Book data

The Call of the Wild
Roly Smith  
14 November 2005
UK price £12.50
128pp, 156 x 215mm, 380g
978-1-898481-49-2

The Call of the Wild

A celebration of British landscapes

£12.50

Roly Smith

Out of stock

"A beautifully produced anthology of some of Britain's wildest landscapes" - Les Maple, LDWA

Where in the crowded British Isles would you look for wilderness? Surprisingly, England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland have a variety of wild landscapes unrivalled anywhere in the world. This book is published to celebrate 25 years of the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild, the only group of media professionals exclusively involved in the outdoors. It is edited by Roly Smith, President and former Chairman of the OWPG and its Foreword is by Chris Bonington.

The 25 authors celebrate their favourite places, ranging from remote coastal islands to special places in Sussex and Suffolk, from unknown hills to famous mountains, from standing stones to forest glades. OWPG members go walking, rock climbing and kayaking to reach these wild places. Rediscover the British Isles through their eyes in this full colour hardback, lavishly illustrated with 130 superb photographs.

Look inside

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Contents & Chris Bonington's Foreword
Dumyat (Rennie McOwan)
Cross Fell (Stephen Goodwin)
Connemara (Mike Harding)
Gallery

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Reviews

From an online review by Moira Briggs

This is a satisfying book in every way … from the choice of photographs and words to the … fact that it’s just a pleasing thing to hold and read and turn the pages of. The essays – not too long and not too short – can be ‘dipped’ into at random and the whole thing is small enough to be slipped into a backpack or suitcase. It’s also a work a love.

For the full review, see http://vulpeslibris.wordpress.com

Excerpt from 5-star review at Amazon.co.uk

While the chapters all have wilderness as the central theme, the book as a whole manages to combine an eclectic mix of writings into a well-knit collection that encourages quiet mental contemplation of less hurried and stressful places … Perfect as a present for anyone really who enjoys the outdoors and wants a good collection of writing about interesting places that they can dip into whenever and wherever for a quick reminder of that wilderness experience.

From the online review by "feet r4 walking"

From the Journal of the Long Distance Walkers Association

A beautifully produced anthology of some of Britain’s wildest landscapes … 130 stunning and superb photographs are accompanied by short personal essays … written by authors who have chosen their own wild place to share with us.

Les Maple, Strider no 104, page 24

Excerpt from review by the Open Space Society

Well illustrated with colour photographs, it makes you want to set off at once for these wonderful wildernesses.

Kate Ashbrook, Open Space Volume 28 no 6 2006

Irish Mountain Log

There is a wide definition of wild areas: Hamish Brown wants to take you to St Kilda, while Kev Reynolds picks Ashdown Forest in Sussex … Jacquetta Megarry takes the boat to the Great Blasket. The book is very well-illustrated and is remarkable value at the price.

Joss Lynam, IML Winter 2005, p 46

Outdoor Bookshelf (in Outdoor Enthusiast)

This fascinating anthology … a celebration of both Britain’s wild landscapes and the 25th anniversary of the Outdoor Writers’ Guild. … Lavishly illustrated with 130 colour photographs, this is an ideal read for anyone who loves Britain’s wild places.

Outdoor Enthusiast Magazine Vol 2 issue 2 page 18