Overview

Churches are many things to us - they are places of worship, vibrant community hubs and oases of calm reflection. To know a church is to hold a key to the past that unlocks an understanding of our shared history.Andrew Ziminski has spent decades as a stonemason and church conservator, acting as an informal guide to curious visitors. Church Going is his handbook to the medieval churches of the British Isles, in which he reveals their fascinating histories, features and furnishings, from flying buttresses to rood screens, lichgates to chancels. Beautifully written and richly illustrated, it is a celebration of British architectural history.

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9781800818682

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Reviews

Praise for The Stonemason: A History of Building Britain * : * Thoughtful, observant and well-informed, as much at ease with words and emotions as with the stone he works with * History Today * Delicate as the threads that tie us to the past can seem, thanks to work like Ziminski's, both as mason and as author, we can hope they will remain unbroken * Daily Telegraph * Ziminski is one of those lucky souls with rural X-ray spectacles. He looks at the countryside and sees a series of historical slides going back over several millennia ... what a magician! * Spectator * The author's eagerness to experience the past physically sets him apart from drier academic historians ... Ziminski's writing is vividly evocative and craftsmanlike ... it's a fascinating book and a wise one * Daily Mail * A wonderful behind-the-scenes history, where time works on a different scale and stone is a living, breathing entity ... by a master craftsman whose expertise connects him to the generations that came before him * BBC Countryfile Magazine * There are few reading pleasures that compare with a passionate expert describing their work, and Ziminski stands proudly in this field ... remarkable * Literary Review * This is a compelling book ... it is rooted in the making of England and is a magical read * Evening Standard *

From bulletholes in weathervanes to beehives in church walls, Ziminski has an eye for charming details and an ear for a good story -- Peter Ross, author * Steeple Chasing * This book is an anatomy of buildings we take for granted, an opening-up of architectural bodies to reveal marvellous mechanisms in gold, bone, ancient stone and holy wells of stories -- Amy Jeffs, author * Storyland * Praise for The Stonemason: A History of Building Britain * : * Delicate as the threads that tie us to the past can seem, thanks to work like Ziminski's, both as mason and as author, we can hope they will remain unbroken * Daily Telegraph * Ziminski is one of those lucky souls with rural X-ray spectacles. He looks at the countryside and sees a series of historical slides going back over several millennia ... what a magician! * Spectator * The author's eagerness to experience the past physically sets him apart from drier academic historians ... Ziminski's writing is vividly evocative and craftsmanlike ... it's a fascinating book and a wise one * Daily Mail * Thoughtful, observant and well-informed, as much at ease with words and emotions as with the stone he works with * History Today * A wonderful behind-the-scenes history, where time works on a different scale and stone is a living, breathing entity ... by a master craftsman whose expertise connects him to the generations that came before him * BBC Countryfile Magazine * There are few reading pleasures that compare with a passionate expert describing their work, and Ziminski stands proudly in this field ... remarkable * Literary Review * This is a compelling book ... it is rooted in the making of England and is a magical read * Evening Standard *

Praise for The Stonemason: A History of Building Britain * : * Delicate as the threads that tie us to the past can seem, thanks to work like Ziminski's, both as mason and as author, we can hope they will remain unbroken * Daily Telegraph * Ziminski is one of those lucky souls with rural X-ray spectacles. He looks at the countryside and sees a series of historical slides going back over several millennia ... what a magician! * Spectator * The author's eagerness to experience the past physically sets him apart from drier academic historians ... Ziminski's writing is vividly evocative and craftsmanlike ... it's a fascinating book and a wise one * Daily Mail * Thoughtful, observant and well-informed, as much at ease with words and emotions as with the stone he works with * History Today * A wonderful behind-the-scenes history, where time works on a different scale and stone is a living, breathing entity ... by a master craftsman whose expertise connects him to the generations that came before him * BBC Countryfile Magazine * There are few reading pleasures that compare with a passionate expert describing their work, and Ziminski stands proudly in this field ... remarkable * Literary Review * This is a compelling book ... it is rooted in the making of England and is a magical read * Evening Standard *

Author Information

Andrew Ziminski is a stonemason, church conservator and author living and working in Frome, Somerset. He has four decades of experience working on some of the greatest cathedrals and churches in Britain, including the tower of Salisbury Cathedral and the dome of St Paul's in London. He is a SPAB William Morris Craft Fellow, a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, and conservation advisor to the Salisbury Diocesan advisory committee for the care of churches. He is the author of The Stonemason: A History of Building Britain.

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