Simon Barnes Popular Books

Simon Barnes Biography & Facts

Simon Barnes is an English journalist. He was Chief Sports Writer of The Times until 2014, and wrote a wildlife opinion column in the Saturday edition of the same newspaper. He has written three novels. The son of Edward Barnes, a co-creator of the BBC children's TV programme Blue Peter, Barnes was educated at Emanuel School, and studied English literature at the University of Bristol, which awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2007. After beginning his journalism career on local newspapers in Britain, he travelled to Hong Kong, where he wrote for travel magazines and, briefly, the South China Morning Post. After his return to Britain, he became a sports writer for The Times, being promoted in time to the position of Chief Sports Writer. He is the author of 16 books including three novels. His latest book, Birdwatching With your Eyes Closed: An Introduction to Birdsong, was published in 2011. Barnes has appeared in a number of programmes on BBC Radio 2, including a reading of his book How to Be a Bad Birdwatcher. Barnes lives in Norfolk. He was on The Times team at the 2012 London Olympics, the seventh summer Games that he has covered for the newspaper. In March 2009 he was runner-up in the Sports Journalists' Association's 'Sports Columnist of the Year' award, an award he won in 2008. In June 2014 Barnes was sacked by The Times after 32 years' employment, the newspaper having informed him it could no longer afford to pay his salary. Speculation in some sections of the UK media was that the real reason may have been Barnes's outspoken views expressed in his wildlife opinion column. The column blamed illegal activity by red grouse shooting interests for the continued persecution and near extinction of the hen harrier in England. Writing in his new website and blog which he began after leaving The Times in 2014, Barnes wrote: "Certainly I have annoyed some powerful people." Bibliography with Nik Wheeler (1981). China in focus. Hong Kong: CFW Guidebooks. pp. 63p. : chiefly col ill. ISBN 962-7031-12-7. Phil Edmonds: a singular man. London: Kingswood. 1986. pp. xi, 179p, [8]p of plates : ill., ports., 24cm. ISBN 0-434-98092-7. Eamonn McCabe, photographer. London: Kingswood. 1988. pp. xxii, 88 p. : ill., ports., 29 cm. ISBN 0-434-98147-8. Horsesweat and tears a year in John Dunlop's racing stable. London: Heinemann Kingswood. 1988. pp. xii, 228p, 8p. of plates, 24cm. ISBN 0-434-98152-4. A la recherche du cricket perdu. London: Macmillan London. 1989. pp. v, 137p : ill, 21cm. ISBN 0-333-48722-2., winner of The Cricket Society/MCC Book of the Year A Sportswriter's Year. London: Heinemann London. 1989. pp. v, 224p : ill, 25cm. ISBN 0-434-98180-X. Flying in the face of nature a year in Minsmere Bird Reserve. London: Pelham. 1992. pp. xi, 227p, 25cm. ISBN 0-7207-2005-2. with Peter Jackson (1994). Tiger!. London: Boxtree in association with Tigress Productions and Meridian Broadcasting. pp. 160p, 29cm. ISBN 1-85283-931-7. Rogue Lion Safaris. London: HarperCollins, London. 1997. pp. 320 p. : col. ill.., 33cm. ISBN 0-00-649849-3. Hong Kong Belongers. London: HarperCollins, London. 1999. pp. 320 p., 33cm. ISBN 0-00-651195-3. with Alan Marks (2000). Planet Zoo: One Hundred Animals We Can't Afford to Lose. London: Orion Children's. pp. 264 p. : col. ill.., 28 cm. ISBN 1-85881-488-X. Miss Chance. London: HarperCollins, London. 2000. pp. 288 p., 27 cm. ISBN 0-00-651196-1. How to be a bad birdwatcher: To the greater glory of life. London: Short. 2004. pp. 198 p. : ill., 21 cm. ISBN 1-904095-95-X. A bad birdwatcher's companion --or a personal introduction to Britain's 50 most obvious birds. London: Short. 2005. pp. 281 p. : ill., 21 cm. ISBN 1-904977-37-5. The meaning of sport. London: Short. 2007. pp. 365 p., 20 cm. ISBN 978-1-904977-85-8. with Joseph Barnes (2008). How to be wild. London: Short. pp. 1 v. : ill., 20 cm. ISBN 978-1-906021-48-1. The Horsey Life. London: Short. 2008. pp. 288 : ill., 25 cm. ISBN 978-1-906021-42-9. Birdwatching With your Eyes Closed: An Introduction to Birdsong. London: Short. 2011. p. 288. ISBN 978-1-907595-47-9. Ten Million Aliens. London: Short. 2014. pp. 480 p. ISBN 978-1780721422. Rewild Yourself: 23 Spellbinding Ways to Make Nature More Visible. London: Simon and Schuster UK. 2018. p. 208. ISBN 978-1471175404. On the Marsh: A Year Surrounded by Wildness and Wet. Simon & Schuster UK. 2019. ISBN 978-1-4711-6849-9. References External links Official website Bristol University profile. Discover the Simon Barnes popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Simon Barnes books.

