“Carl Goes…” – a refreshing new approach to travel guides

9th July 2018

Carl Goes… ‘a refreshing new approach to travel guides for entrepreneurs, creatives and the generally curious.’

And having met editor Sasha Arms on Eel Pie Island recently, and read their latest guide – Carl Goes London Islands – I agree, and salute their innovative and stylish new approach.

Sasha Arms

‘We want everyone from entrepreneurs and business owners, to inquisitive city breakers and seasoned globetrotters, to become locals for the duration of their visit. You may even be an architect coming to London to work on a project, an art lover who want to visit documenta14 in Kassel, a curious web developer who wants to check out Berlin’s ‘Silicon Alley‘, or perhaps you are thinking about starting your own company in Amsterdam. Travel guides for all of you.’

But back to the Carl Goes London Islands guide, it is crammed full of fascinating stories about the ‘lives lived in the extraordinary setting of the River Thames islands. They may not have palm trees or white sandy beaches, but each one of London’s islands has an idyllic appeal in its own way. We follow the river from Canvey Island in Essex to Monkey Island in Berkshire, uncovering incredible stories of extraordinary events from centuries past, and hearing from the people who live on the islands today.‘

One of those people is beer entrepreneur Brian Watson, who has set up his ODDLY brewery on Platt’s Eyot, a tiny island near West Molesey and only linked to the mainland by a pedestrian footbridge built in 1941. Crazy? Possibly, especially when he says in the book that ‘it takes two people 10 hours to move three palettes of bottles from the car park on the riverbank to my unit on the island.’ But an admirable venture, and Brian now ‘has a sense of being close to nature, doing something quite industrial but on the riverbank, surrounded by ducks, swans, all kinds of other birds, insects, fish and so many overgrown and wild plants.’

Carl Goes London Islands brings many of the 200 islands on the River Thames to vivid life, through interviews with people like Brian, a trawl through history and fascinating facts, including size and location, accessibility and ‘Carl’s tips’ on how to make the most of each of these magical, often hidden, places.

Part guide, part travelogue, part history book and part sociology study, this beautifully crafted book will enhance any bookshelf. And combined with Tom Chesshyre’s From Source to Sea, it will have you rushing down to the Thames at the earliest opportunity.

‘We want you to feel inspired by those who actively choose the unexpected. Whether you find a city island to live on like our friends in this book, or take some of their spirit away with you, choosing a different way of living can be positively liberating. Island dreams are possible – even in the city.‘

Other Carl Goes guides:

• Carl Goes London
• Carl Goes Amsterdam
• Carl Goes Berlin
• Carl Goes Kassel
• Carl Goes Leipzig

You can follow Carl Goes… on Twitter, Facebook and check out their website.

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