"Packed with facts and information about all aspects of rural Britain, presented in a clear and helpful way" ? I think not.A more accurate title would be “A basic guide to Farming and Blood sports”, but maybe that wouldn’t sell so well.
OK, I didn’t expect this book to cover natural history, British landscape or rural architecture. I did expect much more about the people who live in the countryside : not just the minority who earn their living from farming or blood sports. This book does not have much about people, rural economics or rural communities. It doesn’t say much about many issues affecting country dwellers, like housing, closure of local shops or migration to/from towns. It doesn't say much about what it is like to live in the country.
It would have been interesting to explain typical working days for various rural workers, to explain how much they earn and how much it costs to live. It would be wonderful to give some insight about real rural life. This book has little analysis and hardly any real insight.
The book has 250 pages. 100 of these are devoted to farming. 100 are devoted to horses, dogs and blood sports. By comparison, the use of the countryside for other recreations and for tourism accounts for just a few pages. The author seems pretty much against it.
Written by a gamekeeper, so just remember that the animal kingdom consists mainly of livestock, game and pests. I see that the author has written books on gamekeeping - I bet these are much better, if you like that sort of thing.
"The Townies Guide to the Countryside" is a nice concept, but this book is far too one-sided to deserve that title.
