'Glorious – funny and wry and wise, and utterly its own lawmaker' Robert Macfarlane
'A rich, strange, oddly glorious brew' Guardian
Longlisted for the Wainwright Golden Beer Book Prize 2018
21st-Century Yokel is not quite nature writing, not quite a family memoir, not quite a book about walking, not quite a collection of humorous essays, but a bit of all five.
Thick with owls and badgers, oak trees and wood piles, scarecrows and ghosts, and Tom Cox's loud and excitable dad, this book is full of the folklore of several counties – the ancient kind and the everyday variety – as well as wild places, mystical spots and curious objects. Emerging from this focus on the detail are themes that are broader and bigger and more important than ever.
Tom's writing treads a new path, one that has a lot in common with a rambling country walk; it's bewitched by fresh air and big skies, intrepid in minor ways, haunted by weather and old stories and the spooky edges of the outdoors, restless and prone to a few detours, but it always reaches its destination in the end.
More information
Tom Cox
Tom Cox is the author of eight previous books, including the Sunday Times top ten bestseller The Good, The Bad And The Furry and Bring Me The Head Of Sergio Garcia, his account of his year as Britain's most inept golf professional, which was longlisted for the William Hill Sports Book Of The Year Award in 2007. Tom lives in Devon and writes about - amongst many other subjects - nature, folklore, music and books on his voluntary subscription website, having quit writing for traditional media outlets entirely in 2015. He also hosts a monthly radio show on the experimental rural radio station Soundart and does live rural storytelling tours around the UK.
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2nd August 2023My new book!
Hello!
I wondered whether, as someone who was kind enough to pledge for one of my previous books, you might like to know that I've recently completed my latest. It's called 1983, which is also the year in which it's set, and I'm very excited about it. If you'd like to reserve a signed first edition hardback of it ready for its publication in spring, and support the book's funding in the process…
24th February 2023A NEW BOOK!
Hello!
As you're someone who's been kind enough to support a previous book I've published with Unbound, I wanted to let you know that I'm writing a new novel: the follow-up to Villager, to be published early next year. It's set in 1983, on the Nottinghamshire-Derbyshire border, where I grew up, and is about mining, aliens and lots of other things. If you'd like to, you can reserve a copy and contribute…
19th December 2022Newsletter
Hi! I just wanted to quickly let you know about my new Substack newsletter, which is just about to launch, and will be going out on an approximately monthly basis from this week onwards. It will be a mixture of new writing, book and music and film recommendations, the occasional interview, and will also incorporate my brand new podcast. It's free, with an optional subscription charge, just like my…
4th May 2022Villager/new website
Hello lovely supporters,
Just wanted to let you know, in case you already didn't, that my debut novel, Villager, is now out in the world. If you didn't get chance to pledge for a first edition hardback, I do have a few for sale direct, signed, with a bookmark made by my mum, Jo, featuring one of her linoprints from inside. If you'd like one of these, please drop me an email via my website https…
5th October 2021Villager artwork
Dear 21st-Century Yokel supporters,
Here's a little preview of some of the art that's coming together for my new book, Villager - my first ever novel, which covers almost two centuries of folklore and mystery in the life of a fictional moorland village, and is being published by Unbound in April 2022.
You might remember that my mum, Jo, did the linoprints for Yokel, and she's been hard at work…
13th August 2020My First Novel (finally)
Dear lovely supporter of 21st-Century Yokel,
I just wanted to let you know that I'm launching the funding for my first novel today. It's the biggest book so far for me, couldn't be closer to my heart, and I'm very much hoping it will see daylight. It's called Villager, is set in a fictional West Country Village over many many years, and its themes include land lore, psychedelic music, plant life…
14th April 2020Notebook: subscriber list closing and final manuscript delivered!
I delivered the final edited manuscript of my latest book, Notebook, today. If you'd like to order a special first edition with your name in the back as a supporter, the list closes on April 20th: https://unbound.com/books/notebook/
I’m so pleased to be able to show you Clare Melinsky’s cover design for my new book, Notebook, which will be published by Unbound in September.
