Melissa Harrison
Melissa Harrison (born 1975) is an English novelist, short story and nature writer.[1][2]
Early
[edit | edit source]Harrison was born in Effingham Junction, Surrey in 1975.[2] She attended a comprehensive school before studying English Literature at the University of Oxford, graduating in 1996.[1][2][3] After graduating, she worked as a freelance magazine subeditor, while contributing a regular "Nature Notes" column in The Times,[4] columns for The Guardian and contributions to radio and television.[5]
Literary career
[edit | edit source]Her first novel, Clay, was published by Bloomsbury in January 2013, followed by At Hawthorn Time in 2015.[6] Her non-fiction books include Rain: Four Walks in English Weather (2016).[7] A third novel, All Among the Barley, was published in August 2018.[8] Her short story "The Black Dog" was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2017[9] and she has contributed episodes to the channel's Tweet of the Day programme.[10] She has also made appearances on the BBC Two series Springwatch.[11] During the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown, she began a nature diary podcast called The Stubborn Light of Things which formed the basis of a new memoir published in November 2020 that outlined her move from urban London to rural Suffolk.[12] Her first children's novel, By Ash, Oak and Thorn was published by Chicken House Books in May 2021.[13]
Awards
[edit | edit source]| Year | Title | Award | Category | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | At Hawthorn Time | Costa Book Awards | Novel | Shortlisted | |
| 2016 | Bailey Women's Prize for Fiction | — | Longlisted | ||
| Rain | Wainwright Prize | — | Longlisted | ||
| 2019 | All Among the Barley | European Union Prize for Literature | — | Won | [14] |
| 2021 | By Ash, Oak and Thorn | Books Are My Bag Readers' Awards | Children's | Shortlisted | [15] |
| The Stubborn Light of Things | East Anglian Book Awards | Book of the Year | Won | ||
| Independent Booksellers' Book Prize | — | Shortlisted | |||
| 2022 | By Rowan and Yew | Wainwright Prize | — | Shortlisted | |
| 2025 | Homecoming: A Guided Journal to Lead You Back to Nature | Wainwright Prize | Illustrative Books | Shortlisted |
Bibliography
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Novels
[edit | edit source]- Clay (2013)
- At Hawthorn Time (2015
- All Among the Barley (2018)
Children's
[edit | edit source]- By Ash, Oak and Thorn (2021)
- By Rowan and Yew (2022)
Nature writing
[edit | edit source]- Rain: Four Walks in English Weather (2016)
- The Stubborn Light of Things: A Nature Diary (2020)
- Homecoming: A Guided Journal to Lead You Back to Nature (2025)
References
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External links
[edit | edit source]- Melissa Harrison on Goodreads
- Richard Powers and nature writing Open Book, Alex Clark interviews Richard Powers, Melissa Harrison and Jessica J Lee 12:00-27min, BBC Radio 4 podcast, 28 August 2018, accessed 2 September 2018.
- Melissa Harrison – Novelist and Nature Writer Melissa's personal website with links to her books, podcast and other work.
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