In autumn, leave fallen fruit on the ground: painted ladies and red admirals love feeding on the fermenting juices

RSPB

Persuading butterflies to choose your garden is relatively simple: provide plants that produce the nectar on which the adults will feed Armistice Day: A Collection of Remembrance - Spark Interest and Educate Children about Historical MomentsThat’s in sharp contrast to other groups of flying insects, such as moths and damselflies, of which several species have successfully colonised in Britain. Surely it is only a matter of time before those new butterflies join them. The story hinges around the inheritance but also about wrongs that were done and sacrifices made to right those wrongs to atone for mistakes made generations before the present Nina was born. You can feel the force of those generations reaching out across time which makes this a compelling read.

The Butterfly Summer: Dark family secrets hide in the shadows

To begin with The Butterfly Summer was exciting and refreshing, the cryptic storyline pulling you in and not letting go. However from the midway point it began to considerably slow down and become rather dull, stale. Nina is such an interesting character that, by contrast, the snippets (rather extensive ones) about Teddy’s past were difficult to plow through. The plot is much alike a minestrone (rather than a gourmet dish), only, one cooked with whatever was left in the fridge. Unplanned, or made up along the way in a rush, by throwing in a pot ingredients, attempting to create its flavour. It never pays off.Grasslands are an incredibly valuable habitat for many of the UK’s moths and butterflies. Semi-natural grassland, pasture, arable land, urban parkland and any areas with rough unmanaged grass will all support a variety of butterfly species. In the height of summer these areas can be teeming with Skippers, Common Blues, Ringlets and Meadow Browns. Be sure to inspect any flowering plants (particularly thistles and knapweeds) as these can act as vital nectaring points for many butterflies. Pay close attention for the fast and subtle movements of smaller species as these can often disappear against such a busy environment. A prime example of this is the Small Copper which is notoriously hard to spot due to its minute size, fast flight and discrete colouration (when its wings are closed). LOOK OUT FOR: I liked that there were a lot of unforeseen moments and twists in the story. It was interesting to get to know all these different generations of Parr women and I really liked the inheritance fact of the story. So, to sum up, some of Britain’s butterflies are enjoying the benefits of hotter-than-average summers – at least in the short term – while, as with all our wild creatures, they face an uncertain future in a rapidly changing world.

The Butterfly Summer by Harriet Evans | Goodreads

Like the sun glinting on a butterfly's wing, there's both light and darkness in Anne-Marie Conway's outstanding novel...[ Butterfly Summer] gets to the heart of childhood dilemmas whilst unravelling mysteries from the past. A terrific read for youngsters aged nine and over' - Lancashire Evening Post This gentle but gripping book is a tale of friendship and the paranormal and is perfect for fans of Cathy Cassidy and Karen McCombie' - Booktrust have been a fan of Harriet Evans books right since the beginning and especially enjoyed last year’s release A Place for Us and its follow up short story A Winterfold Christmas. Now Harriet takes on a new journey to a special, mysterious place which holds numerous secrets that have been passed down from generation to generation. This unique house Keepsake and its grounds are very difficult to find as the house prefers to remain hidden from the public allowing its residents both human and flora and fauna to flourish unnoticed by the outside world. But now the time is coming when Keepsake must reveal itself to someone who had no idea of its existence or the significance of the news she is about to hear. Nina Parr is about to discover a story/family legacy that has affected the women of the Parr household for hundreds of years and now she must be the one to put history to bed firmly for once and all or either embrace what so many struggled to cope with long before Nina was born. Make a Baby Bumble Bee and then use it to work on motor skills with these fun activities and song from The Inspired Tree House Team Whilst the summer is all about having fun, there is part of me that wants the kids to do a little learning as well and these Bug and Butterfly themed Learning and Sensory Activities are great with kids.We would also expect that, as average spring and summer temperatures continue to rise, new butterfly species will cross the Channel, adding to our paltry total of fewer than 60 species (compared with almost 500 in Europe as a whole). Two books within one. For the main part The Butterfly Summer is the contemporary story of Nina Parr and Keepsake, the magical home that is her birthright. Interspersed with her story is that of her grandmother, Theodora aka Teddy. One thing to commend the author on – although others may disagree – is the limit she put on romantic affairs. For me there was just the right amount of reference to these relationships to provoke the feeling of heartbrokenness yet not to detract from the main storyline.

Butterfly Summer | BookTrust

In the UK there are currently 57 resident species of butterfly and two regular migrants. Of these, it is estimated that 76% have declined in abundance, occurrence or both over the past 40 years. Almost all of these losses can be attributed to man-made changes such as habitat destruction and pollution, along with larger patterns of weather and climate change. I loved as well the lighter element of it showing the beauty of small town, countryside life, like how sweet and lovely the close-knit community was. It was my ideal community to be honest. It was also interesting the way it explored other aspects that were more a secondary aspect of the story like coming of age romance, developing feelings, as part of puberty and growing up in a way. There were so many disturbing things that happened in the Parr history. I don’t understand how Keepsake affected the Parr women or what some of them did there. I especially don’t understand why they would willingly do that to themselves.. Harriet Evans then takes us through several generations of the Parr family and expertly intertwines these characters together even though all the female members of the family were quite different their stories were authentic and characters believable. After meeting the present day Nina we are introduced to her ancestor Lady Nina who has a daughter Charlotte the product of a union between Nina and King Charles II when he was sheltering from the Roundheads he hid at Keepsake. He was enchanted with the butterfly garden that Nina had cultivated. When he hears he has a daughter he sends Nina a diamond brooch shaped like a butterfly which Charlotte wears and gives to her own daughter before she dies. The King also decrees that Keepsake be given to his daughter Charlotte and every daughter born there. On the broach is inscribed 'What's loved is never lost'. He also notes that the recent mass appearance of painted ladies – recalling the extraordinary summer of 2009, when tens of millions of these butterflies could be seen throughout the UK – has absolutely nothing to do with the weather here in Britain. Instead, it indicates that conditions were favourable on the fringes of the Sahara in Morocco, where these butterflies came from.

Explainers

Provides comprehensive coverage of all our resident and migratory butterflies, including the latest information on newly discovered species such as the Cryptic Wood White and the Geranium Bronze. The definitive book on the subject, it includes fully updated distribution maps. Essentially a story about a dysfunctional family and secrets and obligations that pass from female generation to generation binding them all together for an eternity. It starts at the end really where the present day Nina meets an old woman in the London Library where she has been given life membership by her father before he went away when she was a child and who she never sees again believing him to be dead. This chance meeting (or perhaps it wasn't chance) starts her on a journey of discovery about her life, lineage and inheritance of Keepsake and the butterflies. Any of these Garden Party Foods from Eats Amazing would work – I’m going to be trying the dough ball caterpillars This book tells the story of Nina Parr and especially the young woman discovering part of her family she has never known. What happened in the past and why is it all connected to Keepsake a mysterious house in Cornwall?! UT all starts when Nina meets a woman she doesn’t know in the library. That woman knows her and she wants Nina to discover her family’s legacy. Nina never knew her dad George Parr, who died on a jungle expedition. In addition to that she is divorced already, married at 19 and is now still friends with Sebastian.