Cricketing Bygones

Archie Mac | 4:06pm BST 15 October 2015

Published: 1982
Pages: 32
Author: Green, Stephen
Publisher: Shire Publications
Rating: 2.5 stars

This book is part of a series titled Shire Albums which runs to over a thousand titles. Some of them appear weird and wonderful, such as Old Letter Boxes and Thimbles. How cricket was selected or just what Green’s brief was for Cricketing Bygones is not clear however he offers a discourse on a number of cricketing subjects.

The book commences with a brief history of the game and its development. Then Green covers the history of bats, cricket clothing, cricket books and just about anything else you can collect that relates to the game.

All the subjects are covered, although briefly, in an authoritative and interesting manner, with hints on where to see or procure cricketing collectables. The book dealers mentioned, apart from J.W. McKenzie, no longer appear to be in business, which says something, although I am not sure exactly what.

The book features a number of images including early cricketing belt buckles, uniforms and prints. The selection is first class but unfortunately all the illustrations are in black and white. Perhaps with the cheaper costs of four colouring printing, these days, any reprints of Cricketing Bygones could feature colour plates which would greatly add to its desirability.

This is a mass produced little book and as such is both easy to obtain and as cheap as chips. It is certainly not one for the collector, although my own copy is signed by the author. Despite the odd shortcoming Cricketing Bygones is still an interesting read and is recommended.