Shorelands Summer Diary by C.F. Tunnicliffe

 I have always loved Tunnicliffe’s illustrations when I borrowed hardback books of essays by Alison Uttley from my local library. This diary, first published in 1952, explores his love of drawing and painting estuary birds between April to September from his home in Anglesey. The text is close to an autobiography and the many illustrations are sublime. Shorelands is the name of the bungalow whereTunnicliffe lived from 1947 until his death in 1979. This is a perfect book to take to a holiday cottage in a similarly remote place and pass time with binoculars, on walks or through the kitchen window,  identifying different species of estuary birds to be found there. Or during this time of Covid, to imagine such a place, living there and immersing oneself in its sense of place, hoping that one may return one day.