A NEW walking guidebook has been released exploring the literary heritage of the Ambleside area.

A Literary Walking Tour of Ambleside, by Dr Penny Bradshaw, provides a half-day walk and details the literary associations en route.

The book includes words from the many celebrated poets and novelists who have visited or lived in the town, including William and Dorothy Wordsworth, John Keats and Charlotte Brontë.

A trip to the waterfall Stock Ghyll Force is followed by a three-mile circuit to Rydal, past homes and locations that have inspired many wordsmiths over the years.

Dr Bradshaw, thematic lead for cultural landscapes at the University of Cumbria, said: "I am interested in the ways in which our imaginative responses to place develop and evolve over time, but also in how previous literary responses go on to shape and inform future perceptions of place.

“I enjoyed seeing how the lives of the Wordsworths have been woven into this landscape.

"Particularly moving is the poem Thoughts on my Sick-bed, written by Dorothy Wordsworth at Rydal Mount, in which she reflects on the ways in which memories can come back to console us during difficult times.

“Dorothy’s voice and writings have resonated with me during the last year-and-a-half."

A launch event for the walking tour, featuring readings from the book by the author and a book-signing, will take place on August 13 between 6.30 and 8.30pm at Ambleside's Armitt Museum and Library.

Copies of Dr Bradshaw's book can be bought here.

Tickets to the launch event can be booked here.