East Devon is truly 'England's green and pleasant land'. Between the River Exe in the west and the River Axe in the east lies a patchwork quilt of wood and pasture, dotted with villages, hamlets and scattered farms that have existed since before Domesday. In Exe to Axe Devonian Gerald Gosling takes the reader on a journey, illustrated with rare and atmospheric old photographs, through one of this country's most charming and still unspoilt corners, by way of farms adn ancient churches, along hidden lanes and past gentle rivers, all characteristic elements of this distinctive place. Not forgotten are the bustling seaside resorts, such as Exmouth, Budleigh Salterton, Sidmouth and Seaton, or the people themselves, including cider makers and carpet manufacturers. The author's knowledge and enthusiasm for his home county are evident in this entertaining tour through the region between Exe and Axe, a journey of discovery that will be if interest to resident and tourist alike.

A history of Chard, Crewkerne & Ilminster

When the future Queen Victoria arrived in Sidmouth in the early years of the last century many of the fine buildings which grace the modern town had just been built. Since then the resort has acquired an air of general respectability which the twentieth century with its modern tourist trade has done little to remove: today Sidmouth is one of England's loveliest seaside town. The photographs which comprise this delightful selection bring to life the history of the town in a way mere words can never do. For, unlike the historians, the photographers were actually there when they clicked their shutters. What might have been a snapshot when it was taken becomes in time the most authentic record we could have of a period which has otherwise vanished into the past. If photography was, sadly, unable to capture the visit of the infant Victoria, it has handed down to us a vivid visual reminder of the changes which have overtaken the town and its inhabitant in the last hundred years. With it emphasis on those who lives have been spent in this corner of East Devon, this fascinating volume incorporates an area bounded by Newton Poppleford, Sidbury and Branscombe. For those who know the area i will bring back a host of memories; others will enjoy discovering Sidmouth's rich heritage.