The book is an account of a journey using local service buses from Lands End in the deepest south west of England up to John O'Groats in the far north east of Scotland. With the issue of free bus passes to all British citizens over the age of sixty, the author decided to maximise the use of his in undertaking this 1,230 mile trip. By way of being different, the author decided to take with him, his dog Archie, a Jack Russell / cairn terrier cross, as he too enjoys travelling. The book is not just a travel log across and up the length of Britain, but includes much historical and general information of towns and cities visited with time taken at the various stop-over points to look around and explore. In addition to the exploits of the author's dog, the book contains his thoughts and observations during the journey. Some of these are referred to as "Rants" made on the author's own admission as being a "grumpy old man". The detailed planning and preparation of the trip is explained that deliberately took in many historic towns and cities. From Penzance, the route traverses England through Exeter, Bath Oxford, Leicester, Lincoln and then across the Humber and up the east coast by Scarborough, Durham, Newcastle and onto Berwick before crossing the border into Scotland. From here on, the bus journey followed the east coast through Edinburgh, over the Firth of Forth to Perth, Dundee, Aberdeen, Inverness, Dornoch and Wick before reaching their final destination at John O'Groats. The book has been written in a light vein and contains an element of humour. Hopefully, the reader will become a little more knowledgeable about this historic and beautiful island of ours by the end. It is certainly true that "travel does broaden the mind".

The Netherlands Antilles comprises three main islands off the coast of northern Venezuela. These are Aruba, Curacao and Bonaire . They are major tourist destinations, especially popular with divers, and also attract many visitors from Holland and elsewhere. The colour plates are based on the bestselling Birds of Northern South America, but many new images have been painted specially for this book. The authoritative text highlights the key features needed to identify each species in the field, and the plates illustrate every distinct plumage and race. This will be the first ever comprehensive field guide dedicated to the birds of the region.