'I belonged to that generation which saw, by chance, the end of a thousand years' life...a world of hard work; of villages like ships in the empty landscapes; of white narrow roads, rutted by hooves and cart-wheels, innocent of oil or petrol...'

Cider with Rosie is a wonderfully vivid memoir of childhood in a remote Cotswold village, a village before electricity or cars, a timeless place on the verge of change. Growing up amongst the fields and woods and characters of the place, Laurie Lee depicts a world that is both immediate and real and belonging to a now distant past.

Mum and I were watching TV and someone began talking about this book, making it sound like a real roller coster ride of debauchery and drunken fun. I'm looking forward to giving it a read, though I'm not honestly sure it's the sort of thing I'll enjoy. We shall see.