Books
These are books I have read or want to read. Each one has a link to Amazon so you can purchase it if you like it. Please note I get a small percentage of each sale. This page will be frequently updated as I read more and also contains links to full reviews if I have written one.
Also a quick note on the rating bit. A lot of reviewers just give things 4 or 5 out of 5. There is no point in that as you don’t get an indication of what is good and what isn’t. If I give something a 3 that is average, it meets my expectations.
Inspiration
The Man Who Cycled the World
I know that this world record has recently been beaten but none the less a book like this looks set to be very interesting.
Review: Will be reading it soon
Moods of future joys
A true around the world adventure on an extremely tight budget. This journey was not about setting a record it was about scratching that itch and breaking out of the daily routine. The people encountered along the way and the constant challenges make for a fantastic read. I have written a full review on this book here.
Review: 5/5
Moods of future joys: (Part 1) UK Amazon | USA Amazon
Thunder and sunshine: (Part 2) UK Amazon | USA Amazon
The Rider
I want to read this book quite simply because the Guardian listed it as their number one must read cycling book. It is said to be “dark” and “philosophical”. Also a couple of you recommended it when I asked on Twitter. Apparently: “Nothing better is ever likely to be written on the subjective experience of cycle-racing” – sold!
Review: Will be reading it soon
Why don’t you fly? Back door to Beijing by Bicycle
From Worcestershire to Beijing all on your own, sounds like a pretty huge adventure. I have always been interested in long journeys like this.
Review: To be read
Routes
Cycling Britain by Lonely Planet
Good for wetting the appetite and coming up with new routes to try out. However falls short of providing all the information you will need to complete the route suggesting instead that you grab an ordnance survey map.
Review: 3/5
The London Cycle Guide
Strong variety and well described routes. Also good pictures allowing you to get a good idea as to whether you want to cycle the route. Maps are thorough and help guide the direction well. Only thing that lets this book down is some of the maps are becoming out of date.
Review: 4/5
50 Quirky Bike Rides…in England and Wales
I have only had a look at the sample chapter of this book available on the authors website and was impressed. I definitely want to try more of the suggested routes so will be having a closer look at this book soon.
Review: To be read
Bicycle Maintenance Books
Mountain Bike Maintenance
The best part about this book is the clarity of instructions. When you are learning about bicycle maintenance this is exactly what you need. It neatly introduces you to each repair and then guides you through step by step with colour pictures for each stage. It makes it hard to make an error and that in a bike maintenance book is very important.
Overall it is very well written and a great introduction to bicycle maintenance. As far as I know there is not a road bike version and for those of us in the UK you have to order it from Amazon USA (Which is not really a big issue)
Review: 5/5
Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintenance
This book is a step up from Mountain Bike Maintenance in terms of offering more advanced advice and repairs. It covers a wide range of components but is slightly confusing for a beginner as the instructions are not as clear as they could be. It uses drawings rather than pictures to explain the instructions being given which I feel does not work as well. Also it took me a bit longer to find the relevant information I was looking for as opposed to The Bike Book and Mountain Bike Maintenance. None the less the thoroughness makes it a great reference point when things go wrong. There is also a good section on emergency repairs while out on the road.
Zinn also has a mountain bike version.
Review: 4/5
The Bike Book
The Bike Book opts for colour pictures which I think works really well. On the whole I found the instructions clear. However, it did fail on a couple of rare occasions to mention a few things that I would have considered important. I only noticed this really on the more advanced repairs.
What I can praise this book for is the good section on ongoing maintenance. When it comes to looking after bikes this is half the battle. It also contains a section on correctly adjusting kids bikes. It is a great book for a beginner but if you are looking into diving into more advanced repairs then I would consider The Art of Road Bike Maintenance instead.
Review: 3/5
Bike Repair and Maintenance for Dummies
What I did like is the section on setting up your home repair workshop to work on your bike. I also like how it takes time to explain how you know if something is not quite performing well so you can diagnose problems. Finally it has a good section on fitting your bike correctly which goes into more depth than most books and some considerations before you start riding a bike.
However, the reason I have scored it low is that when it came to the repairs themselves I think it opted for an over simplistic look at how to do the repair thus not providing the reader with a bit of extra knowledge that could go a long way. Perhaps this is the approach of the for dummies series to only give the absolutely essential information but for someone looking to step it up a notch it was lacking.
Review: 2/5
Bicycle Maintenance and Repair
I really did not enjoy trying to use Bicycle Maintenance and Repair. I found myself flicking through sections a lot and struggling to find the information I was looking for. The black and white pictures I thought were insufficient to add to the information and the way it was presented left me a bit confused. A thorough guide none the less but not for me.
