CAROLINE REECE, manager of Waterstones at Kendal, gives chapter and verse on some of her favourite books by local authors of 2016...

Wild Flowers of Britain: Month by Month by Margaret Erskine Wilson £8.99

I was totally captivated by this beautiful book as soon as I first picked it up. In 1999, well-respected local teacher Margaret Wilson, donated 150 sheets of beautiful, detailed paintings of more than a thousand British and Irish flowering plants, all painted in the field, to the Kendal Natural History Society. The collection had been started in 1943 after a friend had suggested she “might learn the names of flowers if you drew them for me, in the months they’re in flower.”

Her accurate and informative illustrations, painted over a period of 45 years, still serve Margaret’s original purpose for us today but it is much more than being an attractive way to learn the names of our delicate and beautiful wild flowers; it is something to treasure as a collection of artwork in itself.

One of the delightful things for us has been the number of fascinating stories we have heard about Margaret from people who knew her or had been her pupils. Not only is it one of those special books that you pick up to have a look at and simply cannot put it down again, it proves that a book is always so much more than just what is printed on the page.

Lakeland - A Personal Journey by Hunter Davies £16.99

'I don't know any tract of land in which in so narrow a compass may be found an equal variety of sublime and beautiful features.' So said the poet Wordsworth of England's Lake District, an area as rich in cultural associations as it is in beautiful scenery.

For almost 50 years, Hunter Davies has spent every summer in the Lake District and it is, without doubt, his true affection for the place that so drew me into his journey through Lakeland. From the first tourists who “ventured into the area” as early as the 1770s (when guides were considered necessary to be able to “travel safely through such a monstrous and beastly landscape”) through the traditions and history of the most popular tourist destination in England, its lakes and tarns, fells and dales, villages and towns. It also tells the stories of the people of the Lakes, both visitors and natives, the less well known, the famous and, indeed, the infamous whose lives and voices inform so much of the character of the Lake District as we know it today.

“Nowt But a Fleein' Thing”; A History of Climbing on Scafell by Mark Cocker and Al Phizacklea £35

Although my climbing experience on Scafell has, so far, been limited to one ascent of Mickledore Grooves, this book has made me determined to get back up there and explore more!

Scafell is the highest crag in England, Central Buttress probably the most famous climbing route. Many times over the years both the mountain and the routes have been included in books about the history of climbing and the Lake District but this beautiful book is the first entirely devoted to them.

In 1874 George Seatree and Stanley Martin made the first ascent of North Climb which was the first time the main face of Scafell had been ascended outside of the obvious gully lines. It was the start of great things on the crags of Scafell. Upon hearing their report of this new route Will Ritson, landlord of the Huntsman's Inn, looked at them incredulously, and declared in his usual broad Cumbrian dialect...'Nowt but a fleein' thing could git up't crags on't Wasdale Head side'.

Every route is noted with all significant ascents described in full detail each is accompanied by full colour photographs from both archives and newly commissioned work making it a real piece of treasure to add to even my own over-burdened bookshelves!

Ridge Walks; The Finest High Level Walks in the Lake District by Carl Rogers £5.99

For me, there is little quite as exhilarating as walking along the high ridges of the Lake District Staying with the height once gained with constantly changing, always stunning, panoramic views is my favourite way to spend a day off whatever the weather (well, almost!).

Published this year as part of the popular Lake District: Top 10 Walks series of guidebooks, this attractive and cleverly structured book leads walkers along the finest ridge walks in the Lake District National Park. The clarity of the information combined with large scale Ordnance Survey maps, eye-grabbing panoramic photographs and interpretation of points of interest along the way, have this series standing alone in ease of use. Routes include: Fairfield Horseshoe, Kentmere Horseshoe, Deepdale Horseshoe, High Stile Ridge, Coledale Horseshoe, Little Dale Round, High Street by Rough Crag, Mosedale Horseshoe, Striding and Swirral Edges and Blencathra's ridges.

Tuck your favourite into your pocket and go and explore!

When the War is Over by Barbara Fox £7.99

I picked this book up to do a bookseller-style “quick” read but after just the first couple of pages I barely put it down again until I had read every word and reached the back cover!

