A Ramble Through the History of Walking

Bill Laws

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Paperback

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English

The History Press Ltd
26 June 2025

Social & cultural history; The countryside, country life; Walking, hiking, trekking

'The great affair is to move: to come down off this feather-bed of civilisation, and find the globe granite underfoot,' wrote Robert Louis Stevenson. This book celebrates the history of walking for leisure and pleasure.

There's no shortage of the famous, and the not so famous, exponents of a good, long walk: Dr Johnson and his faithful Boswell on their Hebridean jaunt; John Taylor, whose Penniless Pilgrimage, a record of his 1618 journey from London to Edinburgh, provided the first account of a walking tour; and Samuel Coleridge who conceived his epic tale of the Ancient Mariner on a ramble through Devon. The author also includes the stories of key inventions: the cagoule, the Thermos flask, the rucksack, Gore-Tex and the walking pole. Fully illustrated throughout, Byways, Boots and Blisters tells the engaging history of one of man's favourite pastimes.

AUTHOR: Bill Laws has written seven books on garden history; his last title, Artist's Gardens (Ward Lock, 1999) has sold 20,000 copies in the UK. He writes for The Telegraph, Sainsbury's Magazine and Period House. Formerly a professional gardener, he manages an organic garden on the Welsh borders.

94 b/w illustrations

By: Bill Laws
Imprint: The History Press Ltd
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Edition: New edition
Dimensions: Height: 198mm, Width: 129mm,
ISBN: 9781803999623
ISBN 10: 1803999624
Publication Date: 26 June 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

BILL LAWS has written seven books on garden history; his last title, Artist's Gardens (Ward Lock, 1999) has sold 20,000 copies in the UK. He writes for The Telegraph, Sainsbury's Magazine and Period House. Formerly a professional gardener, he manages an organic garden on the Welsh borders.

Reviews for A Ramble Through the History of Walking

‘This book confirms the splendid eccentricity of the British, which often involves oddly dressed men opting to walk long distances for no apparent reason.' * BBC Countryfile Magazine * ‘Laws’ sprightly, often arch, account of Britain’s hiking heroes is a pleasure to read.' * Walk Magazine *