Helen Mort is a writer, trail runner and climber who lives in Sheffield. She teaches creative writing at Manchester Metropolitan University, and her published work includes poetry, fiction and non-fiction, with a particular interest in women and mountaineering. Her first poetry collection, Division Street (Chatto & Windus, 2013), was shortlisted for the Costa Prize and the T.S. Eliot Prize, and won the Fenton Aldeburgh First Collection Prize. In 2015, Helen was chosen as one of the Next Generation poets. Her first novel, Black Car Burning (Chatto & Windus, 2019), was longlisted for the Portico Prize and the Dylan Thomas Prize. Helen is the author of Lake District Trail Running (Vertebrate, 2016) and editor of Waymaking (Vertebrate, 2018); and she has written for Alpinist, Climb, the Guardian, the Independent and Radio 3. In 2017, she was a judge for the Man Booker International Prize and chair of judges for the Boardman Tasker Award for Mountain Literature. She was a judge for the 2019 Banff Mountain Book Prize. She has lived with a variety of dogs, but thinks a house is not a home without a whippet.

• Title: Never Leave the Dog Behind
• Subtitle: Our love of dogs and the mountains
• Author: Helen Mort  
• Imprint: Vertebrate Publishing
• ISBN: 978-1-912560-88-2 (hardback); 978-1-83981-038-1 (paperback)
• Rights: World
• Publication date: 1 October 2020 (hardback); 14 January 2021 (paperback)
• Edition: First
• Size: 198mm x 129mm 
• Extent: 128 pages
• Cover: Hardback/paperback
• Weight: 400/300g
• Retail price: £15.99 (hardback); £8.99 (paperback)

Also available as an ebook:

• Imprint: Vertebrate Digital
• ISBN: 978-1-912560-89-9
• Publication Date: 1 October 2020
• Price: £12.99

Even though this is non-fiction, there is a beauty to the writing, with moments that really made me stop and think. – Liz Robinson, LoveReading

For both dog lovers and the rest of the readership, this is a fascinating book by Helen Mort of life in the mountains with different types of canines – Whippets to Border Collies, Staffies to Retrievers. An excellent read! – John Burland, Ilkley Gazette

The book is a personal memoir, but also features the tales of climbers and search and rescue dog handlers among others alongside a varied cast of dogs to fall in love with, so there’s something for all dog lovers to enjoy. – Dog Friendly Sheffield

Each chapter is a melodic short story reminiscent of another favourite author, Nan Shepherd. Helen’s stories take you from the flanks of Helvellyn, to sleeping under the stars, and trail running and climbing in my old stomping grounds in the Peak District, interspersed with snippets of poetry including the author’s own wonderful, The Dogs. A fantastic, evocative book, perfect for any hillwalker or dog lover. – Love, From Scotland