# Ewan Clarkson

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{{Short description|English author}}
{{Distinguish|text=the Palaeontologist, [Euan Clarkson](/source/Euan_Clarkson)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2016}}
'''Ewan Clarkson''' (23 January 1929 – 19 April 2010) was an English author specialising in books about nature, particularly wild animals.

==Life and career==

Clarkson was born in [Workington](/source/Workington) on 23 January 1929.<ref name=wwa>''International Who's Who of Authors and Writers 2004'', Routledge, 2003, p.105. {{ISBN|978-1-85743-179-7}}</ref><ref name=lewis>Lewis, N. (1978) "Ewan Clarkson" in ''Twentieth Century Children's Writers'', Macmillan, pp. 270-1</ref> He was educated at [Altrincham](/source/Altrincham) Grammar School and served in the [Royal Army Medical Corps](/source/Royal_Army_Medical_Corps) between 1947 and 1949.<ref name=lewis/>

Clarkson, who before becoming a full-time writer worked as a [veterinary surgeon](/source/veterinary_surgeon), was later to state that "for twenty-five years I laboured under the illusion that I was a scientist. I worked as a laboratory assistant after school to study for my [Bachelor of Science](/source/Bachelor_of_Science). Then I was a veterinarian for the [People's Dispensary for Sick Animals](/source/People's_Dispensary_for_Sick_Animals). When I realised that I became too emotionally involved with my charges [...] I rebelled against the objective, unemotional approach of the scientist and went to [Devon](/source/Devon) where I could write".<ref name=commire37>Commire, A. ''Something about the author'', v.9, Gale Research, 1976, 37</ref> Before the publication of his first book he also worked as a beach photographer, rabbit farmer, and as a lorry driver for the Ministry of Defence at Denbury Camp, Newton Abbot.<ref name=lewis/>
 
His first book was ''Break for Freedom'', also published in the United States as ''Syla, the Mink'' (1968), telling the story of a mink escaping from a [fur farm](/source/fur_farm) in Devon, and showing the influence of [Henry Williamson](/source/Henry_Williamson)'s stories about Devon wildlife. Clarkson gave a particular focus to the impact of man's activities on nature, a theme he developed in subsequent works, following ''Break for Freedom'' with ''Halic, the Story of a Grey Seal'' in 1970, and a number of other novels and non-fiction wildlife books. He was an early critic of the use of [pesticides](/source/pesticides) and several of his works explore the negative effects on the environment of [intensive farming](/source/intensive_farming) methods.<ref name=lewis/>

Clarkson's books often appeared on both adults' and children's lists, and he stated that education was one of the main purposes of his writing.<ref name=lewis/> Clarkson also wrote several books on animals aimed specifically at younger children, as well as many magazine articles about [angling](/source/angling): an accomplished fisherman, he was regarded as a pioneer of saltwater [fly fishing](/source/fly_fishing) techniques.

Clarkson, who lived in [Newton Abbot](/source/Newton_Abbot), died on 19 April 2010.<ref name=utfa>[http://www.upper-teign-fishing.org.uk/ufta_news.htm Ewan Clarkson 1929-2010] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110918053941/http://www.upper-teign-fishing.org.uk/ufta_news.htm |date=18 September 2011 }}, Upper Teign Fishing Association</ref>

==Personal life==

Clarkson married in 1951 and had two children.<ref name=lewis/>

==Selected bibliography==
* Break for Freedom (1968) (U.S.A. Title: Syla, the Mink)
* Halic: The Story of a Gray Seal (1970)
* The Running of the Deer (1972)
* In The Shadow Of The Falcon (1973)
* Wolf Country: A Wilderness Pilgrimage (1975)
* The Badgers of Summercombe (1977)
* Many-forked Branch (1980)
* The Wake of the Storm (1983)
* Ice Trek (1986)
* King of the Wild (1990)
* The Flight of the Osprey (1996)

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Portal |Children's literature}}

{{Authority control}}

==External links==
*[https://player.bfi.org.uk/free/film/watch-chudleigh-conservationist-1971-online Chudleigh Conservationist], a 1971 film featuring Clarkson, at the [British Film Institute](/source/British_Film_Institute)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarkson, Ewan}}
Category:English children's writers
Category:British nature writers
Category:1929 births
Category:2010 deaths
Category:Alumni of the University of Exeter
Category:English male novelists
Category:20th-century English novelists
Category:20th-century English male writers
Category:People educated at Altrincham Grammar School for Boys
Category:People from Workington
Category:Military personnel from Cumbria
Category:Royal Army Medical Corps soldiers
Category:20th-century British Army personnel

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Ewan Clarkson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ewan_Clarkson) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ewan_Clarkson?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.