Best Seller Simon Barnes Books of 2024

  • Handy Cooking Tips synopsis, comments

    Handy Cooking Tips

    Simon Barnes

    This book was created with several goals in mind. We wanted to create an information book that was easy and fun to use, contained useful information that you can keep referring bac...

  • History of the World in 100 Animals synopsis, comments

    History of the World in 100 Animals

    Simon Barnes

    'So, so good! ... More gems than a pirate's chest ... science, art, history, culture it's epic and mammoth, a repository of all our truths through their lives' Chris PackhamA...

  • A Local Habitation synopsis, comments

    A Local Habitation

    Richard Hoggart

    Richard Hoggart's book, The Uses of Literary, established his reputation as a uniquely sensitive and observant chronicler of English workingclass life. In this vivid first volume o...

  • Nature Therapy synopsis, comments

    Nature Therapy

    Rémy Dambron

    Discover the healing power of nature with this beautiful book, which will help you reconnect with the natural world to nurture your wellbeingNature therapy is the practice of recon...

  • 101 Tips and Techniques for Cooking Like a Chef synopsis, comments

    101 Tips and Techniques for Cooking Like a Chef

    Simon Barnes

    As the name suggests, this book contains 101 Tips, Techniques, Pointers to help you create dishes nicer and easier. General areas covered: General Cooking Tips Sauces and Seasoning...

  • The History of the World in 100 Plants synopsis, comments

    The History of the World in 100 Plants

    Simon Barnes

    From the author of The History of the World in 100 Animals, a BBC Radio Four Book of the Week, comes an inspirational new book that looks at the 100 plants that have had the greate...

  • Andrew Carnegie synopsis, comments

    Andrew Carnegie

    Dr James Mackay

    Andrew Carnegie (1835–1922) was a mass of contradictions: a radical Chartist who became a rabid capitalist, an idealist who was also a profound cynic, a committed pacifist who also...

  • Rewild Yourself synopsis, comments

    Rewild Yourself

    Simon Barnes

    We're not just losing the wild world. We're forgetting it. We're no longer noticing it. We've lost the habit of looking and seeing and listening and hearing.But we can make hidden ...

  • Be More Human synopsis, comments

    Be More Human

    Tony Riddle

    'Tony Riddle's mission is to present ways of living that are more in sync with our human biology, to help us thrive in this modern world' Dr Rangan Chatterjee'This book is brillian...

  • Selected Essays synopsis, comments

    Selected Essays

    Samuel Johnson

    This volume contains a generous selection from the essays Johnson published twice weekly as 'The Rambler' in the early 1750s. It was here that he first created the literary charact...

  • Twelve Nights synopsis, comments

    Twelve Nights

    Urs Faes & Jamie Lee Searle

    Discover this beautiful winter gem of a novella that makes the perfect stocking filler this Christmas.'I may have been gone a long time, but I'm no stranger...' Manfred walks alone...

  • Saga Land synopsis, comments

    Saga Land

    Richard Fidler & Kári Gíslason

    'I adored this book a wondrous compendium of Iceland's best sagas' Hannah KentA new friendship. An unforgettable journey. A beautiful and bloody history.This is Iceland as you've...

  • Waiting for the Albino Dunnock synopsis, comments

    Waiting for the Albino Dunnock

    Rosamond Richardson

    'A beautiful book' Tim Birkhead, author of Bird Sense'The prose is sublime, and so is the intelligence behind it' Bel Mooney, Daily MailThe extraordinary world of birds has the pow...

  • Ghost on the Wall synopsis, comments

    Ghost on the Wall

    Derek Dohren

    Ghost on the Wall is the official biography of one of Liverpool Football Club's greatest ever servants: Roy Evans. Born in Bootle in 1948, Evans attracted the attention of many Fir...

  • Literature and Evil synopsis, comments

    Literature and Evil

    Georges Bataille & Alastair Hamilton

    'Literature is not innocent,' stated Georges Bataille in this extraordinary 1957 collection of essays, arguing that only by acknowledging its complicity with the knowledge of evil ...

  • Selected Journalism 1850-1870 synopsis, comments

    Selected Journalism 1850-1870

    Charles Dickens & David Pascoe

    Throughout his writing career Charles Dickens was a hugely prolific journalist. This volume of his later work is selected from pieces that he wrote after he founded the journal Hou...

  • The Meaning of Birds synopsis, comments

    The Meaning of Birds

    Simon Barnes

    One of our most eloquent nature writers offers a passionate and informative celebration of birds and their ability to help us understand the world we live in. As well as exploring ...