"The Cotswold Town and Village Guide": The latest fully updated edition of the "Definitive Guide to Places of Interest in the Cotswolds" as the author says this is the result of my continuing love affair with the Cotswolds, an area that I have known for most of my life and one that I have been visiting with my camera and notebook for well over fifty years. A glance at the maps contained in this book will soon reveal that the area covered extends well beyond the classic Cotswolds, but it never strays far from true limestone country with its typically lovely stone towns and villages. These are enfolded by rolling hills and quiet wooded valleys through which clear streams flow and all have a similar character to the better-known places of pilgrimage like Stow on the Wold, Cirencester, Bourton-on-the-Water or Broadway. Of course these favourites have not been ignored. The Cotswold countryside is as near to perfection as one could wish for, but it is still further enhanced by the treasures to be found within its towns, villages and hamlets. Here are some of Britain's loveliest medieval churches and domestic buildings, almost all of which are built of the marvellous honey coloured Cotswold stone that here lies so close to the surface. When setting out on your journeys of discovery, savour each day and not try to cover too much ground - it has taken me most of a lifetime to get round it all! If possible buy a good map or maps (preferably Ordnance Survey ones) and walk from village to village along a quiet footpath or bridleway, stopping beside a stream for a picnic, or at a pub for lunch. This is another book from Reardon Publishing the Cotswold Publisher.

LIFE IN THE ANTARCTIC Photographs by the Scottish Antarctic Expedition,. William Bruce's Voyage of the 'Scotia' 1902 - 1904 Antarctic Expedition The publishers beg to draw particular note to the fact that the illustrations in this little book are all reproductions of genuine photographs from life, taken by the Leader and Staff of the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition, during the voyage of the 'Scotia' 1902 - 1904. Practically all of them are unique, many of the mammals and birds never having been previously photographed. They were taken under conditions of climate which made photography extremely difficult and often impossible. They are not touched up in anyway by the engravers, and may be implicitly relied upon as correct representations of the actual environments of Antarctic mammals and birds. This Facsimile has been created from the original 1907 first edition, each photo professionally scanned.

These are the Journals of Francis Davies Leading Shipwright RN when on board Captain Scott's "Terra Nova" British Antarctic Expedition 1910 - 1913, Never seen before photos and historical artefacts, kept safe by his decadences, for over 100 years. Unique below decks prospective on Captains Scotts last Antarctic Expedition, Unabridged and never before Published. The geographic and scientific accomplishments of Captain Scott's two Antarctic expeditions changed the face of the Twentieth Century in ways that are still not widely appreciated over a hundred years later. The fact of accomplishment has tended to be lost in speculative argument as to how Scott should have done this instead of that, supposedly to achieve the extra few yards per day to save the lives of the South Pole Party in 1912. Also lost to a generation overwhelmed with information, however, is the sublime sense of adventure into the unknown, which Scott's expeditions represented to his generation. We have forgotten what it is to take the awesome life-gambling risk of sailing beyond the edge of the map into nothingness and rendering it known. We send robot explorers instead. As a result, after two millennia of maritime and exploration history, we have become detached from the sea which surrounds our island and the tradition of exploration which it represents. With Scott: Before the Mast is a unique account that serves as an antidote to this disconectedness. It is no fictional 'Hornblower', although it may seem so at times. This is a true story. It presents one man's account of his part in a great act of derring-do, the assault on the South Pole in 1912. Most records of Captain Scott's British Antarctic Expedition aboard Terra Nova (1910-1913) are the accounts of officers. With Scott: Before the Mast is the story of Francis Davies, Shipwright, R.N., and Carpenter. The title says it all but may be lost on landlubbers. Before the mast means 'to serve as an ordinary seaman in a sailing ship'. This makes it a rare and hugely important account, presenting a viewpoint from the lower ranks. Such insight is rarely available and the long overdue publication of this account is greatly to be welcomed.

The Polar Book created as a facsimile of a now very scarce publication for the British Polar Exhibition of 1930 that celebrated the history of Polar discoveries and expeditions of the day. This is the first edition as a case bound hardback, complete with two coloured maps designed by John Bartholomew. This book celebrates Polar discoveries and expeditions, with chapters on the history of Polar discoveries, geophysics, geology, flora and fauna along with equipment needed and used at the time. Contributors: G T Atkinson and H R Mil. The Foreword is by L.C. Bernacchi.

This full colour book to the Historic Cotswolds takes you alphabetically through the fascinating and mostly hidden side to the Cotswolds. 100s of pen and ink line drawings by Peter Reardon matching 100s colour photos of the same thing by his son Nicholas Reardon, so one can see things such as a stone crocodile head, with a spring gushing out of its mouth at Compton Abdale, as both a line drawing and colour photograph. The book travels all over the Cotswolds from its very own Stonehenge (Rollright Stones) in the North of the Cotswolds, to a Sham Castle in the South, with lots of strange or old odd things to see on the way, with this book you will soon find the Cotswolds have something of interest for anyone.

