THE first four years of the new Millennium in Cookley are explored in a new book by veteran author Betty Caswell.

Cookley In The 21st Century is the retired teacher's 14th book about the village where she has lived for the past 55 years.

It includes chapters on local pubs in 2003, the changing seasons and a comparison between life at Cookley School today and between 1902 and 1922.

There is also a brief history of Titan Wheels. Describing it as "a sort of guide book as to what Cookley has to offer", Mrs Caswell said it was a book for Cookley residents or people interested in the village.

"People can deduce from it that there's a hell of a lot going on in Cookley and it's an extremely friendly village," she said.

The grandmother worked at Cookley School for more than 20 years and still helps out there, which should prove handy for her next project on her specialist subject - a book about Cookley during the 1950s and 1960s.

"The local schoolchildren will help with that, which is called Looking Back at Cookley," she said. "They are talking to their grandparents and aunts and uncles to find out what life was like then."

Anyone interested in purchasing a copy of Cookley In The 21st Century can contact Mrs Caswell on 01562 850401.