Publication day is always special for everyone involved in writing and publishing a book and, today, we’d like to wish a very happy publication day to Monty Lit Fest favourite, Carwyn Graves, for his brilliant new book, Tir: The Story of the Welsh Landscape.
Carwyn was a big hit at Monty Lit Fest in 2022, when he joined us to talk about his previous book, Welsh Food Stories. So we couldn’t be more delighted that he’ll be joining us again this year to talk about his latest.
In Tir, he takes us on a journey through seven key elements of the Welsh landscape, including coed (woodland); mynydd (mountain); cloddiau (hedgerows) and rhos (wild moorland). By diving into the history, ecology and culture of each landscape, he shows us that Wales, in all its beautiful variety, is at base as much a human creation as a natural phenomenon, being shaped by, and in turn shaping, the humans who have lived here since the ice receded.
Monty Lit Fest has established a reputation for showcasing authors and thinking that illuminates debates about farming, land use, food policy and rural life. With Tir, Carwyn wants to build on our experience of the past to look forward to a better future, one where we can have stunningly beautiful, biodiverse landscapes – but still full of humans working the land.
Find out how by joining us for Carwyn’s session on Sunday 9th June at 2.30pm.
Carwyn will be interviewed by another Festival favourite, Fieldwork Book Club’s Adam Bedford. In a second farming and nature-based session on the Sunday of the Festival, Adam will also be interviewing yet another Festival returner, Roger Morgan-Grenville, who will be talking about his latest book, The Return of the Grey Partridge.
Roger’s book tells the extraordinary story of a wildlife restoration project high above Arundel on West Sussex’s South Downs, on land owned by the Duke of Norfolk. Following the seasons of one year, he explores how the farm of Peppering is gradually renatured. The land is still very much farmland, but with a rapid increase in wildlife and biodiversity, including the return of the previously threatened grey partridges.
Hear from Roger as he talks about what he learnt from the project and how modern farming can work in partnership with nature not only to restore birdlife but to the benefit of the ecosystem as a whole.
Roger will be in conversation with Adam at 1.30pm on Sunday 9th June.
So join us for an afternoon that promises yet more thoughtful debate on the future of farming and nature.
Tickets are available online, or in person at The Montgomery Bookshop or Ivy House Café in Montgomery.