Badgers are elusive. They’re an animal I haven’t seen live in the wild. This book therefore was fascinating and taught me so much about these mammals. 

There is a lot of focus on bovine TB and badgers part in that, since the book was written at the time of the 2013 cull it makes sense. It was a hot topic. The badger cull still happens. The author stays clear of choosing one side or the other, instead he expresses the views of both sides fairly. 

I read this as part of my mammoth quest to read all the longlisted wainwright prize books, and I can see why Barkham was included (more than once) as his writing is engaging and knowledgeable without being overloading.