Back Roads Through Middle England: From Dorset to the Humber along the Jurassic stone belt - Softcover

Bibby, Andrew

9780995560932: Back Roads Through Middle England: From Dorset to the Humber along the Jurassic stone belt

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0995560935 ISBN 13: 9780995560932

Verlag: Gritstone Publishing, 2017

Alle Exemplare der Ausgabe mit dieser ISBN anzeigen:

Cr�ticas:

If you asked your friends what route they'd recommend for an eight-day ride in the UK, pedalling the 430 miles from the Dorset coast to the Humber would probably not feature in their suggestions. That's one of the fascinating aspects of Andrew Bibby's journey to try to discover 'middle England'.

Following the line of the great belt of 'Cotswold' limestone through ten different counties, Bibby's challenge was not the distance travelled, but rather what he could learn along the way about the factors that shape the land.

Sometimes cycle travelogues can seem formulaic: the author went from here to there and this is what happened on the way. ln contrast, this book is an exploration of landscape, nature, rural life, social history, identity, and change. The bicycle is merely the conduit that permits Bibby to slowly take in and enjoy the countryside and its characters. Full of detail and well researched, it was, however, Bibby's hedgehog observation that struck a chord with me. He sees roadkill strewn over the back roads but not a single squashed hedgehog, leading to his conclusion that what we are told is true: hedgehogs are indeed a species in rapid decline.

--Duncan Dollimore Cycle Magazine

Another book about the specificities of place, the enduring marks of history and the response of communities to change. Writer Andrew Bibby was led by his fascination with the belt of Oolite limestone that runs from Dorset to Winteringham to cycle 430 miles over eight days following its course as closely as possible. Not simply a physical challenge for leisure, Bibby stops off along the way to learn about the factors and events that have shaped the landscapes and personalities of numerous towns and villages from Burton Bradstock, through Wellingborough and into Lincolnshire. In Lincolnshire, Bibby learns about the work of Community Rail Partnerships, the significance of agriculture to the economy with a visit to Branston potato suppliers as well as the vital conservation work of the stonemasons of Lincoln Cathedral. The search for Middle England is a familiar venture in publishing, with Stuart Maconie among others following their own routes hoping to gain a flavour of the individual lives lived in communities outside the major cities while creating a raft of writing clich�s along the way. Bibby s brief travelogue extends his interest beyond the geological towards social history, poetry, politics as well as local projects and business developments. As well as considerations of John Clare s poetry and Thomas Hobbes writings on the state of nature , there are updates on the prospective Fens Waterway Link. Bibby s curiosity to learn more about the less well known is clear and admirable, and his descriptions often perceptive. Still, such publications do prompt the thought that the people of Middle England might write about their own lives a little more often, rather than leaving it to others to have their say in passing. --Yusef Sayed s - Lincolnshire Life

Rese�a del editor:

Winner of the 2018 OWPG Outdoor Book of the Year Award

Andrew Bibby sets out to cycle from the English Channel to the Humber, following the great stone belt of 'Cotswold' limestone which has left its mark so powerfully on the countryside. This is a journey of discovery into a very special landscape, and the author draws on themes as varied as social history, literature, land usage, agriculture and rural life today to gain a deeper understanding of the factors that shape the land.

This wonderful book, with full colour photographs, celebrates the beauty of this area of England but also does very much more. Thoughtful, well-informed, sometimes provocative, Andrew Bibby goes beyond the superficial to reveal a Middle England which is considerably more complex than many might imagine.

��ber diesen Titel� kann sich auf eine andere Ausgabe dieses Titels beziehen.