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Review
An excellent survey ... Somerville belongs to the fine tradition of British nature writers that [is] at once informative and poetic (Colin Tudge Financial Times )
A wonderful tome for anyone seeking wilderness on their doorstep (Country Walking )
Brilliant and heartfelt ... magnificent ... an extraordinary work which looks set to reconfigure our relationship with the great outdoors (Sunday Telegraph )
A true compendium of the wild coast and countryside ... you are left with the impression that here is a writer with whom you would like to spend time (Country Life )
Utterly charming ... a wonderful book and elegant reference guide (Irish Times )
A wonderful tome for anyone seeking wilderness on their doorstep (Country Walking )
Brilliant and heartfelt ... magnificent ... an extraordinary work which looks set to reconfigure our relationship with the great outdoors (Sunday Telegraph )
A true compendium of the wild coast and countryside ... you are left with the impression that here is a writer with whom you would like to spend time (Country Life )
Utterly charming ... a wonderful book and elegant reference guide (Irish Times )
Sunday Telegraph
`Christopher Somerville's magnificent gazetteer to Britain and Ireland's wild places could not be more timely'
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
35 of 35 people found the following review helpful
Beautifully produced and written - a completely new take on our most secret and eccentric places
5 July 2008
Format:Hardcover
If you love a wild or strange place then you should know about Christopher Somerville's new labour of love: a lyrical gazetteer to over 500 hidden and forgotten corners of the British Isles, each one a desolate, magical or inspirational place.
Christopher is one of Britain's most prolific travel writers. This guide and travelogue represents a synthesis of his life's adventures and treasured finds, whether the pagan May day eve chorus of Obby Osses in Padstow, the lost jungled underworld of the coastal undercliff in Dorset or the magical waterfall plunge pool of Cautley Spout in the Yorkshire Dales. Each is written with passion, history and anecdote and supported with grid references and directions.
There are also moody satin photos, wonderful line art icons (to help identify e.g. a water place, a myth, an urban setting etc) and 13 very detailed old world maps of our British and Irish regions.
A charming, poetic yet practical reference for any dreamer, tramper or naturalist.
Christopher is one of Britain's most prolific travel writers. This guide and travelogue represents a synthesis of his life's adventures and treasured finds, whether the pagan May day eve chorus of Obby Osses in Padstow, the lost jungled underworld of the coastal undercliff in Dorset or the magical waterfall plunge pool of Cautley Spout in the Yorkshire Dales. Each is written with passion, history and anecdote and supported with grid references and directions.
There are also moody satin photos, wonderful line art icons (to help identify e.g. a water place, a myth, an urban setting etc) and 13 very detailed old world maps of our British and Irish regions.
A charming, poetic yet practical reference for any dreamer, tramper or naturalist.
32 of 32 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
As soon as I saw this book, I knew that it would appeal to me. At present there are a great number of similarly themed books, all encouraging the reader to relinquish their place from the sofa and instead to get out into the countryside and experience the places within the pages for themselves. BRITAIN AND IRELAND'S BEST WILD PLACES is perhaps one of the best ways of beginning to do exactly that.
The book is organised into regions, beginning with The West Country, moving upwards throughout Britain before fianlly moving across to Ireland.
Each wild place has details of mapping and travel instructions, plus other useful information. For example, in the Republic of Ireland Somerville details the Nephin Beg mountains. Stating that the walk is a long one - 23 miles - he advises that you should not consider doing the walk solo unless very well experienced. And of course, that you should have all of the proper equipment if you do go on it. At the beginning of each section there is also a lovely old style map of the area, illustrating at a glance where each place is located.
For me, the success and delight of this book is the lay-out. You could easily give it as a gift to someone. Many of the wild places have an accompanying colour picture to tempt you, showing just enough of their allure to wet your appetite. But it is also the way that Somerville writes about the places which captures your imagination. The entry for Woodchester Mansion, for example, brilliantly manages to create the sense of the gothic that Somerville describes. Likewise, his entry for the "Bronte moors" shows how such a desolate and wild place could help to mold the literary imaginations of three young women.
