Blue Remembered Hills: the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

Description

The Shropshire Hills are alive with stories, although all too few of these are known to the casual visitor or even to the interested long-term resident. But each year, a lucky few will hear these weird and wonderful tales as they accompany landscape detective Keith Pybus on his walks around this Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Now, for the first time, these stories have been committed to print for all to enjoy. Follow in the footsteps of A.E. Housman, Mary Webb, Bruce Chatwin and John Osborne to rediscover this lovely part of England. Meet three local 'Grand Designers' and explore the mansions they built with the fortunes they made. Find out what brought Napoleon Bonaparte's brother, Lucien, to the Ludlow social scene. Read the hair-raising tale of Molly Morgan, twice sentenced to transportation. Ponder over the mysterious case of the wretched maid of Ferney Hall. Ache at the heart-wrenching stories of children banished to the New World on the Mayflower. Stories that will surprise and move you and make you want to find out more about the Shropshire Hills. Of course, explorations are not just into the past. Every year thousands of 'foodies' attend the Ludlow Food Festival, and its markets and restaurants could not exist without the unique and varied produce of local farms, moors and hedgerows. Church Stretton, Shropshire's very own spa town was once promoted as 'Switzerland without wolves and avalanches'. And Rectory Wood was recently voted the least stressful location in England. So join Keith Pybus on an unforgettable adventure through the Shropshire Hills in all their glory. Feel the breeze in your hair, just as you feel the history at your back...

For much of his life Keith Pybus travelled the world. He has lived in the Far East, Germany, Sweden, Belgium and the Netherlands. He speaks fluent French, German, Swedish and passable Dutch. In 1977 he began to explore what lay on his new doorstep, the county of Shropshire. Keith has appeared on the BBC's Countryfile and The House Detectives, among others, and has made numerous broadcasts for local radio. When not writing, he enjoys the Shropshire Way, which runs past his front door and where a first fingerpost beckons.

'With a keen sense of history and an inquisitive disposition, the author has observed his surroundings in a remarkable way. He does not just see the view, he walks it. He has unearthed stories about all the places he visits.' Philip Dunne, MP for Ludlow 'Mixing walking, discovery, history, and storytelling, Pybus takes readers out into the beautiful Shropshire landscape to open their eyes to what lies on the doorstop. As a veteran walker who leads organised walks, Pybus has a wealth of knowledge. He does not just put teh focus on the hills themselves, but casts his net to tell the wider story.' Express & Star 'The book looks at the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and, as a veteran walker, Pybus has a wealth of knowledge.' ... 'It's an imaginative approach which gives this illustrated book its own niche' Shrewsbury Chronicle 'It's not a guide book - it's a book of fascinating stories about the South Shropshire Hills - encouraging you to get out there and look. Keith is a fabulous raconteur and this book is the next best thing to having him take you on the walk himself.' -- Genevieve Tudor BBC Radio Shropshire 'a winning combination of comprehensive research and lovely storytelling' Shropshire Magazine