Books we like ... and books we're not too fussed about
John R Day
Treasure Press 1989
This little book, a present from my nephew, was probably originally intended for children. That said, it goes into a vast amount of technical detail about rolling stock, engines, tracks, and stations, so the intended audience is probably fledgling train spotters rather than kids in general. A revised edition of the 1969 original, there’s still a lot here of interest, although it’s the things which date it which really stand out (“Other passengers are driven to the station by their wives who then drive home again and have the car for their own use all day”), alongside some of the more outlandish predictions for “the future”. Regular travellers will also smile ruefully at the claim that “speed, space [and] comfort” are “the attributes of modern railways”. That said, this is a good basic introduction to the railway, usually staying just about on the right side of the nerd fence.
21 May 2010
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