A beautifully illustrated and arranged book - as you would expect from the National Trust series. Absolutely gorgeous as well as informative and useful. A great holiday companion.

A very pleasant, almost stately, shell-spotting introduction, focusing, as the National Trust obviously would, on British examples. After a guide to considerations such as reading the tide and what footwear is best, we get the main bulk of the book, where we have a page of text and a painted illustrating page for each and every critter. Some of these things we're supposed to be able to hear – and I mean their eating, not by putting the dead shell to our ear and hearing the shushing noise of our pulse and other things rebounding around. Herbivorous or not, these animals have two to four concise paragraphs each, and while it may be the case of it just repeating the information the artwork is giving us, it's not like anything ever felt left out. We get spotting tips, for which coast is best to catch sight of everything on, a glossary, and space for us to write down our first discovery for each and every selected seashell.

I don't know anything about this subject, really, so the book could have left out dozens of key and obvious potential finds without my being any the wiser. But I certainly liked what I did see – the craft in the visuals, the serenity given off by the tinted pages and font choice. They made spotting a beer barrel at the shore something to aspire to – although that was probably always the case, hence the interest in also espying a blunt gaper, a piddock, and the members of the Wentletrap family, before I or someone else uses that term as a cod-Dickensian surname in a cheap 'n' cheerful novel. Cheap 'n' cheerful might describe the free hobby of rock-pooling, but this gives it a touch of class and makes it feel a most worthwhile pastime, so get your waders on and your eye in!

Gorgeously illustrated and beautifully written - makes me want to drop everything and go shell hunting. Definitely will be recommending this to everyone!

I did not know we needed a book about shells in our household until I saw this book added to NetGalley. Recognising the beautiful shells of my childhood in the cover and after reading the description, I felt a connection with my memories, and glad requested this book.

This book is a combination of a reference guide on shells (know your shells), a work/activity book to write down your notes and keep it as a journal when you spot them, and starts with information about shell observing etiquette, safety and fun. The drawings are lovely and allow the exploration to be successful.

It is a book to take with you to the seaside. Great for those who love sea shells, the sea and as a gift to the loved ones who are particular about their shells.

A fascinating and informative book that can be loved by anyone who lives by the sea or love shells.
Well researched and easy to follow
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

After an introduction covering shells, collecting etiquette and guidelines for exploring rocky shores, the book takes us through the common and uncommon shells you might find around the coast of the British Isles in alphabetical order. The text is broken up by sections on clues to what shells are, the tides, art made with shells and creatures that borrow shells. There's a useful glossary and recommended guides, one by the author herself which obviously goes into more detail. For each shell there's a lovely illustration by Ella Sienna, then the name, the Latin name, a general note of where it's found, a description and a description of the shell's inhabitant. After a specific note of locations, as with all good spotters' guides there's a place for you to write in where and when you spotted the shell (best used in the printed version, obviously!).

A lovely introduction to shell-spotting and certainly clarifies what I've seen on my various beach trips.

I'll be reviewing this on my blog on 3 April 2024.

Beautifully illustrated book on shells. Makes you want to wander through the rock pools in the sun and warmth looking for shells.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This is a great book for children to own if spending time by a beach. The illustrations are beautiful - really intricate and eye-catching. I loved the level of detail in them. In addition to the illustrations, each shell has a write up, describing it and giving you more information about how the shell is made and where you are most likely to find them.

Each shell has a space to record where you spotted it and when. This really is a book which promotes ethical beach combing in an informative, accessible way.

I loved the book and the illustrations. It was also interesting to have the info on where in the British Isles particular shells may be found. I enjoyed learning about the wide variety of shells that can be found on our shores. It really made me want to go to the seashore and go hunting. I will definitely be sharing the book with my granddaughter.

A seashell i-spy for adults

Helen’s book is a bit like an adult i-spy book on seashells. There are lovely paintings of each shell along with information including the history of its discovery, any uses and peculiarities and some interesting anecdotes. Details of where each species can be found are show at the bottom of the page with space for the reader to add where and when they find the shell.

I was given this book from the author via netgalley only for the pleasure of reading and leaving an honest review should I choose to.

What a gorgeous book for anyone who loves nature or seashells!
I have been collecting shells/beachcombing for over 30 years and loved this well-detailed guide of common seashells you can find on the shore. I downloaded it to my phone so I can use it anytime I am walking the beach!
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this arc.

This is a really nice book with some very beautiful images. Although not appropriate as a full identification guide, this would certainly suit someone looking to enjoy knowing more about the shells that they are finding on the beaches of the UK.

Perfect for any shell collectors, this book/journal is beautifully illustrated and gives a detailed description of each shell and explains where it is likely to be found. It begins with a few guidelines for sensible shell collecting and there is a space to record where you have seen a particular shell and when you found it. Thank you to Net Galley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book is absolutely beautiful, and such a good guide for shell spotting on our beach adventures. The illustrations in this National Trust guide were so good to share with my little girl, as she could find the pictures to match the shells she collected.

Really lovely guide for all the family.

Handy book to have in your bag when you’re investigating the low tide rockpools round our coast with pictures to help with identification. Ideal for children.

This is something that I would never have thought I would read, but I was invited by the publisher to read it. I loved it it was so well written but it also interesting as the language was accessible and easy to follow. I didn't grow up in the UK and so I finally learnt what shells people talk about here actually look like - what an eye opener. Really glad that I read this.

This book needs to be in your case if your going near a beach!
The description and pictures of the shells was great, a fabulous book to take on holiday especially with children to learn about shells.
It actually took me back to childhood walking the beach I wish I had this book then
Thank you netgalley

A big fan and avid member of The National Trust, I was very excited to be invited to review this book on exchange for an arc copy from Netgalley.

The book contains a short introduction to shell spotting, with some key tips, and suggestions for best times to find shells and best-practice suggestions; and then goes into an A-Z of shells. There are a few key facts about each shell including what kind of mollusc or crustacean inhabits them, or what they like to eat, and where they can be found on rocks or in the sea as well as the best places to find them in the UK. These are accompanied with detailed photo-like illustrations of the shells.

Interspersed with the A-Z of shells are some other related topics such as:
Shell clues
Tides
Shell magic
The art of shells
Shell borrowers.

I learned some new interesting facts about molluscs that I didn't know before - such as some shells eat other shells! They pierce the shells of other molluscs and eat them from within! I always assumed molluscs ate algae or plant matter! And that some shells exist on the surface of water!

A good guide to keep handy for visiting the beach, or to try and identify found shells when you get home!

This has got to be one of my favourite shell books, it's beautiful, I love how detailed the pictures are and the information given is informative. I think this book should be on every bookshelf. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this beautiful book.

My only problem with this beautiful book is that it made the children bully me into going to the beach on a freezing February day to look for shells. Maybe I should have kept this back till the warmer weather !
That said, it is a very informative beautiful book and we all loved it. The illustrations just are fabulous even if you know little about shells.