Love Letters on the River (Paperback)

This book will be released in June 2026.

Pre-orders are charged at time of order and the book will be posted to you as soon as it becomes available.

UK postage is 99 pence per order.

CHOSEN FOR THE NON-FICTION BOOKSHELF BY WALES LITERATURE EXCHANGE

"Holmes' writing belongs with the new wave of nature writers like Kathleen Jamie or Robert Macfarlane. But her voice is different. Quieter, more modest. Less about grandeur, more about intimacy... It is a book of humility, beauty, and attentiveness." ‒ Jessica McQuade, the welsh agenda

"the book imparts the sheer love for the wild that the author feels, and she articulates the emotional impact of her encounters beautifully... The text is emotionally open and honest, written from the viewpoint of someone who sees themselves as part of nature, living in a world that tends to set nature apart... it's safe to say you'll enjoy this particular tribute to the wild." ‒ Lizzie Wilberforce, Natur Cymru

"Holmes’ love letters, addressed to water, to weather, to the wild world we forget we belong to, are tender but un-whimsical, rooted in the real. And the result is beguiling: an unconventional devotional, full of feeling, wild magic, and awe." ‒ Mab Jones, Buzz Magazine

"a deeply evocative meditation on the Teifi river, its wildlife, and the surrounding landscape ... As well as being a book to lose yourself in, it adds to the growing body of ecological writing that could help to reshape and rebalance the Earth." ‒ Jenny White, Western Mail

"it’s been a pleasure to sit back for once and just enjoy the pure elation of traditionally immersive and beautiful nature writing... Love Letters on the River provides a reminder of why we love nature, how we appreciate it, and when that happens we naturally want to protect it." ‒ Lottie Williams, Nation. Cymru

Carly's 'On Being a (Nature) Writer in Wales' essay for Nation. Cymru is available to read here.

Carly's essay in Modron Magazine is available to read here.

The nightjar swooped from its tree and towards me, glided over my head and away into the pitch depths of the forest. It seemed to float on the air with only the merest shiver of its wings... a gauze and silk puppet in a child’s play.

Includes a dozen black and white illustrations commissioned exclusively for this publication by acclaimed local artist Guy Manning.

This collection of essays, beautifully illustrated throughout, are each of them love letters to the Teifi valley and to the river that winds through Carly’s days. The wild animals ‒ the badgers who visit nightly for peanuts; the juvenile osprey who learned to fish on the estuary across the lane; the young jackdaw she nurtured until it was healthy enough to ignore her whenever she went into the garden; the cuckoos she discovered in flagrante one afternoon on a lockdown walk ‒ are the very heart of it.

Describing encounters and missed encounters with the wildlife that surrounds the Teifi, Love Letters on the River is a lyrical, honest and tender tribute to the many creatures ‒ both in the garden and beyond the garden wall ‒ that bring joy to Carly’s life simply by existing.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Foreword

BEYOND THE GARDEN WALL:

Mating Cuckoos by Foxhill Farm
Juvenile Osprey on the Teifi Estuary
Skydancing Ravens at Cwm Gwaun
Nightjar at Cross Inn Forest
Bittern at the Teifi Marshes

IN THE GARDEN:

Runty
Tapdancing Tawny Owls
Steak Dinner for Four
Des Res
Pumpkin Eyes
The Bereft Sparrowhawk
Dawn Chorus

BEYOND THE GARDEN WALL:

Winter Barn Owl over the Teifi Marshes
Hobbies at Cors Caron
Swifts at the Watch House
Racing Swans on the Teifi
Murmurating Starlings over the Teifi Marshes
Crossbills at Pantmaenog Forest

Afterword

 

 

Carly Holmes lives and writes in a small village on the banks of the river Teifi in west Wales. She is the author of the novels The Scrapbook, which was shortlisted for the International Rubery Book Award, and Crow Face, Doll Face, as well as the short story collection, Figurehead. She has had numerous stories published in journals and anthologies. Love Letters on the River is her first book of non-fiction.

Encouraged by his grandfather, Guy Manning has been drawing birds since he was a small boy.  He has been a window cleaner, barman, kitchen porter, lecturer and teacher, whilst having many exhibitions near and far. He became a full-time artist in 2018 when he and his wife – author Eloise Williams – opened The Art Room in Tenby: a slightly scruffy studio shop where Guy paints and sells his oil paintings and encourages future generations of artists.