Dreaming of country life?

Out Of Your Townie Mind by Richard Craze (White Ladder Press, £7.99)

Dreaming of wearing waxed jackets and growing your own veg is often quite different from the reality.

This enterprising and helpful book intended for those who are thinking of moving to the country has sprung from an extensive survey the author carried out to discover what the top fantasies of those wishing to move out are, as well as what those who have made the transition think of it now - and what they wish they had done differently, if anything.

The fantasies range unsurprisingly from health and safety issues to making jam in an Aga-heated kitchen. Apparently, a good 40 per cent of people who pursue those fantasies move back to the city.

Craze offers extremely useful advice aimed at enabling people to find the right approach to country living, listing the downsides as well as the advantages, so that they can avoid beating a humiliating retreat when the mud overwhelms them.