Description

WINNER OF THE 2023 HIGHLAND BOOK PRIZE

A WATERSTONES NATURE AND TRAVEL BEST BOOK OF 2023

LONGLISTED FOR THE WAINWRIGHT NATURE WRITING PRIZE 2023

‘Modern, revealing and restorative, a coastal treasure’ Amy Liptrot

‘Like its talismanic title, Huband’s voice is distinct and singular. A gorgeous reckoning with the sea, islands and mythology’ Sinead Gleeson

‘A wild melding of body and landscape. A deep, immersive, storm-tossed read’ Helen Jukes

‘As vital and complex as the oceans themseleves’ Joanna Pocock

A powerful journey of sea and self, trial and hope on the islands of Shetland

On the storm-tossed beaches of the Shetland Archipelago, Sally Huband is searching. A message in a bottle, a mermaid’s purse, a lobster trap tag, each find connects her more deeply with our oceans. But it is Sally’s quest for a fabled sea bean that unlocks the myths of these islands and carries her through chronic illness towards a new and more resilient self.

Publisher Review

I found the book a deeply moving, immersive journey through land, sea and the human heart -- Raynor Winn, author of The Salt Path SEA BEAN is a coastal treasure. Its hard-won attentiveness shows the wonder and vulnerability of our interconnected oceans, wildlife and people. In Sally's writing, beachcombing - an old island pursuit - is modern, revealing and restorative. The next time I am at the shore I will have a deeper appreciation and curiosity -- Amy Liptrot Like its talismanic title, Huband's voice is distinct and singular. A gorgeous reckoning with the sea, islands and mythology -- Sinead Gleeson A wild melding of body and landscape. A deep, immersive, storm-tossed read -- Helen Jukes A hymn to the vast watery depths of our planet, Sally explores the vital connections between humans and the creatures contained within and shaped by our precious seas. SEA BEAN is as vital and complex as the oceans themselves -- Joanna Pocock A magical, moving, strange book -- Jon Day A spectacular book, with a gorgeous slow, sad pace, full of quietly vital information. Sally seems to know just the right way to tell beautiful stories about quiet things. For me anyway, it's an instant classic of nature writing -- Sara Baume Sally Huband is a perceptive and engaging guide to the shores of Shetland and beyond. Full of curiosity and candour, SEA BEAN reveals the mysteries and wonders that are found where land and water meet -- Malachy Tallack Sea Bean is a beautifully brave book about finding one's place in an uncertain world. For Sally Huband that place is the Shetland shoreline, where her extraordinary beachcombing finds in times of limiting illness connect her to the greater waters of wild wonder, ecological grief and the possibilities of community. It's a profoundly illuminating journey through the seas that ultimately encircle us all. But what makes this journey so special is that its movement comes from waiting; it emerges from the great patience and care needed to uncover the stories that are washed ashore from elsewhere. Sea Bean will change the way you look at the world's coasts -- Julian Hoffman This is a book with real heart. As she scours the coastline of her wild island home, Huband shows us not only the delights of hunting for treasure amongst the detritus, but also the horrors of climate change in real time. It will change the way I look at beaches forever -- Lulah Ellender A notable addition the canon of beachcombing literature . . . the inspiring story of a woman coming to terms with a life-changing medical condition by finding beauty and interest and wonder in the infinite variety of things she finds washed up along the shore * Scotsman * To write a message in a bottle, or a story for an imagined reader, both are labours of love, sent out without guarantee in the hope they might one day be found and read. I do hope Sally's message is found and read by many - I've no doubt they'll be better off for it * Books From Scotland * Huband's passion flows through the prose as she breathes life into this lesser-known pastime . . . Frank, learned and lyrical * Books From Scotland * Sally Huband is a very fine writer * New Shetlander *