I am not particularly into trains and railways. My father worked for British Rail all his working life but never managed to turn me into a trainspotter.

There is something magnificent about locomotives and trains though. Up close you appreciate just how huge and powerful they are and the scale of the engineering involved. My reason for enjoying these books (full disclosure: apart from the fact that I know the author) is the quality of the photographs. In most books of this type I have ever looked through the photography is poor, as though it is of secondary importance to the text and, perhaps more importantly, the facts.

Verden Andersons photographs are stunning, with rich colour and taken with an eye for composition and drama. These are landscape photographs that happen to include trains rather than books about trains. ( )