When Beach Buoy was a child, the house had a copy of the
AA Book of the road.
It goes without saying it had lots of maps but was also full of interesting information.
It was one of those books that you could always find something of interest if you picked it up for a browse.
Beach Buoy had been looking on line at the book, as some people tend to do with items from their past.
It was there that he spotted The AA Book of the Seaside from 1972.
Prices ranged a fair amount but when he spotted a copy for 99p he made a bid.
The 99p bid won, the postage cost more; bargain.
It arrived a few days later.
It is in excellent condition.
Like the book of the road, from his childhood, Beach Buoy found lots of things of interest.
There are maps of the entire coast of the UK including many Islands.
Places will have changed beyond recognition over the years, but the important parts; the beaches, should all still be there?
Over 300 pages of detailed maps of the coast, all with information of towns and villages in the different areas.
The book also covers a wide variety of seaside related subjects, some are listed below.
- What is a Wave?
- A Sunbathing guide.
- Tides.
- Treasure Hunting.
- The Lure of the Sea.
- Reading the Sky.
- Water Safety.
- Lighthouses.
- Piers.
- Ship Types.
- Signals and Markers.
- Seabirds and Seaweed.
- Coastal Erosion.
- Swimming.
- Diving.
- Sud-aqua.
- Sea-angling.
- Boating.
- Surfing.
- Camping.
- Caravaning.
Of course it pays to rememberer that it is a 1972 book.
Things have changed on most of the subjects above but that could be part of the interest for some?
You may find that Memory Lane has been renamed Enterprise Avenue, the road layout has changed and there is a Retail Park where that house used to be?
The book is approximately 130 mm x 230 mm
which is about 5 inches x 9 inches, handy enough to pop into car or van glovebox for a day out or even a trip around the full coast in bite size pieces, if you have the time, the money and the desire.
It has 480 pages.
The print is quite small, but that might be more to do with Beach Buoy's age than the book itself.
Beach Buoy thinks he bought a bargain for a total of £3-99.
He had seen some for sale for £30 to £40.
Anything in life is only worth the price someone wants pay, so.....your call.
BEACH BUOY.
