MY BODY IS A MEADOW: Finding Freedom in the Outdoors

A bold new book by Bethany Handley redefines nature writing through disability, access and ecological urgency,

What happens when the landscapes that shaped you become inaccessible?

In My Body is a Meadow: Finding Freedom in the Outdoors, Welsh writer Bethany Handley transforms personal loss into a powerful, joyful and political exploration of disability, nature and belonging.

After developing a life-changing chronic illness in her early twenties, Handley became a full-time wheelchair user. She was suddenly shut out from the mountains, forests and beaches of the Welsh countryside she had always called home. This book begins with exclusion, but becomes something far more expansive.

Blending lyrical writing with sharp cultural insight, Handley embarks on a journey to reimagine access, finding new ways into landscapes and new language for understanding the body. In doing so, she draws striking parallels between disabled bodies and ‘disabled’ ecosystems, revealing how restriction, gatekeeping and fragility operate across both with detrimental effects.

Where her earlier work established her as a distinctive voice in writing about the body and the natural world, My Body Is a Meadow marks a clear evolution: more ambitious, more political and urgently attuned to the present moment.

Why This Book Is Essential Now

● Brings a disabled perspective into mainstream nature writing

● Connects climate crisis, biodiversity loss and social inequality

● Speaks directly to conversations around access, inclusion and belonging

● Combines personal narrative with cultural and political insight

● Perfect for interviews, long reads, think pieces and broadcast discussion

At a time of rapid climate crisis and deepening social inequality, Handley’s work asks:

● Who is nature for?

● Who gets to belong within it?

● What does access really mean in a changing world?