If you ever wondered why people swim in cold water allayer round for enjoyment, this book will answer these questions. It is a mine of information on this particular therapy and there are case histories and testimonials to the effectiveness of wild or blue space swimming.
There are some facts that most people would not be aware of. The cold water re-sets some parts of the memory system.
A feeling of belonging and being part of the universe with no preconditions.
I was interested in the reactions of people suffering from depression, something that Covid 19 has incread.
A sense of belonging to a tribe or community with like- minded interests, but dissimilar back grounds is also explored but he author.
She relates some of her own experiences and give explanations to a wide range of fears and also benefits to do with swimming in blue space.

This subject has so much potential, I was immediately attracted by the concept of blues spaces, because it is so true, how healing water is, can be.

Unfortunately this book reads like a presentation or a lecture, not like a work of narrative nonfiction. Because it is a galley, I'm hoping that perhaps the author will be given advice on editing this to make the style more suitable.

e.g. 1 "Before I go on to talk specifically about water and wellbeing, I want to briefly discuss stress" (Too much prefacing)
e.g.2 "'but very simply.....Perceived' is the important word here... (patronising way of addressing the reader)
e.g. 3 "I won't go into this here but the take out message is that...." (colloquial)
e.g. 4 "This is not hippy nonsense - it is firmly rooted in neuroscience" (judgmental statement)
e.g. 5 "These are not quantitative measures but they do help us understand (italicized) things more deeply" (too many qualifiers, as if there is a need to defend and italicizing the word understand? Patronising to the reader's intelligence.

It doesn't really bode well for the general populace when the author admits to their privilege - and then tells us that not everyone falls into that category, it shows a lack of self awareness. Again, nothing a good edit couldn't fix.

There's something about the language that comes across as patronising, unfortunately I DNF after persevering to 30%. I would only read this if it had a thorough editing by someone familiar with narrative nonfiction.

Out of respect to the author, I won't post this review elsewhere, I'd like to give them the benefit of this being a galley and hope that there are significant changes made to the manuscript, before it gets published.

This is a simple introduction to why so many of us are drawn to the sea....and other places of water. The author looks at scientific research into why we feel better from merely being within proximity of the coast. With wild swimming having become so popular over the last 12 months the author (a fan herself!) goes some way to explain the positive psychological and physical benefits to being in the sea. An enjoyable read for those who want to understand the attraction and the therapeutic benefits of being in or near water.

I enjoyed parts of the book and found them to be unique and interesting. However, coming from an interest in non fiction and science I think I was expecting something a bit more scientific and less story based and anecdotey.

I think it would be a good intro for someone interested in learning more about the subject and exploring wild swimming but it left me a bit wanting.

The first part of the book was depressing. So from the very first pages, I didn't want to read it. Did we really need to know how very terrible it was that the author lost her mother? I felt like I was reading a novel instead of a book that would tell me how good blue spaces are. But instead, I find myself thinking about what I'd do when I lose my mother.
And I didn't enjoy the extra friendly tone of this book. It didn't feel professional at all, and I find it hard to care about it. I've read a lot of nonfiction about nutrition and health in general, and instead of other people's stories and authors' heartbreaking stories, I'm interested in facts. This book could have been amazing but I just feel angry and depressed right now. I guess I need a cold shower.

The moment I see water I instantly feel calmer. I mainly wanted to read this book to see why at phenomenon happens to me and so many other people. This book is incredibly informative and interesting. Highly recommend