Rydal Mount: The Story of Wordsworth’s Home by Eileen Jones

Description Wordsworth’s home has been saved for the nation, and this is the inside story by an author who knows the house intimately. William Wordsworth, the greatest of the Romantic Poets, lived at Rydal Mount in the English Lake District for most of his life. But he was only a tenant there. It was more than 100 years later that his descendants bought the house and it became their family home as well as a popular tourist attraction, a place for visitors from around the world to celebrate Wordsworth’s poetry. In this quirky and engaging account, written with the support and co-operation of the poet’s descendants, Eileen Jones looks at the history of Rydal Mount, the lives of the poet and his family there in the 19th century, and how later generations of Wordsworths brought artists, film stars, fine dining, concerts and weddings to the house. She describes how the extensive gardens have been restored to plans used by Wordsworth himself, and tells how she spent a night there hoping to catch a glimpse of the poet’s ghost. And she brings us up to date on the deal that saved the house for the nation. It’s part biography, part Lake District history, and some literary detective work as well. “Here’s a look behind the scenes at what was our family home, which has also been one of the best loved heritage destinations in the Lake District for more than half a century. We hope you will love Rydal Mount as much as we have done.”(Christopher Wordsworth Andrew, the poet’s great-great-great-great-grandson.) Additional Info: Eileen Jones is a writer based in the Lake District and author of Loughrigg: Tales of a Small Mountain. She has written two books about parkrun, and a biography of the politician Neil Kinnock. She spent 12 years working with the Wordsworth family and the curators at Rydal Mount, helping to promote the house as a tourist attraction and organising events there, so she knows the place intimately.