Marie Kreft's 3 favorite reads in 2024

Part of Bradt's distinctive, award-winning series of 'Slow' travel guides to UK regions, this new, thoroughly updated third edition of Shropshire (Slow Travel) remains the only standalone guidebook to provide in-depth coverage of England's largest landlocked county. Although often overlooked, Shropshire is remarkable - "the nearest earthly place to paradise," according to author P.G. Wodehouse.

The county has been touched by every era of history the British Isles have known: Bronze Age people, Iron Age tribes, Romans, Saxons and Normans all left their marks in hillforts, earthworks, roads, churches, place names and legends, while Shropshire's position at the once-turbulent Anglo-Welsh borders has left a legacy of castles, castle ruins and fortified manor houses, all carrying stories of clashes and feuds.

In the north, flat, fertile plains plus meres and mosses give way to hills, valleys and woodland in the south. In the Shropshire Hills ('quintessential Shropshire'), Church Stretton was popular with Victorians for its Alps-like air and is an ideal walking base for the Stretton Hills and the Long Mynd. Bishop's Castle is home to a 'poetry pharmacy' and the country's oldest working brewery. Genteel Ludlow is a nationally famous foodie destination: Britain's 'Slow Food capital' hosts four of the county's nine Michelin-guide Bib Gourmand restaurants. Southeast Shropshire has Bridgnorth, with its quirky cliff railway joining Low Town to High Town, and Much Wenlock, birthplace of the modern-day Olympics. The Telford and Wrekin region incorporates the spectacular UNESCO site of Ironbridge Gorge and ten excellent museums.

Writing with intimate detail and insider tips, author Marie Kreft offers detailed descriptions of place, historical overviews, ghost stories and folk tales, plus first-hand accounts from Shropshire residents and a hand-picked selection of restaurant recommendations. Emphasising car-free travel, local produce and characterful accommodation, the guide unapologetically takes you the long way round - through ancient woodland, over bridges and 'Blue Remembered Hills', back in time, into castles, churches and interesting pubs - cheerfully and wittily savouring the authentic, offbeat and local. All in all, Bradt's Shropshire (Slow Travel) is an indispensable guide to one of Britain's most scenic and intriguing counties.