Non Fiction

This cover shows a digital illustration of a waterfall flowing into a river. The text reads: The Waters That Raised Us. Edited by Taylor Edmonds.

The Waters That Raised Us

Personal Reflections from Wales

Taylor Edmonds (Editor)

Category: Essays, Non Fiction, Places

Number of pages: 166

ISBN: 9781781727942

Publication date: March 9, 2026

Price: £12.99

As a nation, Wales has deep cultural and geomorphological associations with water. In this vital anthology, editor Taylor Edmonds asks nine contemporary Welsh writers to consider how the waters we live alongside shape who we are and connect us to one another.

Drawing on personal experience, family history, folklore and local legend, they explore the waters that have raised them, from seas, rivers and waterfalls to reservoirs and swimming pools. In doing so, they address the fears that come with knowing these bodies of water are at risk from climate change. The result is a powerful collection of unique stories, histories and imagined futures for the waters of Wales, which remind us why these vital forces need both our protection and respect.

Includes essays by Sofia Brizio, Taylor Edmonds, Malachy Edwards, Dylan Huw, Joshua Jones, Francesca Reece, Durre Shahwar, Kathryn Tann, CJ Wagstaff and Kandace Siobhan Walker.

Photo of Taylor Edmonds. She is standing outside and is wearing a bright orange top.
Taylor Edmonds

Taylor Edmonds is a poet, writer and creative facilitator from Barry. She is the founder of Writing for Joy, where she provides writing for wellbeing workshops for community groups, schools, hospitals and corporate clients. Taylor’s debut poetry pamphlet Back Teeth was published by Broken Sleep Books in 2022. She was the 21-22 Poet in Residence for the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales. She has received a Rising Stars Award from Literature Wales and Firefly Press for her writing for young people. Taylor’s stage debut, Demand the Impossible, written for Common Wealth Theatre, showed The Corn Exchange in October 2025.

Photo credit: Grace Springer

Author profile

“Each essay is distinct, as an anthology should be, yet they resonate with one another to create a cohesive whole… Across the collection, themes of climate activism and restoration intertwine with anti-colonial, feminist and queer perspectives that I found crucially enlightening.”

Rhys James, Buzz Magazine