The author walks from the Gwent Levels in the south to Prestatyn in the north of Wales, not by the shorter route of skirting England but by the longer one of keeping salty water to one side. This isn’t the only book of a coastal walk that I am reading right now – there is something about the border between land and sea that makes us think more deeply about our place in the world. If you spend your time with most human existence to one side of your walk through life, and the open seas to the other it is difficult not to ponder our place in existence.
This is a thoughtful and informative walk. We learn about Welsh history and are helped to think about the changes that we have wrought on land and contrast it with our inability to similarly dominate the marine environment. The human domination does not disappear at the tideline but it is much diminished. We will realise this more and more as sea levels continue to rise despite the low-carbon energy being produced by the flocks of wind turbines which now dominate the seascape along much of the North Wales coast.
I liked the author’s admission that he had intended to visit the National Library of Wales but on reaching Aberystwyth he was overcome with seaside holiday feelings – good for him, although he doesn’t reveal whether he just had an ice cream or spent some time on the pier which he describes as a giant pub! The White Book of Rhydderch and Black Book of Carmarthen will wait for his return.
Further on he tells us that Tonfanau is a particularly windswept and isolated place where no-one would want to spend much time as an introduction to the story of Ugandan Asians who were plonked here when they fled Idi Amin’s regime in the early 1970s and made a successful transition.
Although we spent some time in Laugharne we learned more of Dylan in the Mabinogion tales (a Welsh sea god) than the author of Under Milk Wood (which was fine by me, and showed admirable restraint). The author’s take on Welsh nationalism, the place of religion in Welsh life, the Welsh language and many more issues are wrapped up in this thoughtful book. It is not a wildlife book but it is a book about the issues that arise where land meets sea and the battles we’ve had, and probably face in future, with the marine environment.
The cover? Attractive. I’d give it 8/10.
Seascape: notes from a changing coastline by Matthew Yeomans is published by Calon.
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Buy direct from Blackwell’s – a proper bookshop (and I’ll get a little bit of money from them)
