A BUDDING author is to host two events next week to launch her first book. 

Ruby Free will launch her book Rathlin: A Wild Life at the Folde bookshop in Shaftesbury on Saturday, October 11 and at Westbourne Bookshop in Poole Road on Wednesday, October 16 from 7pm. 

The 21-year-old got her dream job on an RSPB reserve in 2021, but she said it “wasn’t for the faint hearted”. 

The Poole-born author and campaigner had to move to “one of the wildest and most diverse” corners of the UK, Rathlin Island, off the County Antrim coast. 

Living on the island changed her perception on life thanks to the sheer amount of nature there – the basis of her book. 

From swimming with seals and late-night trips to hear the call of the corncrake, to spotting dolphins from her front door and getting to know some very special seabirds, Ruby tells the story of her time on the island. 

She describes the book as a “love letter to the island and the wildlife” but said it serves as a call to action, “a reminder of everything we stand to lose if we don’t change”. 

Rathlin: A Wild Life is available from book shops including Waterstones and Amazon.

Ruby Free is an award-winning campaigner, writer and conservation biologist from Poole. 

Passionate about saving nature and reconnecting people to it, she’s worked and volunteered in the environmental conservation sector since she was 16. 

She’s also been named one of the 100 most influential Environmental Professionals in the UK on the ENDS Power List.