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Bestselling author Christopher Winn takes us on a captivating journey out of London along the banks of the River Thames to discover the secrets and stories of England's most famous waterway. Discover the Thames's literary heritage at Pangbourne, near Reading, famous as the home of The Wind in the Willows's Kenneth Grahame, then explore Mapledurham House, the inspiration for its famous Toad Hall. Explore Henley-on-Thames, where the first Oxford and Cambridge boat races were held, then marvel at Southend Pier, the longest pleasure pier in the world. As he follows the river from source to sea, visiting its towns, villages and places of interest, Winn unearths a fascinating array of facts, folklore, landmarks and legends that are guaranteed to have you exclaiming 'I Never Knew That!'. Illustrated with line drawings this charming gem of a book is guaranteed to inform and delight in equal measure.
Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Steven G. Smith showcases the picturesque Thames River basin, which extends from southern Massachusetts through Connecticut to the Long Island Sound. The river and its watershed help define the borders of a valley that is unique among its East Coast neighbors, considered to be the last place where dark night sky can be viewed between Washington, D.C. and the Boston metro area. Locals like to call the area the "Quiet Corner" or the "Last Green Valley." In 1994, the U.S. Congress designated parts of the area as a Natural Heritage Corridor because it is one of the last remaining stretches of green in the area and boasts some of the largest unbroken forests in southern New England. This full-color documentary photo essay explores this Atlantic gem, through the faces of the people and the landscapes. An excellent gift and an educational resource, the book includes a foreword by noted outdoor writer Steve Grant.
"Baby Rocket" is the story of an abandoned, adopted child, who, as an adult, must heal the traumatic ruptures of suicide and abuse in her past by becoming a detective of her own life.
A charming account of an artist-naturalist adrift in a home-made punt on the eve of the Second World War.
For 10,000 years the River Thames meandered from source to sea, periodically throwing up mudbanks or carving parallel channels on the bends and creating islands along much of its length. There are around 180 islands altogether, some accessible by footbridge, some by road and others, like Pharaoh's Island and Garrick's Ait, only by boat. Thirty are inhabited by small settlements, single houses or houseboats, all highly sought-after locations today. Many are important nature reserves; others directly connected to major historical events or famous personalities. Oliver's Eyot was a refuge for Oliver Cromwell during the English Civil War, whilst Lot's Ait was the unlikely setting for Humphrey Bogart's 1951 film The African Queen, and the legendry Eel Pie Island played a key role in the development of British popular music. These islands, known as Eyots or Aits, form the skeletal backbone of the Thames. In this fascinating and detailed book, Miranda Vickers considers their history and role in helping us understand how the river evolved.
A completely new Trail Guide dedicated to the London section of the Thames Path from Hampton Court to the Thames Barrier. Until now, Aurum’s popular one-volume Thames Path guide has had all too little room to cover the endlessly rich array of sights and history along its London section – something to look at literally every yard of the way. Now, Aurum publishes a completely new walker’s guide just to the London Thames, laid out to its new full-colour Trail Guide design, and including the extension to Crayford . Here is all the history along the river from the Mesolithic Period timber piles near Vauxhall Bridge to the new Shard skyscraper shooting skywards at London Bridge. It covers all the folklore from the famous frost fairs to the much-lamented beach near Tower Bridge, not forgetting the poignant recent visit of a large whale to the centre of London. The Thames winds all the way through London’s history and culture, from Henry VIII’s Hampton Court to the chequered fate of the Dome/O2: the London resident as much as the visiting tourist will find in this guide something new every step of the way.
London is one of the world’s most popular destinations and visitors contribute approximately £14.9 billion of expenditure to the city every year. Its tourism and events sectors are growing and over the last few years London has received more visitors than ever before. However, detailed accounts of the city’s visitor economy are conspicuously absent. This book analyses how the capital is developing as a destination through the expansion of tourism and events into new urban spaces. The book outlines how parts of London not previously regarded as tourist territory are now subject to the visitor gaze with tourism spreading beyond established central zones into peripheral, suburban and resid...
The River Thames above London underwent a dramatic transformation during the Victorian period, from a great commercial highway into a vast conduit of pleasure. Pleasure Boating on the Thames traces these changes through the history of the firm that did more than any other on the waterway to popularise recreational boating. Salter Bros began as a small boat-building enterprise in Oxford and went on to gain worldwide fame, not only as the leading racing boat constructor, but also as one of the largest rental craft and passenger boat operators in the country. Simon Wenham's illustrated history sheds light on over 150 years of social change, how leisure developed on the waterway (including the rise of camping), as well as how a family firm coped with the changes brought about by industrialisation – a business that, today, still carries thousands of passengers a year.
Book 1 in the Rivers of London series, from Sunday Times Number One bestselling author Ben Aaronovitch. My name is Peter Grant, and I used to be a probationary constable in that mighty army for justice known to all right-thinking people as the Metropolitan Police Service, and to everyone else as the Filth. My story really begins when I tried to take a witness statement from a man who was already dead... Probationary Constable Peter Grant dreams of being a detective in London's Metropolitan Police. After taking a statement from an eyewitness who happens to be a ghost, Peter comes to the attention of Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale, who investigates crimes involving magic and othe...
Authors, artists and amblers have always felt the pull of the Thames, and now Tom Chesshyre is following in their footsteps. He’s walking more than 200 miles from the Cotswolds to the North Sea. Seeing some familiar sights through new eyes, Chesshyre explores the living present and remarkable past of England’s longest and most iconic river.