LoveReading Says
LoveReading Says
This wonderfully honest and heartfelt book salutes volunteering, and also sits as an offering for the meaning of community. It tells the very personal story of a volunteer manager, while celebrating the people who give nature and those around them a helping hand. Carol Donaldson is an ecologist, conservationist, and writer, she has written for the BBC Wildlife magazine, Wanderlust, and The Guardian. This book covers six years, as the author leads a group of countryside conservation volunteers. She is incredibly thoughtful and reflective as she looks back, her honesty is disarming. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Carol and her team, a family and community that was built with blood, sweat, tears (and the occasional near drowning!). The natural elements are just wonderful, described with an abiding yet realistic love. The tidbits of information and history are fascinating, and sit nicely alongside the more personal aspects. I actually feel it would be of benefit for all those working with volunteers (no matter the cause) to read this book. I’ve worked for three charities, have managed volunteers, and also been a volunteer, a lot of these stories caused echoes of feelings to cascade back into force. While Carol credits a previous manager with teaching her how to treat the volunteers she worked with, she obviously also had a lot of her own gifts to pass on. This, this is what volunteering should be about! The Volunteers is a sincere, heart-warming, and compelling book, highly recommended.
Liz Robinson
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The Volunteers Synopsis
A heart-warming true story of the woods and wildlife, conservation and community, perfect for fans of Detectorists and The Outlaws
When Carol's world suddenly unravels, leaving her single and jobless, she stumbles upon an unexpected opportunity: leading a ragtag team of countryside conservation volunteers. At first glance, the prospect of nurturing Britain's diverse wildlife in the great outdoors seems like a dream come true. However, reality paints a different picture: her office is a ramshackle porta-cabin overrun with mice and plagued by leaky ceilings, and the volunteers are far from impressed with her lack of practical skills.
Despite this rocky beginning, Carol gradually earns the respect of her eclectic group of volunteers, forging a tight-knit community that will grow to become essential to each member. This diverse group spans generations, from twenty-somethings to septuagenarians, with each of them looking to get something different out of volunteering, whether it's a sense of purpose, a fresh start in life or a tick on their community service form. They also bring their unique quirks and life experiences to the mix.
Volunteer days soon evolve into the highlight of Carol's week, as they bond over their love of nature, mental health battles, and the desire for companionship. As they work together outdoors, the team discover a simple yet powerful recipe for self-confidence, improved well-being and a newfound perspective on life's challenges. This journey not only brings solace and new joys to Carol's weeks, but eventually it helps her move on with her life, too.
The Volunteers is a heartwarming tale that celebrates the redemptive force of the woods and wildlife. It underscores the universal need for belonging and illustrates how, even in the most unexpected places, we can find a community to call our own.
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Press Reviews
Carol Donaldson Press Reviews
The Volunteers is The Detectorists with a touch of The Outlaws; a gentle, warm, vulnerable book that buzzes and sings and blossoms as it reveals the warts-and-all experience of leading a group of nature volunteers - Mary Colwell, author of Curlew Moon and The Gathering Place
The Volunteers gripped me from the first page. Carol Donaldson writes fluently and honestly, reliving for us a period in her life of momentous change and unexpected relationships, centred on a love for working with and in nature - Vicki Hird MSc FRES, author of Rebugging the Planet
Tender, warm-hearted and honest, Carol and The Volunteers are all and any one of us...It's hopeful, it's funny and kind. It's Detectorists, but for nature, and without your own kit. Nicola Chester, author of On Gallows Down
Author
About Carol Donaldson
Carol Donaldson is a writer and conservationist. Originally from Essex, she has worked for many of Britain's best wildlife charities and currently runs her own environmental consultancy. Her first book, On the Marshes, was published by Little Toller in 2017. She is a regular contributor to the Guardian travel pages and was BBC Wildlife Magazine's Travel Writer of the Year in 2011. Carol lives in Kent and enjoys wild swimming and cycling as well as volunteering.
Photo credit Nia Rose Photography
More About Carol Donaldson
