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Product Description
Independent on Sunday
Michael Palin meets Nick Hornby meets What the Victorians Did for Us... wacky and amiable.
Review
'Compelling... Part Bill Bryson, part Nick Hornby, part memoir and part pastiche... Light, lively and, above all, right: what every enthusiast should be expected to know' The Times 'Michael Palin meets Nick Hornby meets What the Victorians Did for Us... wacky and amiable' Independent on Sunday 'A gloriously disingenuous front for the most acerbic and humorous criticism of public transport policy ... a more entertaining and incisive read will not be found this year' Glasgow Herald 'The trip keeps its pace and purpose, fuelled by the genial, flexible rhythms of the prose and enriched by two centuries of railway-culture hinterland' Independent
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
26 of 26 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
What's this? A book about trains, spotting them and the enthusiasts who lurk at the ends of platforms with flasks and cameras at the ready like some saddo paparazzi? If anyone had told me a month ago that I would be reviewing such a book I would have seriously questioned their knowledge of my inner workings. Yet here we are - a thoroughly researched, cleverly written and very interesting book about the very same. Mr Marchant has that elusive knack of being able to present cold facts and figures in a manner which enthrals and entertains while at the same time getting in a few direct kicks at the shoddy state of Britain's railway industry today.
This book succeeds in its quest due to its blending of topicality with history and tradition; written in 2002 it is enviously well placed to observe and comment on the shambles that is rail privatisation as well as musing on the idyllic fantasy of its previous incarnations over the previous hundred and seventy years. To achieve this with both humour and a biting criticism is the mark of a great social commentator - most railway passengers soon learn that there is little room for the former in today's corporate-run industry - sorry, service. Whether he is reminiscing about boyhood trips from Newhaven, comparing the merits of York's National Railway Museum with Crewe's The Railway Age, going on an eighteen hour bender around London's Underground system (rather him than me) or exploring the secret world of the model railway exhibitor Mr Marchant proves throughout that he know his standard from his narrow gauge and is a train spotter of the highest order. More importantly he is also a damn fine - and funny - writer on the subject and for that we should all be grateful.
This book succeeds in its quest due to its blending of topicality with history and tradition; written in 2002 it is enviously well placed to observe and comment on the shambles that is rail privatisation as well as musing on the idyllic fantasy of its previous incarnations over the previous hundred and seventy years. To achieve this with both humour and a biting criticism is the mark of a great social commentator - most railway passengers soon learn that there is little room for the former in today's corporate-run industry - sorry, service. Whether he is reminiscing about boyhood trips from Newhaven, comparing the merits of York's National Railway Museum with Crewe's The Railway Age, going on an eighteen hour bender around London's Underground system (rather him than me) or exploring the secret world of the model railway exhibitor Mr Marchant proves throughout that he know his standard from his narrow gauge and is a train spotter of the highest order. More importantly he is also a damn fine - and funny - writer on the subject and for that we should all be grateful.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a wonderful travel book about getting to places on our modern railway network. It is also littered with interesting historical facts about how these lines came to be where they are. It is a book that will appeal to both railway buffs and those who have no real interest in trains or railway lines. The book is so well written that you feel that you are actually travelling with Ian Marchant on his journeys. You experience the frustrations of missed connections or cancelled trains, you delight in the grandeur of the Scottish Highlands scenery and feel the acute drabness of the Cumbrian north-west coast. This book is part autobiography but mostly it is a series of rail journeys over the length and breadth of the United Kingdom (including a spell on the Irish lines). A jolly good read, very accessible to those who are not "train minded". Thoroughly recommended.
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I was astounded how Ian Marchant captured so much of the Basher's art in a digestible form. The Basher is not a spotter and neither are "cool". But so what? Ian deals with this very eloquently with his astute analysis of that Titan of rail travel. Ian also investigates the somewhat sad history of our railways and the various highs and lows (especially privatisation), and wraps this up as a wonderful social history of "The Permanent Way".
There is no place for any branded marketing in here, and so much the better, just gritty individuals contributing to the rich fabric of "the network". Buy the book and read it on the train.
There is no place for any branded marketing in here, and so much the better, just gritty individuals contributing to the rich fabric of "the network". Buy the book and read it on the train.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Wit, will travel
Wonderful wit adds a new vista to every journey. Each 'journey' begins as to be expected but the subsequent experience is a whole new dimension for armchair travel.
Published 2 months ago by Mr. I. W. Pilcher
Impressive search for the inner trainspotter
A really enjoyable book, both funny and informative. I gave it the coveted fifth star just for its list of train-related spots to visit. Read more
Published 9 months ago by C. Young
Railman
A very entertaining book about the Authors travels and mishaps on the Railway Network. The book is also a potted history of his life with regard to the Railways, and also sets out... Read more
Published 12 months ago by cairns
An unexpectedly great read.
I never expected to find any book that combined a good approximation of my own worldview with an understanding of my principal vice, that is being a railway enthusiast. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Lord Shipley
A real page turner - About railways?
This is a very enjoyable book. Ian Marchant has an easy, witty, self deprecating style. He also knows his stuff. I was truly sorry to finish it. Read more
Published on 19 April 2010 by Cheerio
Chuffing marvellous
Ian Marchant is a great travelling companion, and this is the best book I've read about our much maligned railway system. Read more
Published on 5 Nov 2009 by M. Parker
Not just for anoraks!
Parallel Lines: Or, Journeys on the Railway of Dreams Think you know their own country? Are you sure? Read more
Published on 5 May 2009 by Amaz(on)ing Read
not interested in trains? then buy this book
funny, political, sharp, witty, and if you have zero interest in trains it really is worth having a fat middle-aged educated wit take you on a journey of a lifetime. Read more
Published on 7 Mar 2009 by J. S. Bywater-lees
A Once and Future Railway
This is a highly readable book, although maybe not as funny as some of the review suggest. The opening page hooked me, but I think that the central idea of the book - that two... Read more
Published on 28 Feb 2009 by SCM
Far from hitting the buffers!
Like some of the other reviewers here I had not heard of Ian before randomly buying this book - but on turning the last page I will seek out his others. Read more
Published on 28 Oct 2006 by D. J. Gibbs
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