A FORMER Priestley student has returned to college to donate her newly-published book to the college library.

Ember Birchall, who studied English and Media at Priestley, has published ‘Raised by Mountains’ – an exploration of the concept of psychogeography and nostalgia – and it is now available on Amazon.

“My book allowed me to do the two main things I am passionate about which are writing and photography, and coming back to Priestley to show the teachers who taught me how to take photos and supported me with my writing felt amazing,” said Ember.

In ‘Raised By Mountains’ Ember shares their experiences of spending childhood summers staying at Gwynus Caravan Park in North Wales.

It is a collection of prose which explores not only memories of riding BMX bikes and playing games with friends, but also the grief for their step mum who sadly passed in 2014.

“I’ve used this collection to share the connection between humans and nature by sharing how my own life has been reflected in the landscape surrounding the caravan park,” they said.

After completing her studies at Priestley College, Ember progressed to Staffordshire University to study Creative Writing.

When they were asked to write an 8,000-word piece for their dissertation, their time spent at the Welsh campsite instantly came to mind.

After graduating in June, Ember formatted and published the writing into a book which also contains their photography.

Ember said: “I wanted to write about something important to me and is a place where I feel free to explore without restrictions.”

You can purchase Ember’s book with the link below https://amzn.eu/d/io9ryek.