold in my hands today.
Therein lies one of the secrets that makes The Rarity Garden so special; it's imbued with that genuine wide-eyed, child-like enthusiasm, untainted by cynicism and yet qualified by the experience and skills of someone who really knows his shit (and when he doesn't, can't wait to find out more and share the journey).
For me, the most important aspect of the editing process was not to interfere with or 'correct' Rich's voice, which, in turn, is the single most important aspect of the book. It's as close to the way he speaks as can it can be - which is to say, bursting with enthusiasm, wonder, wit, passion, curiosity and outright unabandoned love for birds and nature.
To say it's infectious would be a pathetic understatement, and if you're not shifting anxiously in your seat after reading a chunk of it, itching to get out and soak up some nature for yourself, then you're a stronger person than I. Actually, scrub that - you'd need to be dead inside not to feel fired up and ready to roll.
The Rarity Garden should and will appeal to absolutely anyone with an interest in birds and nature, and it's that genuine oddity of a natural history book - possessing an across-the-board appeal without diluting or dumbing down the quality of the content:
You could be someone who just enjoys watching the birds in your garden, or a laser-focused hardcore rare bird finder; a migration aficionado or someone who just enjoys the ebb and flow of the seasons; someone steeped in the great tradition of natural history journals and writings, or somebody who doesn't usually read much but loves a bit of nature now and then. From uber-nerd to uber-normal, The Rarity Garden is 100% for you.
It's a thing of great beauty, too, from its classic gold embossed cover to the multitudes of evocative illustrations, photographs, maps and more crammed into its pages, which are in turn of a quality that makes them a joy to turn (extra points for tactile sensuality!)... and it's perfect to dip in and out of at leisure, be that in bed, on the couch, or of course, on the throne. You heard it here first.
Very proud of you, Ricardio - the boy done good (and I mean really good....)!
To order your copy and read more about it, go HERE - and remember, 5% of all proceeds from The Rarity Garden will be donated to the North Yorkshire Turtle Dove Project, which works to protect and restore habitats for one of the UK’s most endangered birds. Buy it, you won't regret it!