This book is an absolute delight. I am so glad I purchased it. Not only because I love walking and the countryside, but also because I love things which can play on my mind and maybe even ignite a creative flame within. This is a book I shall continually dip into whether at home or going away on holiday - as a way to find those unknown places, this is a must.
The book is organised into regions, beginning with The West Country, moving upwards throughout Britain before fianlly moving across to Ireland.
Each wild place has details of mapping and travel instructions, plus other useful information. For example, in the Republic of Ireland Somerville details the Nephin Beg mountains. Stating that the walk is a long one - 23 miles - he advises that you should not consider doing the walk solo unless very well experienced. And of course, that you should have all of the proper equipment if you do go on it. At the beginning of each section there is also a lovely old style map of the area, illustrating at a glance where each place is located.
For me, the success and delight of this book is the lay-out. You could easily give it as a gift to someone. Many of the wild places have an accompanying colour picture to tempt you, showing just enough of their allure to wet your appetite. But it is also the way that Somerville writes about the places which captures your imagination. The entry for Woodchester Mansion, for example, brilliantly manages to create the sense of the gothic that Somerville describes. Likewise, his entry for the "Bronte moors" shows how such a desolate and wild place could help to mold the literary imaginations of three young women.
This book is an absolute delight. I am so glad I purchased it. Not only because I love walking and the countryside, but also because I love things which can play on my mind and maybe even ignite a creative flame within. This is a book I shall continually dip into whether at home or going away on holiday - as a way to find those unknown places, this is a must.
17 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
A culmination of many years of travelling the country, this is a fantastic collection of nooks, crannies and odd corners that have largely gone overlooked by the rest of us as we rush about our daily lives. A visit to any of these places would be time very well spent, but just curling up in a corner with it is a fine form of escape too if circumstances don't allow you to get away.
A perfect partner to 'Places to Hide' by Dixe Wills which similarly takes readers to the most unlikely of places and makes them laugh at the same time, which is quite a feat.
Anyway, I've no hesitation in awarding Somerville five stars for a great idea well executed.
A perfect partner to 'Places to Hide' by Dixe Wills which similarly takes readers to the most unlikely of places and makes them laugh at the same time, which is quite a feat.
Anyway, I've no hesitation in awarding Somerville five stars for a great idea well executed.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Great layout and detail - some surprising omissions...
Like other reviewers here, I share the opinion that the strength of this book lies in its' accessibility. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Simon Oakley
Wild and beautiful
This is a wild and beautiful book. The result of many years of tramping around Britain and Ireland - clearly a work of passion by the author. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Mascalzone
Excellent purchase: recipient delighted
Purchased for my wife who is building up quite a collection of similar books regarding Britain, its history and folklore, this is an ideal companion for her holiday-planning.
Published 9 months ago by EMarkM
Sublime
There are many of these types of compendiums that fall flat or are just jumping on a bandwagon. Christopher Somerville has produced a real labour of love, obviously searching out... Read more
Published on 7 May 2009 by Stephen J. Mason
A great starting point for adventures
Christopher Somerville's book is clearly a work of love for him and its personalised and poetic accounts of some of Britain and Ireland's wild places is immediately... Read more
Published on 16 Oct 2008 by Athnamulloch
Beautiful
Christopher's latest is a beautiful book to paw over and dip in and out of. The pictures are evocative and inspiring, and the text just takes you there. Read more
Published on 6 Sep 2008 by A. Waters
a great travelling companion
A lovely book - you feel compelled to read about places you have been to and driven to explore pastures new. Read more
Published on 20 July 2008 by M. Leaver
Best Wild Places- a splendid encyclopaedia of inspirational walks
This is a beautifully produced book which is not only clear and well- structured but informative and inspirational. Read more
Published on 19 July 2008 by Mrs. E. Green
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