I know it’s a very difficult time for many people right now, but if you would like to pledge for a special edition hardback of Notebook, with your name printed in the back of the book, the deadline is April…
4th March 2020NOTEBOOK AND HELP THE WITCH
Dear 21st-Century Yokel subscribers,
I know some of you might have already purchased my debut fiction collection Help The Witch, but if not - or if you'd like the book for a friend - I wanted to let you know that I'm selling the remaining hardbacks direct at the moment (after these are gone, only the paperback will be available). All of these are available for cover price plus tracked postage,…
15th August 2019NOTEBOOK: a new book by me
Hi,
Thanks again for your support on 21st-Century Yokel. I wanted to let you know about my next book, NOTEBOOK, which has gone up for funding. I'd be delighted if you could help make it a reality. You can read a little bit more about it here: https://unbound.com/books/notebook/
There are also lots of stationery-related pledge reward goodies available.
(Apologies if you already got this update…
9th June 2019Ring The Hill, the follow up to 21st-Century Yokel, is now complete!
Hi everyone!
I thought you might like to know that I am delivering my final edit of Ring The Hill, my non-fiction follow up to 21st-Century Yokel, tomorrow morning, and wondered if you would like to see one of my mum's linoprints for the book (she has done thirteen in total, and the attached is possibly my favourite).
Also, in case you didn't know, for anyone who might be still thinking…
1st April 2019Ring The Hill: the cover
I'm absolutely delighted to be able to reveal Clare Melinsky's amazing front cover for Ring The Hill. Clare came up with a wonderful cover for 21st-Century Yokel but I think she has outdone herself here. If you'd like to find out more about the book - which is a sister book to Yokel, although not exactly a sequel - or pledge for a special edition, you can do so here: https://unbound.com/books/ring…
3rd January 2019Some background about the artwork in 21st-Century Yokel and Help The Witch
Hello! I thought those who'd helped fund 21st-Century Yokel and Help The Witch (big thank you to all of you again!) might be interested to read this piece I just wrote, which gives some background to the art my mum provided for the books: http://tom-cox.com/writing/the-magic-room/. I'm also giving away a few of her prints to new subscribers to my site via paypal or Gocardless. The subscription links…
26th November 2018Ring The Hill
Hi again! A couple of people who pledged early on Ring The Hill mentioned there was no link to signed copies. Just to let everyone know: they are very much available, and this link should work: https://unbound.com/books/ring-the-hill/. There is also the option to upgrade if you pledged for a non-signed one. Look out for a few new pledge rewards on the page in the coming days. HUGE THANKS to everyone…
21st November 2018NEW BOOK
Hello. Thank you so much again for pledging for 21st Century Yokel. I wanted to let you know that my new book, Ring The Hill, is now up for funding: https://unbound.com/books/ring-the-hill/. It's another "nature and beyond" non-fiction book, and I hope people who enjoyed 21st Century Yokel will enjoy it in a not dissimilar way. All the best! Tom
24th September 201721st Century Yokel Walking Diary 2: Finding The Source Of The River Dart
19th September 201721st Century Yokel Walking Diary 1: Haldon Hill
6th June 2017Q&A Between Readers, Me And My Local Squirrel
Louise King (Facebook): Has the process of writing this new book altered how you experience walking through the countryside?
Tom: It has, especially if I define “writing this new book” as beginning in 2008, when I started to walk a lot in Norfolk, where I was living at the time. I am quite leggy and have always been a fast walker but in recent years have learned to be better at listening…
17th May 2017Some Thoughts About The Writing Of 21st Century Yokel
Now I've completed 21st Century Yokel, I've written a piece about some of the creative decisions I made during its creation, and why I chose to publish with Unbound. You can read the full piece by following this link, but here is an excerpt...
As I began to write 21st Century Yokel, I could see other potential commercial decisions ahead of me that had nothing to do with whether or not the book…
