All in a Day's Cricket: An Anthology of Outstanding Cricket Writing

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Description

This selection of the very best, and most intriguing, writing on cricket, drawn from the mid-eighteenth century to the present day, adopts a fresh approach. It is arranged around the theme of the many things that must happen simply for a day's play to happen - from creating a clearing in a Malaysian jungle to getting to the ground - so includes, alongside writing by players both great and unknown, the perspectives of spectators, umpires, scorers and other unsung heroes of the game.

There are contributions from John Arlott, Neville Cardus, C. L. R. James and E. V. Lucas; Marcus Trescothick writes on his introduction to cricket aged three; Angus Fraser on meeting Nelson Mandela; Phil Tufnell on being shanghaied into getting a haircut by Mike Gatting; and Rachael Heyhoe Flint on being the first woman to step onto the Lord's ground as a player.

But it is the cricket itself and the outstanding players and their achievements that remain the focus - the greats of the recent and distant past involved in some of their most famous exploits.

From 'disgraceful scenes at Lord's', described by Irish writer Robert Lynd, to North America, which W. G. Grace toured in 1872, and from a match played on ice to the tropical islands of Fiji and Samoa, this is a collection that does full justice to the extraordinary breadth, diversity and enduring fascination of the greatest game in the world.

Reviews

There is a treat around every corner . . . this will stay on the bedside table for some time . . . It is a splendid reminder that we have the best game in the worlds, and the best writers too. - All Out Cricket

Ranges far and wide through the literature of the game . . . almost certainly the only book in history to combine the best bits of Gus Fraser and Charles Dickens. Something for everyone then. - Guardian

Author Bio

Brian Levison has a lifelong interest in cricket and played club cricket for several years. He was one of six people chosen to feature in the 2013 Lord's Crown Jewels of Cricket exhibition to mark the 150th edition of Wisden. His books include Amazing & Extraordinary Facts: Cricket and Classical Music's Strangest Concerts & Characters (a compilation of musical anecdotes co-written with Frances Farrer). He is a prize-winning poet who has published three collections of poetry. His poems have appeared in The Cricketer and his work has been broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and BBC1. Several texts have been set to music, including the oratorio Exodus, first performed in 2002.