On the Red Hill

On the Red Hill is an extraordinary book: brave and ground-breaking. It is far more than a queer and Welsh Howards End. Gossipy, inquisitive, confessional, lyrical, elegiac and camp-ly witty by turns, Parker offers us an unexpected and important meditation on change and on belonging, presenting four different gay lives associated with a single house. He shows us what it is that makes these lives matter. – Peter J. Conradi
A marvellous book. It is an uplifting tale of tranquillity sought and found in the nearest Britain gets to paradise. – Simon Jenkins
Intense, fascinating account of queer lives in rural Wales over almost five decades … holds a mirror up to the often hidden gay lives of the past century … The result, in prose as swooping as the birds that teem about the house, is an important study of everyday gay life before and after decriminalisation. It is also (for Parker is nothing if not ambitious) an intimate account of the stunning natural beauty of this part of Wales, and its proud history … By turns euphoric and melancholy, he matches his emotions to the seasons … It is through this unusual book, a lovely hybrid of memoir, panegyric and queer history, that Parker too … seems at last to find his own noddfa - sanctuary - and with it a sense of belonging. * Daily Telegraph *
Structurally innovative, linguistically precise, and emotionally enervating, On the Red Hill is a praise-poem to adventure, belonging, the power of nature and, above all, to the resilience of human beings and the love between them. Parker’s great strength and passion is in illuminating certain hidden strata of these islands, in the unearthing and re-telling of stories silenced by the forces of political history; here, he applies those talents to his own biography, and to some of those blessed enough to share it. He has produced a beautiful, immersive and - in these testing times - vital and necessary book. – Niall Griffiths
Ostensibly set in one house in rural Wales, there are worlds on worlds within this lyrical and profoundly cultured book. In an age of toxic artifice, this is the most necessary medicine: the tenderness of reality and the living, elemental, world. – Jay Griffiths
On the Red Hill is a beautifully crafted journey into the most intimate space the author can possibly share- his home. The story of Rhiw Goch and its inhabitants is an intricately woven celebration and acknowledgment of life in modern rural Wales, always gripping, often romantic but never sentimental… the benevolent presence of Rhiw Goch is the protagonist in this story. The seasons colour the pages in vivid greens and deep russets, and the closeness to nature is raw and honest. The footpaths, streams and trees that surround the house are ever-present, even when Mike Parker is covering topics as diverse as the Second World War, trends in photography, and the gay history of Wales. Parker has long established himself as the master of capturing Wales, having managed time and time again to map the contours and cultures of the country with his words. With On the Red Hill, he surpasses himself. This is the truest version of modern Welsh life I have ever read.
A great queer rural triumph of a book – wonderfully passionate, funny and insightful. It overflows with love. – Tom Bullough
This generous-hearted memoir is a fresh take on writing about living in rural Wales. It places love – of partner, of domestic life in an old landscape, between generations and neighbours – at the centre of nature writing. Rhiw Goch is a hospitable house to residents and reader alike. – Gwyneth Lewis
A perfectly balanced blend of memoir and biography set within the beautifully portrayed Welsh countryside. An evocative and moving examination of just what it means to find a place to call home. – Neil Ansell, author of Deep Country
This is a raunchy, tender account of love, life, language, a beloved landscape, and a house on a hill which an old gay couple bequeathed to their two young friends, Mike and his partner, Peredur. Mike ‘gets’ Wales, culture, politics, history, loves it for what it is and has made it his own. – Gillian Clarke

Mike Parker is a writer and broadcaster. His books to date include Map Addict and the Rough Guide to Wales. He writes for publications including the Guardian and the Sunday Times, and presents on radio and television.

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