It's here! Browse the 2024 Penguin Christmas gift guide
Chicken Boy

Chicken Boy

My Life With Hens

Summary

A captivating testament to the mutual rewards and delights of keeping chickens, by the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Flower Yard

Most of us want a dog, or a cat, or a pony when we are young – but for Arthur Parkinson, it was always hens. Growing up in an ex-mining town in Nottinghamshire, the other kids in the playground called him 'Chicken Boy'. The quiet fulfilment of keeping hens became his sanctuary, a tonic for mental and physical health, a connection with his family and the natural world. Illustrated with Arthur's own characterful watercolours and photographs of his ‘girls’, Chicken Boy is a one-of-a-kind memoir of a life in nature.

Reviews

  • Poetic... Parkinson writes with great lyricism... His knowledgeable enthusiasm is infectious
    Bee Wilson, Sunday Times

About the author

Arthur Parkinson

Arthur Parkinson is the author of The Pottery Gardener and The Flower Yard, and the co-host, with Sarah Raven, of the popular Grow, Cook, Eat, Arrange podcast. His writing and photography are regularly featured in the Daily Telegraph, and have appeared in The Times, Country Life and Country Living, among other magazines and newspapers; he has also featured in BBC Two's Gardeners' World.
Learn More

Sign up to the Penguin Newsletter

For the latest books, recommendations, author interviews and more