We are Specialist stockists of Local History including
Local Books and Authors
Below is a selection of some of our books featuring Shropshire and Church Stretton, and some favourite Shropshire authors.
Floreat Salopia by Roger H. White
Shropshire, as one of the contributors to this volume notes, is simultaneously remote and well-connected … which also means it is often (but wrongly) overlooked and underestimated. This volume of collected papers – newly commissioned and bringing entirely new research into play – was brought together to commemorate the issuing of the 100th volume of the Shropshire Archaeological and Historical Society’s Transactions. It offers snapshots of Shropshire’s past, from the earliest prehistory to the end of the twentieth century. As befits the Society, it offers both archaeological and historic perspectives and demonstrates the importance of the county in the wider context of the United Kingdom. While not attempting to be comprehensive in its contents, it nonetheless offers insights into how the county came into being, and the forces that shaped it, not the least of which is its extraordinarily diverse geology. The volume offers too a perspective of those historically researching Shropshire’s past, often women who gained their foothold either through teaching on or participating in adult education. This is certainly the first attempt to offer a comprehensive overview of Shropshire in over 50 years, and what it seeks to achieve in its scope has not been attempted before. The Society’s aim is both to showcase the research going on in the county, but also to parade its riches: there is much more to learn about Shropshire, and it is hoped this book will encourage others to take up its challenges and continue to allow the understanding of the county to flourish. The contributors to this volume almost all have long-standing connections to Shropshire, and some are also proud Salopians. Most are based in the county, and continue their long-term research there, while one holds a significant role in the protection of Shropshire’s heritage.
The Bottled Waters of Church Stretton by Barrie Raynor
Shropshire Unusual & Quirky by Andrew Beadmore
Shropshire’s pre-history and history in all it’s glorious quirkiness. Great descriptions of Shropshire places and well illustrated throughout.
Witches, Druids, and Sin Eaters by Jon G. Hughes
The common magic of the cunning folk of the Welsh Marches.
‘The Birds of Shropshire’ by Leo Smith
The Birds of Shropshire provides the most comprehensive record of the County’s avifauna ever published. Produced by Shropshire Ornithological Society, the book is based on the results of six years fieldwork by over 650 different observers who submitted over 333,400 records. These records have been used to produce maps showing the current distribution of almost 200 different species.
‘Downton Gorge: the matchless valley’ Edited by Gisele and Tom Wall
Landscape and industry, nature and culture ‘Matchless’ is a big claim, but appropriate for this scenic gem in Herefordshire carved by the river Teme from fossil-rich Silurian rocks.
‘On the Trail of the Mortimers in the Welsh Marches – 2nd edition’ by Philip Hume
Richly illustrated history of the medieval Mortimer family of Wigmore north Herefordshire
‘Downton Postcards’ by Mark O’Hanlon
Deltiology of the Downton Castle Estate, Herefordshire
‘Fan-Peckled’ by Jan Atkin and Katy Alston
Twelve Old Shropshire Words in poems and pictures
‘Walking in the Shropshire Hills’ by Dennis and Jan Kelsall, £11.99. 20 circular walks exploring the varied and sun-spoilt landscape of the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
‘Finding Home: Journeys with the Hillforts of Shropshire’ by Jo Jukes, £15.00. A delightful look at the history, mystery and beauty of Shropshire’s ancient hillforts, illustrated with black and white photographs throughout.
‘Church Stretton Through the Ages’ by Tony Crowe and Barrie Raynor, £20.00. At long last the reprint of this local history book is now available
‘Shropshire From Dawn to Dusk’ by John and Mike Hayward, £20.00 The second book from this local father and son partnership, showcasing the stunning Shropshire countryside and buildings.
‘The Errant Hours’, ‘All the Winding World’ and ‘Wild Labyrinth’ by Kate Innes: Historical novels set in Plantagenet Britain (featuring Shropshire)
‘The Wicked Wood’, ‘The Faerie Glen’, ‘ The Crystal Lake’ (Parts One, Two and Three of ‘The Journey’) and ‘Shirelands’ by Hilary Jane Jones and Tracey Swain: Shropshire and the Welsh Borders feature in stunning full colour photography and verse (‘The Journey’ trilogy fuses imagination and images in a folkloric tale)
Other Local Favourites:
‘Lost Shrewsbury’ by David Trumper £14.99 Local historian David Trumper presents a portrait of a town and way of life that have both radically changed over the years.
‘Ludlow at Leisure’ by Derek Beattie £14.99 A lively, illustrated account of a country town at play, 1800-1950.
‘Ludford House, Ludlow’ by Ralph Beardmore £10.00 The story of a Shropshire house and its occupants.
‘The Broad Gate’ by Valerie Thomas £25.00 One of Ludlow’s oldest houses and its inhabitants.
