The Reduced History of Cricket by Aubrey Ganguly and Justyn Barnes

History, Jim, but not as we know it

Cricket history has been chronicled in many ways - thrilling innings, outstanding matches, great players - and now comes the latest attempt to condense centuries of cricket into a century of key events.

From the 1500s, when there were more variations on spelling "cricket" than Muralitharan has deliveries, through to the modern era of Twenty20 and Andrew Flintoff, this book selects 111 key moments that have defined the sport. It is not only the obvious contenders, such as WG Grace and Don Bradman, who get a mention but the more unusual incidents.

At No. 59 is Australia's defeat by Holland in 1964. After being shown some local hospitality (ie: "coffee" houses) by their hosts, the Aussies pitched up the following day in a "dis-jointed" state and went down by three wickets. Perhaps someone should send a copy to Michael Vaughan if things start to go wrong this summer.

All the main controversies are also there, from Bodyline through to Cronje's leather jacket via ball tampering. Each selection is concisely and humorously outlined, with equally entertaining illustrations accompanying most of them.

This is a fine attempt to produce a manageable summary of a sport that has had many twists and turns. With Chris Broad on the match referees panel, the West Indies sponsorship row and Adam Gilchrist destroying attacks all over the world, the next edition may arrive in a hurry. Here's to the next hundred.