Saraband to publish Looking Down at the Stars, by Nan Shepherd Prize longlistee Christina Riley – an exploration of the wonder of marine life

In 2022, Christina Riley became an ‘underwater artist in residence’ at the Argyll Coast Hope Spot – a place of incredible natural beauty in Scotland and crucial for the health of the world’s oceans. She spent days submerged alongside marine life, before resurfacing to reflect, recreate and recount what she had seen – and the feelings of love, hope and responsibility the experience had evoked in her.

The resulting essays, collected in this stunning volume, swim through the kaleidoscope of marine life she found there, from starfish to seagrass to the water itself. What shines through all of them is a sense of wonder that is also a call to action. Looking Down at the Stars asks: how can we harness our feelings of awe at the natural world in order to take better care of it?

Riley’s lyrical prose is the perfect guide to this unfamiliar underwater world, brimming with surprises, sunlight and sea stars. The book also features some of her own beautiful black and white illustrations.

Sara Hunt, Publisher at Saraband, says, “I’m thrilled that we are publishing this inspirational, lyrical and meditative book, and to have been introduced to Christina, who has an artist’s eye for detail and whose writing conveys a true sense of wonder. The book speaks to a subject we are passionate about, and Christina brings a new perspective to the way we look at marine life.”

Caro Clarke says, “Christina Riley’s glittering prose gives voice to the small coastal underwater world often missing from conversations about conservation and climate change. Both luminous and urgent, I can’t wait for people to read this book and see Christina’s beautiful illustrations bringing this world to life.”

Christina Riley added, “I haven’t stopped thinking about the complex and illuminating (literally) lives I encountered underwater at the Argyll Hope Spot, so at a time when the future of Scotland’s seas is uncertain I’m thrilled to be working with Saraband to share even a glimpse of it in Looking Down at the Stars.”

About the author

Photo credit: Robin Christian

Christina Riley was born in Florida and grew up in Ayrshire on Scotland’s west coast, where she now resides. With a focus on coastal waters, her work draws attention to small details — a particular species, object or place — to shift perspectives and encourage new ways of seeing and experiencing our surroundings, natural and otherwise. Longlisted for Canongate’s Nan Shepherd Prize for Nature Writing, her first photobook, The Beach Today, was published by Guillemot Press in 2021. In 2019 she started The Nature Library, a travelling library exploring the role of literature in times of climate crisis, which opened a long-term premises in 2024.