‘A History of the Speake Families in Shropshire’ by John D Speake £18.00
‘Marches in Photographs’ by Bryan Phillips. Photographer Bryan Phillips has captured the essence of Shropshire and Herefordshire in a collection of stunning images.
‘The Concise History of Ludlow’ by David Lloyd. This illustrated history traces the development of Ludlow, one of Shropshire’s most beautiful market towns, from Anglo-Saxon times to the present day.
‘The Long Mynd: its History and Wildlife’ by Barrie Raynor
‘Wilderland’ by Andrew Fusek Peters. Full colour photographic books of the wildlife and wonder from the Long Mynd and Shropshire Borders through the four seasons.
‘Hill and Dale – My Shropshire Year’ by Andrew Fusek Peters £25.00 Andrew’s latest full colour photographic book this is now Out of Print
‘A Night in the Snow’, by Reverend Donald Carr, £price varies. The true story of a struggle for life on the Long Mynd one wild, snowy evening in 1865.
“Folklore of Shropshire”: by Roy Palmer, £12.95. Popular folk tales including Wild Edric, Mad Jack Mytton, Humphrey Kynaston, Caractacus, plus ghosts, witches, charmers, and many more.
‘Shropshire Folk Tales or Children’ by Amy Douglas, £9.99
“Geology of Shropshire” by Peter Toghill, £18.99. This book explains the geological history of Shropshire, lasting 500 million years, from the Antarctic Circle through the Tropics and across the equator to our latitudes, a distance of 12,000km.
‘Heresy Unlocked: Faith Rebounds’ by Roger Wilson £12.95 A Church Elder and founder of cancer charity, Sarcoma UK, the author explores the influence of heresy on Christianity
‘Beneath Safer Skies’ by Anthea Toft, £12.00: a memoir of a child evacuee in Shropshire – a fascinating snapshot of the farming communities and a lost way of rural life during the Second World War.
Further Information about Local Authors
Charles Darwin: We carry a large stock of books by and about Charles Darwin.
A. E. Housman: We stock several editions of “A Shropshire Lad”, along with Housman’s other works.
Kate Innes: Kate trained as an archaeologist, teacher and museologist. She now writes novels, leads workshops, and performs her poetry with acoustic band Whalebone. http://www.kateinneswriter.com
Hilary Jane Jones: Burway Books’ very own published author. Hilary has written two personal development books (‘Choosing a Better Life’ and ‘Personal Progress Through Positive Thinking’) and the text for Peter Andrew Jones’ book ‘Paintings of the Stiperstones’. Her most recent publications are in partnership with photographer Tracey Swain: ‘The Journey’ trilogy – a fully illustrated poetic tale (‘The Wicked Wood’, ‘The Faerie Glen’ and ‘The Crystal Lake’) and ‘Shirelands’, a fusion of photography and verse that celebrates the glorious landscapes of Shropshire and the Welsh Borders. www.hilaryjanejones.net
Peter Andrew Jones: Peter is an internationally renowned artist who has produced artwork for many bestselling sci-fi novels, the BBC, and also Hollywood posters. He now resides in Church Stretton and runs his own publishing company: we are proud to stock some of his unique, limited edition “artists books” that contain paintings and prose about the local area. http://www.peterandrewjones.net/
Kate Long: Author of the bestselling ‘Bad Mother’s Handbook’ and several other books. www.katelong.co.uk
Wilfred Owen: We stock several collections of Owens’ poetry, along with his biography.
Barrie Raynor: Barrie has published the beautiful fully illustrated book “The Long Mynd: its History and Wildlife” as well as collaborating with Tony Crowe on ‘Church Stretton Through the Ages’.
Phil Rickman: Bestselling author of the Merrily Watkins series. Merrily is a parish priest and diocesan exorcist who, along with daughter Jane and partner Lol encounter many spooky goings-on in the fictional Ledwardine in Herefordshire. Phil has also penned two historical novels about Dr John Dee, and his latest paranormal thriller ‘Night After Night’ www.philrickman.co.uk
Simon Whaley: Simon lives in Church Stretton: his books are always amongst our bestsellers, including “One Hundred Ways For A Dog To Train Its Human”. Simon has recently ventured into novel writing and the first two books in the crime/humour Marquess of Montiforde series, ‘Blooming Murder’ and ‘Foraging for Murder’, are proving popular www.simonwhaley.co.uk
Malcolm Saville: We stock in print titles by the late Malcolm Saville, particularly his Lone Pine series that was set around this area. Many of his books have gone out of print, but as and when they are re-printed we try to keep them in stock. We are delighted to have the recently republished ‘Jane’s Country Year’ in stock.
Mary Webb: Another very famous local author, who died in 1927, and whose books occasionally come back into print. We stock “Gone to Earth”, “Precious Bane”, and “Golden Arrow,” and any other titles as and when they become available. We also stock biographies of Mary Webb by Gladys Mary Coles.