Aled Rhys Hughes (Seren)

For five years, photographer Aled Rhys Hughes visited Mametz on the anniversary of the battle which claimed the lives of over 4000 Welsh soldiers, and Mametz collates his photographs of the area today. It has a strange calmness, but with a sickening and insidious eerie quality to the images, perfectly exemplified by his out of focus twilight images, the time of day that most terrified the soldiers there. The photographs are all powerful, and with context, can inspire deep contemplation about a number of themes, most striking, the memories of thousands of personal tragedies. This aspect can be overlooked in many accounts, getting lost in statistics, but seeing the clear remnants of the war, and the memorials left by visitors, the personal legacy of the First World War is well captured in this captivating book.

words LUKE OWAIN BOULT

Price: £14.99. Info: www.serenbooks.com