2015-01-19 · in Books · 120 words

The history of the Grand Junction Railway, built in the 1830s to link Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool — founding the railway town of Crewe in the process, and now forming the central part of the West Coast Main Line from Birmingham to Warrington. This is largely a paen to engineer Joseph Locke, who managed the construction of most of the line.

The author has a fine writing style and is pleasingly honest about his sources, pointing out where the historical record is lacking and where previous historians have embellished or misinterpreted the facts.

Minor nitpick: I would have liked some more maps, perhaps on the endpapers — I often found myself flipping back to the map in the first chapter!