Tarka the Otter

May 2020 selection of the NYRB Classics Book Club.

Tarka the Otter is one of the defining masterpieces of modern nature writing, a model for books like J. A. Baker’s The Peregrine that seek to transcend the boundaries between the human and the animal worlds. Henry Williamson’s tale of the struggle for survival draws on his years of observing otters in the wild. It is also thought to reflect his traumatic experiences in the First World War.