The Well Gardened Mind

The wisest book Ive read for many years . . . Much more than a gardening book, much more than a guide to mental health . . . Hugely recommended Stephen Fry the SUNDAY TIMES bestseller How can getting outdoors help us to look after our mental health? In a powerful combination of contemporary neuroscience, psychoanalysis and brilliant storytelling, the Well Gardened Mind investigates the magic that many gardeners have known for years - working with nature can radically transform our health, wellbeing and confidence. Prisoners given the chance to grow plants are less likely to reoffend. At-risk young people who get their hands in the soil are more likely to stay in education. Elderly people who garden live longer and have a better quality of life. Sue Stuart-Smith tells brilliant, illuminating stories of people struggling with stress, depression, trauma and addiction, from asylum seekers to veterans, inner-city young people to the retired. This is a glorious book of science, insight and anecdote that shows how our understanding of nature and its restorative powers is only just beginning to flower. An important and timely book . . . Beautifully written, drawing on a lifetimes experience as both a clinician and a gardener, and I urge everyone to read it MONTY DON Riveting, inspiring and often very moving . . . A lively, compassionate exhortation for us all to get our hands back in the soil ISABELLA TREE A compelling and deeply moving account of how profoundly our wellbeing can be affected through contact with gardening and the natural world . . . Read it EDMUND DE WAAL