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After nearly a decade entrenched in anorexia and with rapidly declining health, Hannah Lilly is confronted by the reality of her eating disorder. She has two options: undergo intensive treatment at a clinic in London, or attempt recovery under familial care.She turns to her older cousin for help. But what is supposed to be a brief visit to her cottage turns into a year living in rural Somerset, immersed in nature, surrounded by birds, dense woodland and farmland.As Hannah spends more time connecting with the landscape, she begins to rediscover parts of herself lost to years of illness. From early autumn days where all she can manage is watching the bird feeders from the kitchen to winter evenings exploring the local woodland, spring visits to nature reserves with new friends and summer mornings spent wild-swimming in the river.Nature alone doesn’t cure her, but it becomes a reminder of the girl she used to be and the woman she could become.When the nuthatches call, she hears the echoes of her joy and remembers that they were once her own. During her year in Somerset she doesn’t just learn to eat; she learns how to live again.A haunting yet inspirational story of renewal, The Bird Feeder shows that while nature isn’t a magic fix, it can act as a grounding force in our most difficult moments and a quiet guide towards a more rooted, more authentic life.

The Bird Feeder

  • By Hannah Lilly

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  • About the Author

    Hannah Lilly is a travel and nature writer based in Folkestone. Despite suffering from anorexia since her early teens, Hannah completed her degree in English Literature, focusing on the portrayal of birds in Romantic poetry and the emergence of contemporary nature writing, and she recently wrote her first story for Bird Watching magazine. The story of her recovery from this eating disorder is the central premise of The Bird Feeder, her first book.

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