A Tale of Ten Wickets

It is very hard not to find amusement in Richard Heller's "A Tale of Ten Wickets" - and sometimes a deeper emotion. A fictional but somewhat familiar village, Upton Chesney, prepares with relish for its annual visit from the Frenetics, an aptly named London-based wandering side. Through the visiting scorer (a sort of narrator in the style of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales), and a lost travel writer, the reader meets a rich gallery of characters, each with a unique story.Written with gentle irreverence and a nice eye for the eccentric, the book is a delightful read. As the match reaches its nail-biting (of course) conclusion, the result, in the true tradition of the game, becomes less important than the real ending. On-going reviews in the national and cricketing press.