The range & number of lines in Gloucestershire & the type & diversity of the locomotives operating both branch & main lines make it a particularly interesting railway county. In this well-researched book all of Gloucestershire's branch lines are described in an entertaining & highly informative narrative. We encounter horse-worked lines & one line boasting the longest railway bridge in Engl&. There is also a line operated by a veteran tank engine complete with open-backed cab & a timber bridge still in use in the 1950s. Against the national trend & a background of closing lines & stations rail traffic in Gloucestershire increased & new halts were opened. Gloucestershire became the testing ground for an experimental geared locomotive which it was hoped would revolutionise motive power on rural lines. It did not however meet with success although the introduction of rail buses on some branches had a more positive effect. A marvellous wide-ranging view of over a century of rail travel in Gloucestershire highly illustrated with over 200 fascinating photographs & ephemera this volume will appeal not only to steam railway enthusiasts but also to local historians.