His journey follows the route of the Roman Car Dyke from Peterborough to Lincoln,visiting the villages and towns on the way. Few of the travel writers from the past have written on these areas, but where they haveRex retraces their journeys, recalling their comments and adding what he sees today.
"Like many of the families in this book, Rex Sly follows in the footsteps of his ancestors who were also farmers in the Fens. The land was reclaimed, giving a unique bond between 'soil and soul' - each generation wishing to leave their soils as a sustainable inheritance to the next. The variety of crops which are grown has changed little over the years, but the traditional farms have been largely replaced by high-tech agro-businesses supplying supermarkets and international corporations. However, not all farms in the Fens are large, and the richness of the soil still enables the small grower to survive in a niche marketplace. Rex Sly charts the changes and development of this fascinating region, from land reclamation, small-holdings and horsepower to aerial spraying and multi-national workforces"--Back cover
A superb examination of the history of the Fens, containing a great deal of stunning photographs. schovat popis
The Fens remained a remote area until the advent of the railways in the 1860s, but even when transport links improved many of the long-established Fen families stayed put for the next 100 years, wedded as they were to a way of life that was unique to this part of England. Now, in the early years of the twenty-first century, there are still businesses, trades and professions throughout the Fens that have been in the same family for generations - and are still thriving, despite pressures from the modern world of multinationals, cheap imports and online shopping.