Ellie Slater, manager of Waterstones bookshop in Kendal, picks the town's top 10 books for 2018.

Capture Lakeland by James Bell

This stunning photography collection is a love story to the Lakes. James captures the beauty of our fells, lakes, stormy skies and remote buildings. His photographs are not just of place but emotion, and whether in vivid colour or stark black and white they warrant contemplation. It is a treat to the senses – a book to make you slow down and appreciate the beauty we are lucky enough to find on our doorsteps.

Walls in the Landscape

produced by The Dry Stone Walling Association of Great Britain

(available for pre-order in shop or online)

This lovely volume is produced by the Dry Stone Walling Association of Great Britain and all proceeds from the sale of it go towards maintaining and conserving the wonderful, iconic, dry stone walls we see zig-zagging across our countryside. It features spectacular photographs from dozens of different photographers all with unique styles and ways of capturing the rugged beauty of the dry stone wall.

The Ordnance Survey Puzzle Book.

Pit your wits against Britain's greatest map makers! Each section features a variety of maps from the 225 years the Ordnance Survey have been mapping Great Britain. The pages are broken down into four categories – Easy, Medium, Tricky and Challenging – and the questions in these vary from search-and-find tasks to place name anagrams. This is the perfect book for lovers of maps, the great outdoors and a challenge!

The Yards of Kendal by Trevor Hughes and Arthur Nicholls

Released a little over a year ago now, and our number one in this list last year, The Yards of Kendal has gone down a storm with tourists and locals alike and has proved itself to be the definitive local book for Kendal. If you want to know a little more about our town's growth and development over the centuries then look no further – this is the book for you.

Rogan by Simon Rogan

Simon's book showcases recipes using down-to-earth ingredients that are accessible to people everywhere. It combines vibrant recipe pictures with photography that captures the life and landscapes of Our Farm (where Rogan and his team select what to grow for the restaurant). Rogan is a ground-breaking book – taking a fresh look at how people can cook “show stopper” food without breaking the bank.

The Lake District Quiz Book by David Felton

Welcome to the perfect family night in. The Lake District Quiz Book is full of great questions like “What is the highest pub in Lakeland?” and “What luxury did Alfred Wainwright choose on Desert Island Discs?” This little hardback volume has more than 600 wicked questions that will really test your knowledge of our wonderful county with unlikely facts, essential figures and trivia.

This Place I know: A New Anthology of Cumbrian Poetry

This is a wonderful new collection of work from an impressive cross section of poets, all with their take on our little corner of the world. It takes the reader on a pleasantly varied journey from the Cymro-Anglian past, to speculations on the English wolf, our landscape, childhood and mortality. This book is a testament to the power of the Cumbrian landscape on the artistic mind, a county that has shaped and sculpted so many poets already and clearly has much more to give.

The Wren: A Biography by Stephen Moss

Stephen Moss has carved himself a crown as the king of in-depth bird biography. The Wren follows last year's best selling book The Robin: A Biography - one that held its own in the Christmas charts. The wren was the face of the farthing, the muse of many a poet and even the victim of tradition. This mouse-like bird is described by Moss as a “paradox” and this beautifully illustrated tell-all reveals the unseen secrets of this wonderful bird.

Beneath My Feet: Writers on Walking, introduced and edited by Duncan Minshull

This lovely pocket-sized cloth-bound book contains a wonderful collection of essays by famous writers on their experiences of walking, the pleasure and the wonder it gives them. It contains musings from everyone from Dickens to Mark Twain and is perfect to dip into when walking out among the fells.

The Runner: Four Years Living and Running in the Wilderness by Markus Torgeby

An international bestseller that is currently climbing the charts here in Kendal, this is the story of Markus Torgeby – a man who at just 20 years old set out to dedicate himself to his passion for running in a remote corner or Sweden. This extraordinary book is a powerful exploration of running, resilience, loss and self-discovery.