A memoir of childhood and a celebration of the natural world, from one of the founding fathers of modern conservation 'When I was a child in Scotland, I was fond of everything that was wild, and all my life I've been growing fonder and fonder of wild places and wild creatures.' John Muir was eleven when he and his family left Scotland in 1849 to build a new life on a homestead in the vast wilderness of Wisconsin. Written in simple yet beautiful prose, we see Muir's delight as he discovers and observes the landscape and wildlife around him as he recalls his childhood and reveals himself as a master of natural description.