Gwenda and Douglas Brady were among the millions of British children sent to live with new families for their own safety during the Second World War, leaving behind their parents, their friends and all that felt familiar and safe. Evacuation could be a scary experience, but five-year-old Gwenda and her brother were lucky enough to be housed with a kindly schoolmaster and his wife, and soon the realities of the war felt very far away.

When the War is Over touchingly tells the story of how Gwenda and Doug found a second family and a loving home in Bampton... and how the war touched the lives of everyone, even those far away from the big cities.

The Mistake I Made by Paula Daly £7.99

There are so many really good crime/thriller novels set in and around the Lake District that, apart from worrying how many bodies must be buried out there, it is a very hard local genre to make your mark in. Not only has local author Paula Daly done this, she is fast running ahead of many big names who have gone before.

Set in the beautiful landscape between Hawkshead and Bowness, her third book is every bit the page-turning thriller that her previous books have been (What Kind of Mother Are You? and Keep Your Friends Close). Roz is a single mother working as a physiotherapist with all the normal mix of friends and family. Beneath the surface, though, the threads are unravelling and soon she has to explain to her young son why all their furniture has been taken away; her business has gone under, her debts are crippling and she is desperate. But then, out of the blue, a stranger offers her a lifeline and she will have to make a decision on which everything she values will be balanced.

Paula’s fourth novel, “The Trophy Child”, will be published 26th January – I can’t wait!

The Wolf Border by Sarah Hall £8.99

We have a wonderfully opinionated book group who love to debate the pros and cons of all the books they read. I have to give this choice to them as it is the 'only' book that they have ever, unanimously loved!

Rachel had turned her back on home, kept distant by family disputes and her work monitoring wolves on an Idaho reservation until, summoned by the eccentric Earl of Annerdale and his controversial scheme to reintroduce the Grey Wolf to the English countryside, she is back in the peat and wet light of the Lake District.

As Rachel faces impending motherhood and attempts a gradual reconciliation with her estranged family, her work with the Earl begins to generate public outrage and threats of sabotage.

The Wolf Border explores the fundamental nature of wilderness and wildness, both animal and human but while the wolves begin to settle in their new environment it is the humans surrounding them that struggle, that show themselves to be unpredictable and destructive.

How to Measure a Cow by Margaret Forster £16.99

I have always loved Margaret Forster’s writing for her clear and calm prose which draws you in but has such depth as she explores the faults, nuances and hidden flaws in the lives and characters of ordinary people.

Tara Fraser leaves London to start a new life in a Cumbrian town selected at random. She plans to obliterate her past, which contains a shocking event that had serious consequences, by becoming a completely different personality from her previous volatile self. She is going to be quiet, even dull, and very private. But one of her new neighbours, Nancy, is intrigued by her. She wants to become her friend. Tara fights to keep herself to herself, but can she do it? And does she really want to? Slowly, reluctantly, she discovers the dangers of trying to suppress the past and reject other people.

This was, sadly, the last work of fiction from Margaret Forster; hers is a voice that will forever be missed.

The High Hills – Brambly Hedge by Jill Barklem £7.99

When young Wilfred hears that Mr Apple is going on an expedition to the High Hills, he is sure that they will find gold up there and he begs to be able to go with him. All goes well until, in a moment of excitement, Wilfred scampers up a steep rock face and becomes stuck. With Wilfred and Mr Apple now stranded on a rocky ledge the mist begins to rise and soon they are engulfed in a thick white fog, quite unable to find their way home…

Jill Barklem's beguiling Brambly Hedge books never fail to enchant readers old and young and I have so many special memories of having my daughter curled into my lap as I read these to her over and over again. Grown up as she now is, a copy of this 30th anniversary edition of the Brambly Hedge mice setting of on their journey to see the Vole family in the Lake District will definitely be finding its way into her Christmas stocking this year!

Bristle The Red by Wendy Ellwood and Sophie Holme £9.95

“Deep in the woods Bristle meets a grey stranger. How will the red squirrels overcome this danger?”

This absolutely delightful picture book follows the adventures of three little red squirrels, Bristle, Ping and Peg, as they try to defend their Lake District homeland from Kernal Nutcase and his invading army of grey squirrels. The tale is cleverly told in rhyme full of humour and brought to life by beautiful, vivid colour drawings. It definitely has something for readers old or young to enjoy and learn about the wonders of this elusive animal.