There’s nothing nicer than receiving a well-chosen book for Christmas – CAROLINE WHEATER picks some gems on a coastal theme for Santa’s consideration
FOR COOL COOKS
Chef Emily Scott has made quite a name for herself in the south west, opening her renowned restaurant On The Sea Wall at Watergate Bay on the north Cornish coast in 2021, and has been listed among the top 100 most influential women in the hospitality industry for two years running.
Her new book, Time & Tide, is part memoir about her life in Cornwall and her joy in the landscape and seasons, and part recipe collection dreamt up in her coastal kitchen.
The book is divided into sections such as Morning Café, Seaside Soirées and Lazy Sunday Lunch and offers delicious yet simple recipes. A book to read and to savour.
Time & Tide: Recipes and stories from my coastal kitchen by Emily Scott (£28, Hardie Grant)
FOR WALKERS AND THINKERS
You may already know Sasha Swire from her bestselling political memoir, Diary of an MP’s Wife, published in 2020 to much acclaim. This work is a less cutting affair, recording her trek, completed over a decade, along the northern stretch of the South West Coast Path.
As she walks from Minehead in Somerset to Land’s End in Cornwall, she discovers the people and places of this legendary coastal path, plus the history (some of it ancient) that weaves through it. It’s a book filled with the high level of detail and observation we expect from the author, from the birdwatcher at Hurlstone Point who’s timed his visit to watch birds migrate back to Africa, to the recounting of poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s stay at Porlock Weir to clear his writer’s block. If you need any more persuasion to tackle the SWCP, perhaps this is it.
Edgeland – A Slow Walk West by Sasha Swire (£22, Abacus Books)
FOR COLD WATER KINSHIP
Drawn by the idea of wild swimming? Then be inspired by a colourful celebration of Britain’s wild swimming communities who dip together, scream together and laugh often.
The authors dive into what makes these groups thrive, from Wim Hof enthusiasts, to male mental health groups, to menopausal mermaids. The book describes the experience using first person recollections that reflect not only the adrenaline buzz cold water swimming gives, but the shared moments and friendship that it fosters.
The Ripple Effect by Anna Deacon & Vicky Allan (£20, Black & White
