{"id":21965,"date":"2022-12-14T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-12-13T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=21965"},"modified":"2022-12-15T09:56:58","modified_gmt":"2022-12-15T08:56:58","slug":"our-favourite-books-of-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/2022\/12\/14\/our-favourite-books-of-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"Our favourite books of 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n

Our favourite books of 2022<\/h2>\n\n

We pick some of the captivating countryside reads that we have enjoyed the most in the past year<\/p>\n\n

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THE SOUTH WEST COAST PATH<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

BY STEPHEN NEALE, CONWAY, \u00a320 (PB)<\/p>\n\n

Author Stephen Neale spent more than a year on the South West Coast Path researching this book. The fruits of his exploration are 1,000 mini adventures along Britain\u2019s favourite national trail. This number of anything is difficult to fit into just one book, let alone 1,000 adventures, but this well-designed guide \u2013 packed with inspiring images and illustrations, affordable places to eat, drink and stay, and exciting outdoor quests \u2013 seems to do it effortlessly.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

In his introduction, Neale lays down his three objectives for the book, one of which is \u201cto reset all your senses\u201d. This sensory theme encourages readers and walkers to not only see \u201cthe magic\u201d of the 630-mile coastal trail, but to hear, smell, touch and taste it, too, from swimming in a tidal pool at Talland to immersing yourself in a sunken forest at Pendower Beach. <\/p>\n\n

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THE FLOW: RIVERS, WATER AND WILDNESS<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

BY AMY-JANE BEER, BLOOMSBURY, \u00a318.99 (HB)<\/p>\n\n

\u201cA river is a tree,\u201d says Amy-Jane Beer, its myriad branches and roots defying any simple explanation of where it begins or ends.<\/p>\n\n

In The Flow, <\/em>she takes us on an exhilarating journey along and through Britain\u2019s waterways, from <\/p>\n\n

Daniel Graham, outdoors editor seething torrents to gin-clear chalk streams and springs. It\u2019s a hell of a ride: water is life, after all; it shapes us and the land, physically and culturally.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Opening with a kayaking tragedy, The <\/em>Flow <\/em>is gutsy and profound from the off, with exquisite evocations of place, dives into deep time, moments of humour and surging anger at what we\u2019ve done to our rivers.<\/p>\n\n

In a golden age for nature writing, this stunning book is one of the very best.
Ben Hoare, naturalist<\/em><\/p>\n\n

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DYLAN THOMAS\u2019S UNDER <\/strong>MILK WOOD: A RETELLING<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

BY CERYS MATTHEWS WEIDENFELD & NICOLSON, \u00a320 (HB)<\/p>\n\n

\u201cTo begin at the beginning\u2026\u201d In this glorious picture-book retelling, musician, broadcaster and author Cerys Matthews brings Dylan Thomas\u2019 much-loved 1954 radio play to a younger audience, preserving all the musicality and captivating beauty of the original. Thomas\u2019s lyrical words float across beautifully detailed and richly coloured illustrations by Kate Evans, welcoming you to the fictional Welsh seaside village of Llareggub. Meet the endearing cast of characters, from blind Captain Cat to fastidious Mrs Ogmore Pritchard and lazy Nogood Boyo.<\/p>\n\n

This book continues Cerys Matthews\u2019 life-long connection with Thomas\u2019 work; she has composed music for several of his poems, and her music version of A Child\u2019s Christmas in Wales <\/em>is being made into a musical in America. Created to be read aloud, this is a delightful book that will cultivate an enduring love of words.
Margaret Bartlett, production editor<\/em><\/p>\n\n

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IN SEARCH OF ONE <\/strong>LAST SONG<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

BY PATRICK GALBRAITH WILLIAM COLLINS, \u00a318.99 (HB)<\/p>\n\n

A real heartstring tugger this \u2013 and one that reflects my own feelings on wildlife loss. Galbraith undertakes quests to find answers as to why so many birds that were common just 20\u201330 years ago are disappearing from our farms, woods and hills. Coupled with that comes a need to set eyes on these birds \u2013 the lapwings, turtle doves, cuckoos and more that are not just an intrinsic part of our biodiversity but also our culture. Along the way, Galbraith ropes in gamekeepers, conservationists and others who love these birds.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Among the stories and smidgens of hope, is a personal, sometimes painful journey \u2013 our generation may be the last to hear some of these species in the UK.
Fergus Collins, editor<\/em><\/p>\n\n

