Greyhounds have been revered since ancient times where they appear on the walls of the tombs of the Pharos. For Henry VIII they were his favourite hunting dogs. But in Laura Thompson's book we find a personal testament to a more modern chapter in the history of this noble creature.

Greyhound racing in the United Kingdom came to prominence in the dark economic recession of the 30's, being in some ways a cameo of its elder sister - horse racing. Sharing a deep and longstanding affiliation with Ireland champion racing greyhounds, like cup-winning racehorses, often drew their first breath on the other side of the Irish Sea.

Laura Thompson's book takes us right into the heart of people, places and of course the dogs she knew as a child. With the hindsight of an age in which some of the great Stadia like White City in West London have already been lost, she takes us on a journey which immortalises a generation of owners and trainers.

For anybody who has ever spent an evening at a Greyhound Stadium and wondered what lay behind it all.. this book is the inside track.

This is not just a history of greyhound racing, it is a deeply moving personal insight into Laura Thompson, her love for dogs and her love for the father who owned and raced them. The book is Fever Pitch with heart; I wept buckets reading the damn thing. It is full of compassion for the greyhounds who run in the name of business and sport, and full of guilt for the fact that they give so much pleasure while being used, all too often, as playthings. It is also a journey into a completely separate world of which I hitherto knew nothing, and which came wonderfully alive for me. I found this book it is really beautiful.