THE dust jacket describes this book as being “charming and idiosyncratic”, and so it is. It is beautifully written by Sarah Sands, the former editor of the London Evening Standard (Feature, 23 September). She recalls the story of finding a hedgehog caught up in some netting in her garden. She took the hedgehog, whom she later named Peggy, to a rescue centre, and so began her fascination with hedgehogs, which have inhabited Europe for more than 30 million years, but are now in danger of extinction.

The author’s adventure reads like a pilgrimage to learn more about hedgehogs, and it is interlaced with her account of the process of the dying and eventual death of her father. This makes it a deeply personal book describing her thoughts about the world of nature, survival and death, hibernation and eternal rest.

Hugh Warwick, the ecologist and hedgehog expert, is quoted as saying that the hedgehog is the most common wild animal mentioned in children’s books. It is also one of the symbols of NATO, because the hedgehog is peaceful and purposeful, but strong in defence. Some enthusiasts have suggested that the hedgehog should become our national symbol.

Today, several initiatives are under way to protect and increase the hedgehog population, and some of these the author has visited and describes. There are attempts in villages to make gardens more hedgehog-friendly, the training of dogs in Wales to sniff out hedgehogs, the relocation of hedgehogs from Scottish islands, and the need to save hedgehogs from lawnmowers, badgers, and road traffic. There is also an interesting account of the blond hedgehogs to be found only on the island of Alderney.

The book contains insightful quotations about hedgehogs from scientists, poets, writers, politicians, and theologians, including Tolstoy, Thomas Hardy, Rory Stewart, Rowan Williams, Zac Goldsmith, Beatrix Potter, and Tony Pratchett.

This is a book that warms the heart and makes the reader come to appreciate the significance of hedgehogs, and what we can do to conserve them as part of our native habitat. It would make an ideal Christmas present or stocking filler.

The Rt Revd Dominic Walker OGS is a former Bishop of Monmouth and President of the Anglican Society for the Welfare of Animals.

The Hedgehog Diaries: A story of faith, hope and bristle
Sarah Sands
New River £14.99
(978-1-915780-02-7)
Church Times Bookshop £13.49