Magical Britain
Magical Britain: 650 Enchanted and Mystical Sites is a fantastic resource within a beautiful book.
Wonderfully illustrated throughout with Wildwood’s fantastic photography of the landscapes and sites he details, the author begins with a brief introduction to Britain’s Magical History and a very useful guide on ‘How to use this Book’ (he has included his own list of 22 symbols).
Following this are brief chapters on ‘topics of interest’. For example: guidance on how to visit a magical place with respect; information about the Celtic Wheel of the Year and subject matter such as Mother Goddess, Giants and Animate Stones – all these containing a list of examples you can visit together with book page reference.
Subsequent chapters give more detailed information about the sites by location. For example the section on West Cornwall first describes the area and then details the various ‘magical places’ including giving description, brief mythology, GPS co-ordinates, accessibility guidance (parking, public/private land etc.) and relevant symbols. Pictorial maps are included with reference numbers, so it is easy to check which sites you may be near, or that will be within an area you are visiting. Towards the back of the book is a place name index, list of places by category and landscape glossary.
My only slight criticism is in relation to a technical detail: in order to cram all this enormous wealth of information into one book some of the text is rather small.
My copy of Magical Britain is going into our caravan where it will be easily accessible during travels. Then probably back into the house during winter so we can enjoy browsing and planning future journeys. It’s not a light weight book by any means but one it’s definitely worth taking with you. Or for times you need to travel very light it is also available as an app for Android or iPhone. Very highly recommended!
Book Details: Rob Wildwood. Magical Britain. Wild Things Publishing Ltd (4 April 2022). ISBN: 978-1910636305
Review Details: Magical Britain was reviewed by June Kent, editor of Indie Shaman magazine and this review was published in Issue 53.
