Mountains and rolling hills are inspiring but there’s something about a flat landscape that’s a bit special. Here are a few books that allow you to immerse yourself in the UK’s flat, low-lying areas and dream under big skies.
Waterland by Graham Swift
Set in the Fens of eastern England, Waterland follows the story of Tom Crick but also spans 240 years of his family’s history. The flat countryside of the novel is almost the main character in this haunting, watery story.
Fen by Daisy Johnson
Weird, wonderful and… flat, this collection of short stories takes inspiration from Graham Swift and lover of fairytales, Angela Carter, and celebrates myth, magic and eels.
Coot Club by Arthur Ransome
Dick and Dorothea head to the Norfolk Broads to learn how to sail with Tom Dudgeon. But Tom has embroiled himself in trouble, having set adrift a motorcruiser moored among his beloved coots’ nests, and belonging to a bit of a rotter.
The Wild Fens Murder Mystery Series by Jack Cartwright
Detective Inspector Freya Bloom has moved from her London post to a position in rural Lincolnshire, where she doesn’t always fit in with the locals, who are wilder than the fens themselves about Freya’s arrival.
The Belton Estate by Anthony Trollope
Trollope was not a fan of the Fens but his portrayal of them in one of his lesser-known novels is still a joy to anyone who knows the area. When Belton himself walks to and from Denver Sluice, Trollope remarks drily that “a country walk less picturesque could hardly be found in England.”
Death of an Expert Witness by PD James
One for fans of Inspector Dalgliesh. When a girl’s body is found in a field the lab begins to investigate but soon one of their own is done away with too. Dalgliesh is called to the dark and gloomy Fens to solve the murders.
Hereward the Wake by Charles Kingsley
The author of The Water Babies also wrote this historical novel based in the then very watery Fenlands, way before they were drained and became the flat lands they are now. This book looks back to a time when the marshes were sodden with myth and magic. If you thought The Water Babies was damp and a bit creepy… think again…
The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L Sayers
This Lord Peter Wimsey novel is set in the Lincolnshire Fens and the plot revolves around bell ringing… and murder, of course.
Fen Boy First by Edward Storey
Storey has written movingly about the Cambridgeshire fens where he grew up, largely in poetic form but this memoir is equally beautiful and very evocative of the magical, dramatic flat lands of England.
Flatland by Edwin Abbot Abbot
Sadly you won’t find Flatland on a map but if you’re a fan of the flat you will love this satirical novella, set in the two-dimensional ‘Flatland’; a commentary on the hierarchy of Victorian culture.
This blog was inspired by our Outing feature ‘Flat Out’ from our November issue, in which we discover the beauty of this country’s flat landscapes.
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