Alan Sillitoe is renowned for his working class roots and his powerful, poignant yet unsentimental prose. He is acclaimed for his gifts of penetrating observation and evocative detail ('There are few writers around who can rival Sillitoe when it comes to the complicated business of noticing things.' Literary Review). In this collection of essays, Sillitoe's talent is striking as he tackles a variety of fascinating subjects, ranging from art and literary criticism to travel, history and the personal. Among the more recent additions are the description of Ted Hughes' funeral and 'The Book' - a discourse on the significance of the bible and the novel