An A - Z illustrated Town and Village guide to what you can see in the Cotswolds, with word and pen the Author brings to life this wonderful part of England, show and explaining what you can see as you explore the Cotswolds. From the strange sounding Cotswold towns and villages with this guide you will be shown sides of the Cotswolds that the average visitor often misses, the text is brought to life with well over 100 pen and ink sketches of Gargoyles and Hobbit like church entrances, Public monuments to medieval punishment tools, Castles to Magic stones, a life time of local knowledge has gone into this book. The beauty of the Cotswolds is not new, it is not something that has just come about recently, it is, you might even say, as old as the hills themselves. But it is not only beauty to be found in these hills, they are also rich in history, the Romans came, stayed a while and then left. They were about the first to leave us monuments of their advanced way of life that we can understand today, then came the Saxons, the Danes and the Normans. Each left something by which to remember them. In more recent times great houses have been built and are there for all to see. The Cotswolds intriguing, majestic, even cruel in its own way. There is a bigness that is breathtaking, especially during the summer, a loneliness that can be frightening during the winter, but always a grandeur, as powerful as an exciting tale that not one little bit must be missed. Perhaps early man found the excitement of these hills a good reason for settling in them. They offered a natural fortification in many instances for settlements, often with views over the valley of the Severn, where animals could be hunted and fish caught in the river. It is hoped that your visit to the Cotswolds will be most enjoyable, and if, with the help of these pages, more memorable, then the object of this publication will have been achieved

The Palladian Way is the brainchild of Cotswold walker Guy Vowles. It was born out of a previous idea for a long distance walk between Oxford and Bath but was extended northwards to Buckingham where the author was educated nearby. The realization that there was a Palladian bridge at Prior Park outside Bath to match the one at Stowe suggested a suitable title and the discovery of many classical houses and large estates along the route has helped to make the trail more than just another long walk. The majority of this 200km (125m) trail passes through beautiful countryside and many interesting villages with a wealth of historical background so that walkers can discover parts of England they would not normally visit. THE MAKING OF A LONG DISTANCE TRAIL The inspiration for a new long distance walk can come from many sources. In my case it was a loan of a book. "The Wayfarers Journal" is an elaborate production describing a number of routes which a small, rather quirky group of men who called themselves the "Viators" (Latin for "the travellers") started walking in the 1950s. They researched their routes and kept records. Some 30 years later a chance meeting with a journalist one lunch time at a pub close to Hadrian's Wall, led eventually to publication. Many of their walks or "iters" had Roman connections and ITER XXXVI particularly interested me. The cover pages contain a map of a route "South Cotswolds-Bath to Oxford 108 miles" but unfortunately there is no descriptive text. The book is out of print but I managed to acquire a copy and transposed the route on to modern OS maps. One January I set off to walk the first three days from Oxford. Their route was quite convoluted and I soon decided that I could plan something more interesting. I started the first walk over with a good friend with whom I had walked the length of Scotland and England a few years previously. We left Oxford via the tow path of the Oxford canal which we found to be rather unattractive with some of the houseboats described by my friend as "sinking assetsA". He also enquired about the length of the intended new route which now fell short of the magic 100 mile mark. By coincidence, about the same time, I was talking to another friend about my old school, Stowe, and he commented that his own old school, Prior Park, also had a Palladian bridge in the grounds. This was an eye opener to me and set me thinking. Stowe is north of Oxford and a route via Woodstock and Blenheim would not only avoid the difficulties around Oxford but would also take the distance down to Prior Park and Bath to over the 100 mile distance.

The life and times of Amena Chatwin. Toured the country with the renowned puppeteer Olive Blackham using hand-crafted wooden marionettes, many of which Amina made herself. Acknowledged expert in British iron working and smithing, well known to many blacksmiths around the world. Awarded the Companionship of the Worshipful Company of Blacksmiths in recognition of her contributions to the craft of blacksmithing. Chairman of the Historical Metallurgy Society President to the Gloucester Society for Industrial Archaeology and author of articles on local history and archaeology Author 'Into the New Iron Age: Modern British Blacksmiths' - "It is impossible to overstate the importance of this book in the history of our craft: without it, there would be no comprehensive, accessible public record of the remarkable revival of artistic blacksmithing in the last quarter of the 20th century" Author of Cheltenham's Ornamental Ironwork

Let us take you around a village where time has stood still for over 500 years seen through the eyes of artist Paul Snowdon as he leads you around the village with words on the history and sketches of what you can see. Famous the world over Castle Combe has been voted "the prettiest village in England". This South Cotswold village has retained its heritage from the 15th century, giving an insight into village life from that time. Built during the Cotswold Cloth Boom this village has changed very little since it's medieval hayday. Read on and come with us on an illustrated walk of Castle combe another great book from the Cotswold Publishers Reardon Publishing.

This book tells the tragic true story of the fate of Scott of the Antarctic and his companions on the return trip from the South Pole.It was written anonymously by Sir John Ernest Hodder-Williams, for Scott's son Peter, with the object at the time of raising funds for the child following his father's death.This facsimile has been created from an original 1913 edition, a now scarce work first published in the year of Scott's death during the Terra Nova expedition of 1910-1913.