Twilit and sinister, oozing with ague, bad airs, boggarts and other spirits: in the mind’s eye marshes, bogs and swamps are dangerous, crepuscular - and only partly of this world. For centuries wetlands - and their inhabitants - have been the object of our distrust: we’ve drained away their demons, encroached upon and denuded them, ripping away not only their fragile beauty, botany and birdlife, but also the carefully calibrated lives of those that have come to understand and thrive in them.

In Swamp Songs, Tom Blass takes us on a journey through these strange lands and waterscapes. Travelling from Romney Marsh to Virginia, from Lapland to the Danube Delta, he meets and engages with the inhabitants of some of the world’s least understood and precarious places, some of which are on the brink of obliteration. Along the way, he draws on the rich traditions of literature, folklore and mythology to uncover their forgotten histories, hidden wonders and untold secrets.

A dazzling exploration of nature on the margins of civilisation, Swamp Songs is a vital reappraisal and a vibrant celebration of our wetlands.