SOMETIMES a real gem of a book drops on to the arts desk.

In this case, Keith Richardson’s The Greta, a beautifully illustrated account of the Lakeland river and its people, past and present.

Keith calls it ‘the greatest little river in the world.’ Only a mere four miles long, nevertheless it has been central to those who have lived or still live on, and beyond, its glorious banks.

Like many rivers across the globe, its flows through the very heart of the community. Keith’s own childhood home was a terraced house half a dozen paces from its hypnotic waters. Eeven now he lices a stone’s throw from The Greta.

The book is graced by the majestic photography of Val Corbett as well as treasured artwork such as William Westall’s Fields, River and Greta Hall pencil and watercolour (courtesy of the Wordsworth Trust) and J B Pyne’s The Vale of Keswick, Bassenthwaite, Lakeland, the River Greta (Keswick Museum and Art Gallery).

I was particular enthralled by the chapter on Greta Hall and references to poets Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Robert Southey.

I really do love books like this (I still regularly dip into Jane Renouf’s The Lake Artists Society centenary tome).

As a hard back glossy, it’s a luxury at £25 but well worth its cover price for the hefty slice of culture and historical fact that it serves.

It is an elegant read and follows in the literary steps of Keith’s Ivver Sen, another beauty which landed him his first Lakeland Book of the Year award in 2009.

However, for me, The Greta, is in a different class and worthy of being in the national spotlight.

In artistic terms, Ivver Sen was portraiture.

Two years in the making, The Greta is more sumptuous, using a broader cultural canvas, painting a wider and wondrous landscape that embraces the Keswick river, its people, and the wildlife that relies on its constant flow.

The 267-page book concludes with the fascinating History Files – another clever touch.

If you don’t buy another book for 12 months, buy this, it will more than likely keep you entertained until then anyway.

Keith – well-known former Cumbria Life publishing director/editor and respected journalist - admits that because of his close personal connection with the river “deep down it was always the book I wanted to write.”

I’m so glad he did.

Available at most local bookstores

Also available in print by Keith is Joss, a biography about legendary Cumbrian fell runner Joss Naylor, and Jack's Yak, the fascinating story of Lakeland trees and the tales they have to tell.