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Waterlog

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What to expect

Brought to you by Penguin.

Roger Deakin set out in 1996 to swim through the British Isles. The result a uniquely personal view of an island race and a people with a deep affinity for water. From the sea, from rock pools, from rivers and streams, tarns, lakes, lochs, ponds, lidos, swimming pools and spas, from fens, dykes, moats, aqueducts, waterfalls, flooded quarries, even canals, Deakin gains a fascinating perspective on modern Britain. Detained by water bailiffs in Winchester, intercepted in the Fowey estuary by coastguards, mistaken for a suicude on Camber sands, confronting the Corryvreckan whirlpool in the Hebrides, he discovers just how much of an outsider the native swimmer is to his landlocked, fully-dressed fellow citizens.

Encompassing cultural history, autobiography, travel writing and natural history, Waterlog is a personal journey, a bold assertion of the native swimmer's right to roam, and an unforgettable celebration of the magic of water.

© Roger Deakin 1999 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

Critics Review

I jumped in with both feet and wanted to stay for more.
Erudite, funky and passionate, a total delight
Independent on Sunday
Charmingly and elegantly written
Daily Telegraph
A delicious, cleansing, funny, wise and joyful book, so wonderfully full of energy and life. I loved it
Highly entertaining...Waterlog is a book about a cold, wet subject written with a warmth and passion it surely deserves, but has rarely had before
Guardian
A wonderful and romantic tale told by a true English eccentric...think Ratty, think Mole, think three men falling out of a boat...enchanting
Financial Times
A travel book like no other, it is rich and deep with insights on modern Britain
The Independent
Deakin has written an aquatic Songlines.
Roger Deakin is the perfect companion for invigorating armchair swim. Engaging, thoughtful and candid, he also has a wonderful eye
Telegraph Weekend
A brilliant and compelling view of Britain from a few inches above its neglected waterways
The Independent
Author Roger Deakin
Narrator Roy McMillan
Duration 11 hours and 42 minutes
Release Date
ISBN 9781473581210
Format Audiobook
Publisher Random House
Genre Applied ecology, Autobiography: sport, Environmentalist thought and ideology, Rivers and lakes, Sea life and the seashore: general interest, Swimming
Availability AU, GB, IE

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