Our Book of the Month for August is Small Island: A History of Britain in 12 Maps by Philip Parker.
A fascinating analysis of a dozen maps from critical points in British history over the last 2,000 years, from the Celtic period when ‘Britain’ was just a patchwork of tribal kingdoms, to a century ago when the whole of Ireland, India, Australia, much of Africa, Asia and the Americas were also marked as British.
Continue reading Book of the Month: Small Island: A History of Britain in 12 MapsOur Map of the Month for August is not just one map, we are excited to introduce the first five maps in a brand new series that will soon cover the whole of the UK.
Cycle Maps UK are produced at a scale of 1:100 000 showing important features including the National cycle Network. Sections on road, off road and traffic free are all shown in differing colours along with their route number. Other roads and their classification are shown enabling you to link rides or explore sections and discover new routes at home or further afield.
Continue reading Map of the Month: Wheelie great BRAND NEW cycling mapsRenowned anthropologist and film-maker Hugh Brody weaves a dazzling tapestry of personal memory and distant landscapes: childhood in the Derbyshire hills in the shadow of the Second World War, a kibbutz in Israel and, eventually, the Canadian Arctic.
Conflicted and bewildered by the silence created by his concealed family history, he sought places to which he could escape. Yet everywhere he discovered deep and troubling silences, until he reached the High Arctic, a world far removed from anything he had known. It became a chance to learn, all over again, what it can mean to be alive – yet, even here, he encountered voices that had been silenced by the forces of colonialism.
In defiance of silence, Hugh Brody discovers, through memory and the land, a profound humanity – as well as hope.
Here is an extract from Landscapes of Silence: From Childhood to the Arctic by Hugh Brody:
Continue reading Extract: Landscapes of Silence: From Childhood to the Arctic by Hugh BrodyAdam Dant’s Political Maps is an all-new collection of intricate, absorbing and beautiful maps, focused on the world of politics. Informed by his experiences as the official artist of the UK general election in 2015, these glorious works of art are amusing and subversive, hugely imaginative and packed with eye-catching detail.
Here, the artist and cartographer Adam Dant tells us what makes a map political:
Continue reading When is a Map Political? by Adam DantOur Children’s Book of the Month for July 2022 is The Moon of Kyiv by Gianni Rodari, illustrated by Beatrice Alemagna.
100% of the net profit from the sale of this book will be donated to Save the Children fund for supporting children impacted by the conflict in Ukraine.
In 1955, beloved Italian poet Gianni Rodari penned a nursery rhyme called “The Moon of Kyiv”. It was a poem about our shared humanity – the poem reminding us that, no matter where we’re from, or where we live, we all exist under the same moon.
On y va!
Whether you’re celebrating Bastille Day with a hike or cycling your own version of the Tour de France, our Map of the Month for July, the France IGN Greenways and Cycle Routes Map will help you plan your route.
Our Book of the Month for July 2022 is Atlas of Vanishing Places: The Lost Worlds as They Were and as They Are Today by Travis Elborough.
Atlas of Vanishing Places won the 2020 Edward Stanford Travel Writing Award for Illustrated Travel Book of the Year. Now it is out in paperback so is lightweight and perfect to pack for holidays.
Have you ever wondered about cities that lie forgotten under the dust of newly settled land? Rivers and seas whose changing shape has shifted the landscape around them? Or, even, places that have seemingly vanished, without a trace?
Continue reading Book of the Month: Atlas of Vanishing PlacesTo celebrate the paperback launch of the 2020 Edward Stanford Travel Writing Award winning Atlas of Vanishing Places by Travis Elborough, here is an extract for you all to read:
Continue reading Extract: Atlas of Vanishing Places by Travis ElboroughIn West Winds: Recipes, History and Tales from Jamaica , award-winning food writer Riaz Phillips tells countless tales of Jamaica through its dishes, drawing on his memories of growing up in the Caribbean diaspora of London and time living in Jamaica.
With a mix of location and recipe photography by Phillips, West Winds fully immerses readers in the spirit and food of Jamaica. From the “waste not, want not” approach instilled in Riaz by his grandmother, to the Ital food he was introduced to living with the Rastafari community, working at eco-farms as well as reconnecting to his grandfather’s birthplace of downtown Kingston, the 100 plus mouthwatering meals, hearty soups, bakes, and refreshing drinks cover all the different elements of Jamaican cooking.
Recipes rooted in centuries of culture through folktales and anecdotes make West Winds so much more than a cookbook – it is an ode to Jamaica and the diasporas, the people and their heritage, with something for everyone. Here is an extract:
Rice and peas recipe from West Winds: Recipes, History and Tales from Jamaica by Riaz Phillips. Published by DK £25
Nomads by Anthony Sattin tells the ground-breaking story of Nomadic peoples on the move across history.
Humans have been on the move for most of history. Even after the great urban advancement lured people into the great cities of Uruk, Babylon, Rome and Chang’an, most of us continued to live lightly on the move and outside the pages of history. But recent discoveries have revealed another story . . .
Reconnecting with our deepest mythology, our unrecorded antiquity and our natural environment, Nomads is the untold history of civilisation, told through its outsiders.
Here is an extract from Nomads by Anthony Sattin
A young man walks towards me with a stick slung across his shoulders and a flock at his feet. The sheep, in front, beside and behind him, are as chaotic as meltwater in the nearby stream and they carry him down the path like a crowd of rowdy children. An older man follows, weatherworn but still strong, a rifle over his left shoulder. He clicks his tongue to encourage them forward. Behind him are two women on donkeys, one older than the other, and I guess they are his wife and daughter. They look strong women, but then it is a tough life beneath the shard peaks of the Zagros Mountains. Other donkeys carry their belongings, bundled inside heavy rust-and-brown cloth that the women have woven and will soon repurpose as door- flaps when the tents are set up.
Continue reading An extract from Nomads by Anthony Sattin
