The Subterranean Railway
An excellent book for anybody interested in the history either of London or of public transport is "The Subterranean Railway", by Christian Wolmar.
This extraordinary book tells the story of the amazing London Underground network, the earliest in the world, from the first cut and cover railway, from Paddington Station to Farringdon Station, which ran - and still runs - along the valley of the River Fleet.
It brings the story right up to date, to include the Jubilee Line and future plans.
The book is not only the story of the railways themselves, but on the profound effect they have had on the development of the capital.
Tom Fort in the Sunday Telegraph said "Christian Wolmar is a Pullman among story-tellers. His pride and passion carry his story along and, offhand, I can think of few better ways to while away those elastic perioods awaiting the arrival of the next eastbound Circle Line train than by reading it."
And I too thoroughly recommend it.
Posted by colin on Monday 21st April, 2008 at 8:52am