Spring

'And there, as I struggle to open the gate, I happen to glance down and see it.

Frog spawn! Clumps of it, floating like grey slimy sponges on the surface of the puddle.

I crouch down to be close to it, to the beginning of new life.

That's what I'm feeling all around me as I wend my way up the hill, through Bluebell Wood and homewards, taking my time to stand and stare and wonder.' Michael Morpurgo has lived on Nethercott farm, deep in Devon river country, for more than forty years.

In Spring, he observes the changing season all around him, as new shoots emerge and seeds are sown, lambs are born and blossom flowers overhead.

As the weeks pass, we accompany Michael as he watches the lambing on the farm, walks through the bluebell woods, and feeds the birds in his garden in his wellies and dressing gown.

He describes dramatic encounters with sparrowhawks, hares and otters, while sharing other magical discoveries, poems and reminiscences about childhood and springs gone by. This is an uplifting burst of springtime joy from one of the nation's best loved authors.