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margaret21's review
5.0
Here is a totally immersive account of how certain villages and towns in England simply got wiped from the map. By placing his chosen locations in the context of their history, their geography and their climatic or political turbulence, he offers a surprisingly varied set of stories of obliteration, drowning, geological change, historical unrest. Every story is placed in the context of that community's place in the history of its period of change, and offers a rounded, absorbing and detailed account of why and how these communities disappeared. A moving and haunting set of stories.
portybelle's review
4.0
If we’re out on a walk in the countryside, I’m always fascinated if we come across a ruined cottage or hamlet. I wonder about the people who lived there, how they lived, why they left, and why the houses ended up abandoned and in ruins. So Shadowlands is a book that really appealed to me telling the story of how entire villages, towns and indeed cities disappeared over the years, and how they were rediscovered.
Matthew Green explains that abandonment or loss could have been because of changing climate and landscape, for political reasons, for socioeconomic reasons, because of human intervention or for reasons historians and archaeologists can only speculate about. And there has been plenty speculation about some of the sites, often controversial such as in the case of Trellech in the Welsh Marches.
Shadowlands was such an interesting book to read with its mixture of history of the era, the social history of how people lived at the time, the mix of theories and facts about what happened to the people who lived in the places which had vanished, and what we can learn for our times from what happened back then.
There was such a variety of places included in the book from places I’ve actually visited, such as Skara Brae on Orkney the, places I’ve heard of like St Kilda and places completely new to me like Wharram Percy in Yorkshire. The book is packed full of fascinating facts and written in a really accessible and compelling way. There is a coda section to the book which mentions places which may suffer similar fates to some of the towns in the book. I watched a short and sobering video on YouTube showing coastal erosion at Skipsea, situated on one of the fastest eroding coastlines not just in Britain but in Europe. It was scary to see how close to the edge some of the houses are and sad to think it is inevitable that before long, they too, will be lost to the sea. A similar situation is happening at Fairbourne in north-west Wales where rising sea levels and flooding threatens the village.
If, like me, you look at old abandoned, ruined cottages and think ‘I wonder…’, then this is a book for you.
Matthew Green explains that abandonment or loss could have been because of changing climate and landscape, for political reasons, for socioeconomic reasons, because of human intervention or for reasons historians and archaeologists can only speculate about. And there has been plenty speculation about some of the sites, often controversial such as in the case of Trellech in the Welsh Marches.
Shadowlands was such an interesting book to read with its mixture of history of the era, the social history of how people lived at the time, the mix of theories and facts about what happened to the people who lived in the places which had vanished, and what we can learn for our times from what happened back then.
There was such a variety of places included in the book from places I’ve actually visited, such as Skara Brae on Orkney the, places I’ve heard of like St Kilda and places completely new to me like Wharram Percy in Yorkshire. The book is packed full of fascinating facts and written in a really accessible and compelling way. There is a coda section to the book which mentions places which may suffer similar fates to some of the towns in the book. I watched a short and sobering video on YouTube showing coastal erosion at Skipsea, situated on one of the fastest eroding coastlines not just in Britain but in Europe. It was scary to see how close to the edge some of the houses are and sad to think it is inevitable that before long, they too, will be lost to the sea. A similar situation is happening at Fairbourne in north-west Wales where rising sea levels and flooding threatens the village.
If, like me, you look at old abandoned, ruined cottages and think ‘I wonder…’, then this is a book for you.
katyrbw's review against another edition
3.0
books that make you feel progressively sicker and sicker. knocked a star off for talking about his divorce
rosy_posy's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Eight fantastic essays, very immersive and informative. Would recommend to anyone interested in lost histories. Cofiwch Dryweryn
burrowsi1's review against another edition
challenging
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
edjgrierson's review
3.75
It's a high three star. I'd certainly recommend it for a psychoanalysis of the Anthropocene. There's some similar themes to "Ghostland" by Edward Parnell, but applied to a country. But some chapters are certainly more engaging than others. Skara Brae in particular is so fascinating, but the chapters on Medieval villages didn't hold me quite as much.
I also think the personal aspect at the end is a bit shoehorned in. I wasn't picking up on that in the rest of the narrative.
Still, pretty solid for what it is. I would say read it.
I also think the personal aspect at the end is a bit shoehorned in. I wasn't picking up on that in the rest of the narrative.
Still, pretty solid for what it is. I would say read it.
shelfofunread's review against another edition
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Colonisation, Pandemic/Epidemic, and War