Hermit: A memoir of finding freedom in a wild place

‘Anyone who says you can’t run away from your problems clearly hasn’t run fair enough’

When Jade’s partner leaves the barn that they moved into just weeks before, he leaves a dent in the wall and her life unravelled. Numbed from years in the destructive relationship, she faces an uncertain future and complete solitude. Slowly, with help of Devon’s salted cliffs and damp forested footpaths, Jade comes back to life and discovers the power of being alone.

Through conversations with other hermits across the world, Fitton sheds light on an extraordinary and misunderstood way of living which has survived into the 21st century - from monks, to hikkimori, and the often ignored female hermit.

Lyrically written, this is an inspirational story of recovery, of finding home and of celebration of solitude in the natural world.