7/12/24. The Cottage Book. An Undiscovered Country Diary by an Edwardian Statesman. The great Edwardian statesman Sir Edward Grey was a passionate naturalist, and co-founder of the RSPB. Between 1895 and 1905 he made detailed nature notes at his cottage by a trout stream in Hampshire. The text of his 'cottage book' forms the basis for this beautiful book, alongside dozens of specially commissioned watercolours, contemporary photographs and woodcuts, and maps. The rest is a volume that all nature-lovers will treasure.