Independent author Alan London has released his debut short story collection, The Days of Wine and Horses, published on June 5, 2026. The book, available in hardcover and paperback, comprises 301 pages of narrative fiction set in the Yorkshire Dales and centered on a small country riding school. It follows the working lives of those in the equestrian world, offering a warm, often humorous look at daily stable routines, yard management, and the rural economy that sustains them.
London was born in southern England but moved to Yorkshire as a child, where he grew up around riding yards and stables. Family expectations and economic necessity later led him into a settled profession, and for years he held down two jobs simultaneously. His observations during that time—of stable routines, difficult horses, and the rhythms of a small rural economy—informed the collection. However, London emphasizes that the stories are invented. The Days of Wine and Horses is a work of fiction, not autobiography, and readers should not assume its characters or events reflect his own life.
Readers have compared the collection to James Herriot's beloved Yorkshire novels, a comparison London did not set out to invite but has been glad to see. Like Herriot's work, the book finds warmth in ordinary rural life: quaint, often humorous, and steeped in nostalgia for a slower, gentler way of living. The title is taken from Ernest Dowson's 1896 poem "Vitae Summa Brevis," better known by its opening phrase, "the days of wine and roses." Dowson's meditation on transience and loss has been adapted here to the context of working life with horses, where good years with a horse, like any meaningful period, prove fleeter than one might wish.
The collection presents a fond look at daily stable life, yard routines, the challenges of animal management, and the small rural economy that sustains this way of living. It is less a plotted narrative than a stroll back through a Yorkshire country life many readers will recognize or wish they had known. All proceeds from the book will support Cancer Research, a cause of personal significance to London and his late wife, Maureen.
For those interested in sampling the work, a preview is available at https://read.amazon.com/sample/B0H4S9DFR7?clientId=share. The book is published by Cambridge Publishing House and is available through major retailers. London now lives in Southern California, where this collection was written.
This collection matters because it offers an authentic, affectionate portrayal of a rural way of life that is increasingly rare. In a publishing landscape often dominated by fast-paced thrillers and memoirs, London's quiet, character-driven stories celebrate the timeless rhythms of the countryside. The comparison to Herriot suggests a ready audience for this kind of nostalgic, humane storytelling. Moreover, the decision to donate all proceeds to Cancer Research adds a philanthropic dimension, turning a literary endeavor into a force for good. For readers seeking a gentle escape or a reminder of simpler times, The Days of Wine and Horses promises to deliver both warmth and meaning.
