Books by Simon Cooper
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Just published is my new book Tales from The Mill is a collection of short stories charting over 1,000 years of history at Nether Wallop Mill. More importantly, the tales bring to life the strange lives and antics of the animals, creatures, fish, and birds that inhabit this unique corner of an English chalkstream valley.
To celebrate its release, I am hosting a special tour of The Mill and book signing on Friday 11th September. The event runs from 11 - 2pm and tickets cost £25 which includes:
- A special signed copy of Tales from The Mill
- The rare opportunity to tour parts of the historic mill and surrounding water meadows
- Chance to feed the fish
- Book readings and Q&As
- A glass of English sparkling and a light lunch served by the water
Whether you’ve heard about the Mill, fished its pristine waters, or are discovering it for the very first time, come and enjoy the many tales to be told! Places are limited so book early to avoid disappointment. The first two dates have already sold out!
Book here via our Eventbrite ticketing
| Tales from The Mill | Hardback | £22.50 | £17.50 | Early-order discount |
| Life of a Chalkstream | Hardback | £16.99 | £15.00 | In stock. Free delivery |
| The Otters’ Tale | Paperback | £9.99 | £8.99 | In stock |
| Frankel | Paperback | £9.99 | £8.99 | In stock |
| Life of a Chalkstream | Paperback | £9.99 | £8.99 | In stock |
Tales from The Mill
"This is a genuinely beautiful book, it makes the reader feel as though they have been there and lived the life of the author."
I have opened my gates to one of England's most enchanting landscapes to bring together my journals and observations from living, working and restoring Nether Wallop
Mill, an ancient water mill in rural Hampshire that predates the Domesday Book. I weave together natural history, memoir and community life and demonstrates how this rare river habitat is increasingly under threat.
Structured around the four seasons, Tales from The Mill poignantly follows the rhythms of weather and water, the daily arrival and disappearance of wild residents, and the challenges of being the custodian of a rare chalkstream and the thousand-year-old mill it powers. I first heard about the ‘run down’ mill from a friend and undertaking a two-year restoration project that stretched far longer and cost more than anticipated. The mill which is surrounded by water on all sides is accompanied by the noise of pounding water, which has become the soundtrack of my life.
The book is rich with stories about the local wildlife: youwill meet otters including Kuschta and her pups whose nightly visits strip a trout stock from 100 to 17; a monstrous rainbow trout nicknamed the Wallop Gulper; Arthur the Arthritic swan; the water voles who are being slowly reintroduced to the brook transported in Pringles tubes; the brown hare whose population has plummeted and the bird battle zone: where the swans persecute the geese, the geese persecute the ducks and the ducks persecute the moorhens.
Here are some wonderful reviews for Tales from The Mill
“I really enjoyed this book. The author has such reverence for nature and the mill property, it was a really beautiful read.”
“I sat down last night and read the whole thing. It was a delightful read ….. you have a wonderful talent for natural history journalism.”
“This book makes you think about the fragility of nature, about our part to play in looking after it and ultimately just how glorious our countryside is.”
Read the review in Country Life |
Life of a Chalkstream
"Beautifully written and steeped in a true understanding of its subject."
Life of a Chalkstreamis the story of a river that I discovered and brought back to life. A beautiful English chalkstream neglected for a generation or more. But perfection comes at a price, and the book charts the highs and lows of the year I took to bring it back from the brink. This is not so much a tale about people (they are mostly bit players as the events unfold) but rather the creatures that make their lives in and around the river and how the changes affected them for better or worse.
Come with me as we see the river fill with salmon and eels, returning from years at sea and a journey of thousands of miles across the Atlantic Ocean. Watch as those efficient predators the otters, pike and herons show themselves to deadly effect. Follow the adventures and travails of the fly fishers who take their turn on the river. In the air the swallows mark the changing of the seasons. By night the owls hover over the water meadows, a hunting ground that rarely fails to give up a victim. By day the water voles and tiny mammals scurry in the dry grasses and tall banks, making families that live life on the edge.
This is not just the tale of a river but the community that lives by it. How every creature, however big, small, fast or apparently unimportant has a niche and a role in the life of a chalkstream. But all is not as it should be. After decades of neglect much must be done to prevent the river spiralling towards oblivion. Saving it will be no easy task.
These are just a few of the great reviews:
“If you fish for trout and grayling, or if you love the English
countryside, then you'll also love this book which, for me, ended too
soon.”
“Pastoral and modern, it will interest naturalists, anglers and
daydreamers.”
“Up there with Tarka the Otter for the marvellous river and nature
writing.”
Read the review in the Daily Mail Read the review in Country Life Read the review in The Vintage Magazine |
Read the review in Spirit of Fly Fishing Read the reviews on Amazon |
The Otters’ Tale
"It is the best popular account of the lives of otters written so far."
Otters hold an almost unique place in the animal kingdom of the British Isles, being one of the very few creatures that give birth once every two years. They are the most secretive yet also the most popular mammals – they are found in every county but are so rarely seen that they have been raised to mythical status.
When I bought an abandoned water mill that straddles a small chalkstream in southern England, little did I know that I would come to share the mill with a family of wild otters. Yet move in they did, allowing me to begin to observe them, soon immersing myself in their daily routines and movements. I developed an extraordinary close relationship with the family, which in turn gave me a unique insight into the life of these fascinating creatures.
I interweave the personal story of the female otter, Kuschta, with the natural history of the otter in the British Isles, only recently brought back from the brink of extinction through tireless conservation efforts. Following in the footsteps of Henry Williamson’s classic 1920s tale Tarka the Otter, you are taken on a journey through the calendar year, learning the most intimate detail of this most beautiful of British mammals.
Here are some of the very kind reviews and comments about The Otters’ Tale:
“… Cooper knows more about otters than Henry Williamson (Tarka the Otter) or Gavin Maxwell (Ring of Bright Water).”
“…. an amiable story of a family of otters that take up residence in his water mill.”
“Cooper writes in this splendid book about otters in general but particularly about Kuschta a female.”
“Well written and lots of information about otters combined with a story which makes absorbing all the information an interesting read.”
Read the review New Scientist |
Read the review The Daily Mail |
Frankel: The Greatest Racehorse of All Time
“An imaginative retelling of the legendary story ….
Cooper paints a complete picture of Frankel.”
In horse racing greatness is defined by speed. Being the second fastest counts for little. You have to win. And win. And keep winning until every challenger of your generation is put to the sword. Of the twelve horses lined up on Newmarket Heath that 2011 day, one would do just that. And more. To become the greatest racehorse that has ever lived.
Frankel was born three years earlier on 11th February 2008, with four white socks and blaze, from impressive equine lines on both his parents’ sides. Simon Cooper revisits the whole of the horse’s life, giving readers an inside tour of the calm oasis that is life at a stud farm, where a foal will live with his mother for the first year of his life. Next, the atmosphere of heady possibility that marks the early days of training. Breaking in. Gallops. Trials. Turning raw potential into something more. Frankel begins to set himself apart.
A detailed and fast-paced narrative breathlessly recounts the racing career of the horse who, by his retirement to stud at the age of four, would be rated the greatest of all time. Cooper weaves the horse’s tale with his trainer battling cancer, the stable hands who coped with his explosive nature, the work rider who tamed him, the jockey who rode in all fourteen of his races and the owner who saw his potential from the very beginning
The result is a rich and multifaceted tale of modern horse racing, the lives of everyone involved, human and equine, and the unadulterated glory of winning. And winning is everything.
Read the publication day article Racing Post
Read the review Racing Post
Read the review The Independent
Read the review The Field
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