Swim Wild, Hardback Out Now
Last weekend we celebrated the launch of ‘Swim Wild’ (Yellow Kite Books) - jack’s debut book about wild swimming and our adventures together…
If I could describe the book to a potential reader I would say that it is a travelogue (more memoir than swim guide), following myself (Jack) and my two older brothers from paddling pools to Arctic maelstroms, tracking our expeditions, whilst also exploring the historical and scientific significance of swimming in cold water.
I wrote this book to record the transformation felt when you escape the city and swim outdoors. I wanted to convey to the reader how wild swimming helped me personally and to show them how it can double as a form of meditation, as well as being a vital activity to access the natural world and escape the comfortable, digitally lit sensorium many of us create and inhabit on a daily basis.
I also wanted to just take this opportunity to say a massive thank you to all of you who’ve supported us these past four years. There are times when everyone hits a motivational slump and it’s at those times that you take a look at the people around you, and those who’ve gone before you. The voices that call out and tell you to keep pushing. The hand that hauls you out the water and the one that feeds you a brownie when you need it most. We have been incredibly lucky to have the support of you fine folk and to be part of this unruly, lovely wild swimming community. What a privilege!
If you’d like, you can pick up a copy of our book using the link below:
Finally, I wanted to share a quote from the book’s epigraph, spoken by that great velvety-voiced naturalist and friend of wild animals:
“I’ve never met a child who was not interested in natural history. So, the - I mean just the simplest thing, a five-year-old turning over a stone and seeing a slug, you know, and says: “What a treasure - how does it live and what are those things on the front?” Kids love it. Kids understand the natural world... so the question is how did you lost it? How did anyone lose interest in nature?”
I hope this book helps a little to stoke that interest in its reader - thanks so much for your support!