When travelling I do like to read travel writing or something relevant to where I am… even better when it covers both aims and includes football!

Behind The Curtain: Travels in Eastern European Football is not an almanac! In a way it isn’t really a football book. Football is thread that pulls together politics, corruption, terrorism, wars and the collapse of communism amongst other things… It’s a fascinating look at how football has been developed or more than likely hindered in former Eastern European countries… Just finished a chapter on Serbia, and most notably Arkan! That’ll give you some indication of where the author is going… It also gives you a clearer understanding of how football and wider culture has had so many factors influence it since these countries have become “independent”.

When in Ukraine – An Orange Revolution is a must read! It is amazing in this day and age of freedom of speech and democracy how blinkered/filtered/limited our media is, even in the free West! This book gives a detailed and interesting account of the history of Ukraine, with an in depth focus on the more recent years and the ongoing battle for true independence.