Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

This celebration of the English countryside does not only focus on the rolling green landscapes and magnificent monuments that set England apart from the rest of the world. Many of the contributors bring their own special touch, presenting a refreshingly eclectic variety of personal icons, from pub signs to seaside piers, from cattle grids to canal boats, and from village cricket to nimbies.

First published as a lavish colour coffee-table book, this new expanded paperback edition has double the original number of contributions from many celebrities including Bill Bryson, Michael Palin, Eric Clapton, Bryan Ferry, Sebastian Faulks, Kate Adie, Kevin Spacey, Gavin Pretor-Pinney, Richard Mabey, Simon Jenkins, John Sergeant, Benjamin Zephaniah, Joan Bakewell, Antony Beevor, Libby Purves, Jonathan Dimbleby, and many more: and a new preface by HRH Prince Charles.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Booklist Review

Say the word England and people may conjure thoughts of Big Ben, St. Paul's Cathedral, or Her Majesty the Queen, but Bryson, a native Iowan and British transplant, collected brief essays about the country's more humble delights and discoveries. One essay considers stiles, a sort of gate, yet not gate, which allows the walker to easily cross a fence. Other essays explore marrows, a squash resembling zucchini, or why so many pubs are named for the Marquis of Granby. The essay on London's sewage system is breezy, informative, and sobering. Some topics, of course, must be included, like the weather and the countryside. Because few essays are longer than three pages, readers can easily dip in and out at will or savor favorites again and again. Contributors include famous names like Kevin Spacey and former Monty Python member Michael Palin. Armchair travelers and Anglophiles will be equally pleased.--Curbow, Joan Copyright 2017 Booklist