A BOOK which hails William Wordsworth’s role in the invention of tourism has been published by a Japanese professor and launched in the Lake District.

The work stems from a visit by author Saeko Yoshikawa to Wordsworth’s home at Rydal Mount, where she was shown a Victorian album of pencil sketches by curator Peter Elkington.

Prof Yoshikawa, of the Kobe City University, is an expert on Wordsworth and tourism in the Lakes.

MORE TOP STORIES: In trying to identify the artist responsible for the sketches, many showing scenes associated with the poet, she researched how he had been received by his early readers, and what poems were popular among tourist readers.

“For the middle classes on holiday, guidebooks not only offered information but also provided a new appreciation of the area,” said Prof Yoshikawa.