The Song That Sings Us

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Breakfast on the lawnIn the sweet September swayHelpless and fornlornSince the pills and powders passed their wayLost themselves, forever seekingSearching pole to poleWhile the needle and the threadStitches them whole The ending was a little confusing but I think that was intentional- it’s meant to feel mystical and wondrous. I was very small when I saw my first dolphin," says zoologist Nicola Davies, recalling a seminal visit with her father to a dolphin show at the zoo. Enchanted at the sight of what she called the "big fish" jumping so high and swimming so fast, she determined right then that she would meet the amazing creatures again "in the wild, where they belonged." And indeed she did--as part of a pair of scientific expeditions, one to Newfoundland at the age of eighteen and another to the Indian Ocean a year later. In WILD ABOUT DOLPHINS, Nicola Davies describes her voyages in a firsthand account filled with fascinating facts and captivating photographs of seven species of dolphins in action. I have a song that i'd like to listen again and see the video clip again. I remember watching this music videos on MCM or others music channels on TV in the late 2000's. Plot, world-building and detailed drawings’: The False Rose by Jakob Wegelius. Illustration: Jakob Wegelius

The world in this complex, dystopian, eco-thriller is a more extreme version of the climate crisis currently facing humankind. The slogan of the dominant Automators is to ‘escape the tyranny of nature’ and anything non-industrial is being actively destroyed. Nicola will be reading from her latest book, Choose Love. We have films to show and much to talk about. Five years ago The Lost Words was awarded Hay Festival Book of the Year. Much has happened since then. Come along, celebrate with us.

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Very soon, the siblings get separated and they end up trying to bring down the automators in very different ways as they meet different groups of people who are rebelling against their rule. As they join the rebellion, the children also find that there are a lot of unanswered questions about their mother. Who was she really?

And of course, as the title portends, there’s a lot of beautiful singing, not least at the novel’s end. This arrives as a sort of choral epiphany with many of the books characters raising their voices in unison, underlining the sheer connectedness of things and, by dint of this, placing the reader very much at the heart of it all. Bestselling author Alexandra Christo, author of TikTok sensation To Kill a Kingdom, introduces her new book, The Night Hunt (Hot Key Books), a dark...

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The Song That Sings Us is a complex tale with a strong sense of heart and justice. It’s not just above caring for the planet but those on it too, whether they move on no legs, four legs, or two. The pace barely lets up, so it’s a good choice not only for those interested in environmental issues but those who enjoy fantasy-action. Ma sent her children to find ‘a lost island’. It seems a hopeless task – what is it, where is it, why is it lost? They have no knowledge of it, or why they have to go there, but they know they must find it. And finally, the seemingly impossible quest is almost completed: Lost Island is located at last. You don’t have to be a crossword nut to see the various ways in which Wales appears in this book, written by a former presenter of ‘The Really Wild Show’ who now lives in Pembrokeshire. There’s a city called Fidrac, found somehwre near Porthmadog and a ghostly woman called the Boogam.

The delineation between humans and animals is blurred and there are some interesting ideas around bionetworks and the interconnectivity of species. But this is not just a book for ecowarriors. Anyone who enjoys a really good adventure thriller will love it – and readers may never feel quite the same way about elephants ever again. We lost ourselves forever seekingSearching pole to poleWhile the neelde and the threadStitches us whole When the siblings are separated, they must each find a way to follow Ma’s final, mysterious instruction. Their lives, and perhaps the future of humanity, depend on it. A very special book. Inspiring, important and innovative – full of action that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Nicola Davies is a magnificent writer and this is a tour-de-force. It’s for fans of Mortal Engines as much as it is for those who love Watership Down’. – Simon FisherFirst there’s a snowboard slalom, in the dark and as if that isn’t enough the three siblings at the heart of the story, Harlon and the twins Ash and Xeno are being pursued by metal falcons which thrum through the air like arrows. The nights are cool and I'm a foolEach star's a pool of water, cool waterAnd with the dawn I'll wake and yawnAnd carry on to waterCool, clear water There’s even a map of a country which bears more than a passing resemblance to Wales, albeit a version which shows how the edge of the ice seems to be in line with somewhere near Holyhead, and to the north of that extends the White Sea, where snow bears roam and mammoths mingle. Xeno is the oddest of the three. Although the same age as Ash, she communicates in riddles and bird song – her power is so strong that she essentially can’t turn it off, leaving her brain a bit addled. This gives her a slightly creepy, almost ethereal quality at times, especially when being questioned by Commander Eye (the scene where she leaves him unnerved may be one of my favourite moments!). The Song That Sings Us is a tale of the importance of nature, and the damage that humans can cause with greed, selfishness, and arrogance. Its message is very clear and it places it front and centre, like a cross between some kind of technological-dystopia and an eco-fable.

Nicola Davies is the author of more than 50 books for children: fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Her work has been published in more than 10 different languages and has won major awards in the UK, US, France, Italy and Germany. Dapo Adeola, Tracy Darnton, Joseph Coelho and Chitra Soundar are among the 19 authors and illustrators longlisted for the Inclusive Books for Child... The singer is male, and the genre would be consider metaphysical/spiritual. Anyway, here's the lyrics I remember from the song Riding on a Ridge: If you know this song or remember it at all, please help as I am desperately searching.

Praise for the book

The Automators have come, just like Ma always knew they would, and they don’t plan on taking any prisoners. I’ve spent my entire career communicating biological science to children in various ways, trying to raise passionate zoologists, environmental advocates and campaigners. So almost all of my previous books in some way are about nature and human relationships with the natural world. In some ways, The Song That Sings Us is entirely consistent with that history, with deep roots in zoological science and in what I know about the human connection with all living things. But, this time, I wanted to write about it in a really different way, in a way that would be more emotionally engaging, in a way that would take my readers on a really exciting journey, in a way that would deliver a powerful message that everyone needs to hear.” My thoughts on ‘The Song That Sings Us’ Much of this is facilitated by the fact that special beings, known as Listeners can communicate with the natural world and so commune with creatures such as snow terns which ‘fly between the ends of the world, from here, around the White Sea, to Diwedd Pawb, right at the bottom of the world.’ One of the things that I find so extraordinary about this book, is how clearly It explains what we are doing to the world. Even though we do not have magical islands or ruthless Automators, we still have hope to fight against those who destroy nature. I believe that sometimes we forget what we do every day to nature, we say that we love it and think that’s enough. But if we carry on this way, feeding into the lies that whisk around us, we will not even have that love, and then how will we forgive ourselves for the catastrophe we have caused? But as I have said before, the main message of this book isn’t the chaos we are causing, it is the hope we still have. It is not too late. Then there are the animals. The children meet them on their journey, travel with them, communicate and suffer with them, are helped by them, and fight alongside them. For instance, the Gula, a lovable wolverine who will warm your hearts; the astonishing Arctic Tern, whose song is the finest poetic writing you’re likely to come across; Skrimsli, the charismatic tiger captain of the Ice Maiden; and my favourite, Enkalamba, the last elephant of the forest.