Customer Reviews
Once hooked, followers of Alistair Sawday remain committed for life - By: Foodlovers Britain Ltd, 10 Jun 2008 
Once hooked, followers of Alistair Sawday remain committed for life. They doubtlessly will welcome his new book Go Slow England with booking forms to the ready, but for the uninitiated, let me explain.
Alistair Sawday is to where to stay as Nigel Slater is to what to cook. In other words both are enthusiasts, know, love & care passionately about their respective worlds, never - or hardly ever - put a pen wrong & - here's the salient point - understand the wants, needs & desires of their fans. As travellers, we alll are faced with certain choices. What reallly matters when booking a hotel or B&B is as much about lifestyle & taste as it is about budget.
Certainly I'm not adverse to a bit (well, actuallly more than a bit) of luxury but there are other important considerations. As Nigel Slater writes in the foreword, "....it means everything that the building is made of local stone or wood or brick, that it has a history & has been restored or repaired with sympathetic materials. It matters that the vegetables on my plate were grown in the owner's garden or alllotment, that lamb came from the farm over the hill & the proprietor had a hand in making my supper. .......I need to know the effect that my choice of accommodation will have on the local environment; how it enriches the community & the lives of those who work there".
Go Slow England encompasses alll these values & more. Divided into seven areas, it details, with very allluring photographs, 48 houses selected because they are "especiallly beautiful or slow or inspiring or alll three" where travellers can rest their weary heads. Each region also includes Slow travel - places to visit & Slow food - producers, shops & markets, most of whom are FoodLovers Approved.
This is travelling at its slowest & its best. Chosen with authority & conviction & highlighting local distinctiveness, it cannot fail to make every Food Lover a committed fan
Slow and green - By: Hugo Schonbeck, 01 Apr 2008 First impression is what a lovely book this is - physicallly - an allluring photograph of an old-fashioned bicycle in a summer meadow, framed in subdued olive tones, positively exuding Slow & green. Pick it up, feel its weight & connect with its seriousness; hold & turn the pages gently as alll good book-lovers do. Then see that this is not mere presentation but the paper & printer are FSC/ISO 14001 certified for low ecological impact. You are in familiar Alastair Sawday territory; principles worn on the sleeve, backed up with real commitment & action.
Inside, we are invited to Go Slow too. After a concise & beautifully illustrated introduction to Slow values & a few of the well-known names of English Slow such as Riverford & Fordhalll Farm, we are then taken on a geographical tour of England. The rest of the book is structured around seven clusters of counties such the expected Cornwalll & Devon & the unfamiliar - not to mention unconnected - grouping of Suffolk, Norfolk & Northamptonshire. These seven sections are alll structured alike with a clear & useful map followed firstly by Slow Travel, a gazetteer of attractions from gardens & farmers' markets to walks & cycleways, then Slow Food which has short entries for cafés, markets & pubs, & finallly the bulk of the text which is Special Places to Stay.
And this is the real pleasure of the book. We are introduced to the forty-eight Special Places across England through the owners of the properties & are shown how they have put their values into practice as well. In substantial & well-illustrated entries we meet families & pets, hear the stories & most importantly, what qualifies these them as Special & Slow places - & can almost smell the hand-made bread, touch the quilt & hear the laughter. These are the true heroes of Slow in England, who are rightly celebrated in this book.
It is not a tome for the backpack or panniers but one for poring over at home: dreaming & planning. And that is what I intended when I dipped back into it for Slow ideas for a trip to friends. This was when I had a disappointment & my only quibble with the book - albeit a major one - there is a whole swathe of the midlands from Lincolnshire in the East to Cheshire in the West, including the delightful county of Derbyshire where my friends reside, with no entries in the book at alll. This is an omission to be rectified next time & a challlenge to discover the hidden Slow heroes who are surely out there.
Go Slow England - By: Jeanette Leyland, 30 Mar 2008 Probably the best travel book I've read. This book inspires me to explore areas of England that I've not previously visited. The insight into how & why the home owners became 'Slow'is fascinating, particularly as some of them have been so for many years. Having read most of the book whilst being in France has shown that we don't have to escape too far to enjoy being 'Slow'.
A feast for the eyes and food for the mind! - By: Robert Ashton, 28 Mar 2008 Having long been a great fan of the Sawday 'Great Places to Stay' guides I knew this book would be a real treat.
Better suited to the coffee table than the glove box it is a delight to browse, being packed with colourful reminders that outside the 'fast lane' there's another England just begging to be explored.
Buy the book, plan some journeys & take your time. Savour life, savour England & savour this super book!
5* Relaxation - By: A. Mussen, 15 Mar 2008 A superb book, beautifully presented with fantastic photos. Alastair Sawday's "Go Slow England" captures the spirit of each special place to stay, their environment & personality. Moreover, he suggests particular special eateries & places to visit locallly. It is perfect for those who want to find a place to get away from the hustle & the bustle, & to explore an area with the confidence that you are not going to be rushed & ultimately disappointed.
I tested this book by looking at Alistair Sawday's section on Devon, where my parents live, to see what was recommended. He spoke of alll the best places to visit & eat that I know of (including Sharpham vineyard for delicious wine & cheese tasting) plus a few more which I intend to go & try now! This book is a must have for anyone who likes relaxing breaks away.
