There have been many books written about the Olympic Games over the ages – and I’ve read some of them.

But this one by Joanne Watson - In The Footsteps Of Olympia (A Concise History Of The Summer Games) - is different. It is, as the sub-heading states, concise.

So prepare yourselves, this book will take you on a rollercoaster ride. It is a reader-friendly and very pleasurable narration of the modern Olympics, the world’s foremost sporting event. It contains bitesize chapters covering each Games in the modern era, commencing in Athens in 1896 and going right up to the 2020 Games in Tokyo.

The book often reflects the changing world through the Olympic story and it brought back many happy memories of past Olympics. For me the life and times of Czech long-distance runner Emil Zatopek is a stand-out, but readers will have their own favourite personalities or stories.

There are hundreds of short stories reflecting amazing and inspirational sporting achievements, accompanied by a few quirky events and some wonderful human interest anecdotes. It was nice to retreat to a happier place for a while, and if this book doesn’t whet your appetite for Paris 2024 I don’t know what will.

A feature of Olympic and Paralympic Games is the sense of national pride they create. In this case, In The Footsteps Of Olympia exudes a sense of local civic pride as the book is written by former BBC Sport executive Joanne Watson, a Farnham resident.

David Gill

Chair, Farnham Sports Council