He outlines the merits of a Land Value Tax (first proposed by Lloyd George and Winston Churchill in the 1909 “People’s Budget”), praises the mainstream Sheffield campaign to halt the vandalistic destruction of the city’s trees, and saves kind words for the – thoroughly bourgeois and middle-of-the-road – Scottish government’s freedom-to-roam laws. It’s so enveloping, and so soothing, I jump halfway out of my skin when a pheasant shrieks in the undergrowth. Another example is the reference to Rousseau's "Discours sur L'Origine et les Fondements de L'Inéegalité parmi les hommes in which he quotes the first part of a critical passage while ignoring the second part and therefore wholly distorting Rousseau's message with which, had he read the text,, Hayes would surely agree. In fact, if you can read this book and the social injustice explored in it doesn’t make you angry at times, then you’re probably a significant landowner!

But what I did love is that Nick’s book is also a wonderful book about nature, about folklore; it’s intellectually powerful, blending thinkers from all sorts of fields. It sometimes gives the impression,however, of being dispalyed for its own sake or to fulfill the role assigned to it by a routine structure repeated chapter by chapter. If I had two minutes on the Today programme, I would talk about the science involved in the relationship between nature and mental and physical wellbeing, and about a future where landowners aren’t robbed of anything at all, except the right to exclude the mass public. Nick’s tales, which are full of knowledgeable opinion, add to current debates around social justice and civil disobedience, yet they are told through the heart of an adventurer and the eyes of an artist, with each chapter being handsomely illustrated by Nick’s distinctive relief prints.But overall it's a very readable look into the abysmal state of land access and public rights in England, and how it got that way. But his ability to turn us on our heels through 180 degrees felt like power to me, and it’s quite rare for a white, straight, middle-class man [like me] to feel the operation of power like that. Public footpaths allow us to essentially walk in strips and ribbons across our countryside, but there’s only 8 per cent of land you have the right to roam across,” he said, stopping regularly to point out mushrooms, or shield and relight his roll-up cigarette against the buffeting wind. THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERSHORTLISTED FOR THE CWA GOLD DAGGER FOR NON-FICTION 2021SHORTLISTED FOR THE INDIE BOOK AWARD FOR NON-FICTION 2022Brilliant, passionate and political .

Hayes is a trespasser who takes us on a series of walks which explore parts of England (92% of it) we are not allowed to see. And now, after reading Nick Hayes’ thoroughly fascinating, engaging and challenging book I think I know why. These are beautiful to look at and certainly help to reinforce any sense the reader may have of their exclusion from the land. Within the Outdoor Access Code are a clear set of rights and responsibilities, balancing a citizen’s rights to access the land with property owner’s rights to privacy and the necessity of protecting the environment.He covers a myriad of topics such as fox hunting, the church, grouse moors, the Roma people and slavery. The Book of Trespass is a compelling work of non-fiction, showing how the citizens of England have been robbed of our common land with the wealth moving inexorably from public good to private purse. It tells - through story, exploration, evocation - the history of trespass (and therefore of freedom) in Britain and beyond, while also making a powerful case for future change. For such a small legal infraction, the notion of crossing a fence line, wall or invisible boundary is wrapped in a moral stigma that runs to the heart of English political and civil life. It ends on an optimistic note, detailing some of the progress that is being made towards giving more people access to this currently inaccessible land.