Parallel Lines: Or, Journeys on the Railway of Dreams

A funny, thoughtful book about the much derided state of Britain’s railways. It even includes an unusually thoughtful chapter on railway modelling, are modellers cool or unutterably nerdish? The problem is that the author came across as so self-consciously cool: I’m so cool that I smoke weed in train toilets. He comes across as a bright articulate version of the middle aged man who never quite got over the values of a teenager: I celebrate alcohol, marijuana and tobacco, and don’t care if anyone else is affected by my immature selfishness.

Ian Marchant tells a lively and personal tale of the railways; mostly his travels on them, interspersed with history about the railways, geography and politics. The book is also interwoven with his personal life and we are given a picture of his life and his family and friends along with the train journeys. It is quite a rambling book and I found this occasionally irritating and distracting and feel it needed some better editing to make it a tighter and more focussed piece of work. If you like trains you will either know all the stuff in it or love the book.

In my view, this is a very special book that connects pieces of biography with most aspects a railway buff may look for in a very clever and funny way.