LONGLISTED FOR THE WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR NATURE WRITING 2025 AND A RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK

‘A dazzlingly inventive work of literature’ - Robert Macfarlane, author of The Old Ways

'A wonderful, epic braiding of history, geography and personal memoir' - James Rebanks, author of English Pastoral


At the heart of this book is a highway. The A1; The Great North Road. A 400-mile multiplicity of ancient trackway, Roman road, pilgrim path, coach route and motorway that has run like a backbone through Britain for the last 2,000 years.

In this genre-defying and profoundly personal book, Cowen follows this ghost road from beginning to end on a journey through history, place, people and time. Weaving his own histories and memories with the layered landscapes he moves through, this is the story of an age, of coming to terms with time past and time passing, and the roads that lead us to where we find ourselves.

Written in kaleidoscopic prose, The North Road is an unforgettable exploration of Britain’s great highway.