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INTO THE RED<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

EDITED BY KIT JEWITT AND MIKE TOMS BRITISH TRUST FOR ORNITHOLOGY, \u00a325 (HB)<\/p>\n\n

To raise the profile of the 70 birds now on the UK Red List, this book features contributions from 140 artists and authors. With ecological experts (such as Richard Mabey and Isabella Tree) intermingling with enthusiastic ornithological amateurs, it reminds me of my local nature group.<\/p>\n\n

What unites the written contributions is the varied experience of bird-watching, bird-seeking or sometimes bird-missing-completely. \u201c\u2026here\u2019s to the boasters, the believers, the bad bird-watchers\u201d, in the words of comedian Alex Horne. That\u2019s not to downplay the inevitable anxiety about the birds\u2019 existential peril. Yet the rich and varied writing and sumptuous artwork ensures this book will grace any coffee table and delight all bird-lovers, whatever their age or expertise. <\/span>
Julie Brominicks, landscape writer<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n\n

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Illustration: Jo Wright<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We pick some of the captivating countryside reads that we have enjoyed the most in the past year<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":21957,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ub_ctt_via":"","purple_page_number":"96","purple_custom_meta_purple_page_number":"96","purple_seq_number":"1","purple_custom_meta_purple_seq_number":"1","purple_source_article":"article_96-1.xml","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_article":"article_96-1.xml","purple_source_issue":"January-2023","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_issue":"January-2023","purple_external_id":"January-2023-96-1","purple_custom_meta_purple_external_id":"January-2023-96-1","purple_issue_code":"|0000084064||","purple_custom_meta_purple_issue_code":"|0000084064||","purple_android_product":"com.im.countryfile.198","purple_custom_meta_purple_android_product":"com.im.countryfile.198","purple_ios_product":"com.im.countryfile.198","purple_custom_meta_purple_ios_product":"com.im.countryfile.198","purple_web_product":"","purple_custom_meta_purple_web_product":"","purple_publication_id":"91da22fd-9e7f-40d1-a93f-fc46e9516d91","purple_migrated":"","kt_blocks_editor_width":"","apple_news_api_created_at":"2022-12-14T13:36:47Z","apple_news_article-theme":"","apple_news_api_id":"1c042a88-72bf-4658-8e47-fa7a813100b3","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2022-12-15T08:57:05Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAw==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/AHAQqiHK_RliOR_p6gTEAsw","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":true,"apple_news_is_preview":true,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_article_theme":"","apple_news_sections":"[]"},"categories":[33],"tags":[14],"apple_news_notices":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2022\/12\/e0301ba4-38ca-4bc1-846e-154cce9e2385.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"4","apple_news_title":""},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2022\/12\/e0301ba4-38ca-4bc1-846e-154cce9e2385.jpg",1362,850,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2022\/12\/e0301ba4-38ca-4bc1-846e-154cce9e2385-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2022\/12\/e0301ba4-38ca-4bc1-846e-154cce9e2385-300x187.jpg",300,187,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2022\/12\/e0301ba4-38ca-4bc1-846e-154cce9e2385-768x479.jpg",768,479,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2022\/12\/e0301ba4-38ca-4bc1-846e-154cce9e2385-1024x639.jpg",800,499,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2022\/12\/e0301ba4-38ca-4bc1-846e-154cce9e2385.jpg",1362,850,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2022\/12\/e0301ba4-38ca-4bc1-846e-154cce9e2385.jpg",1362,850,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"We pick some of the captivating countryside reads that we have enjoyed the most in the past year","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21965"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21965"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21965\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22069,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21965\/revisions\/22069"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21957"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21965"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21965"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21965"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}