Benson and Hedges Cricket Year 2001 edited by Jonathan Agnew (Bloomsbury, £20)

TIME was when the cricket aficionado would have to wait until the following spring to read a full review of the season just ended, when Wisden appeared on the bookshelves.

But then in came B&H with its own yearbook, which remarkably manages to encapsulate the whole season in time for Christmas.

Although nowhere near as detailed as its rival, it scores with loads of pictures, in-depth analysis - Jeff Thomson's views on the summer's Ashes series are well worth reading - and its unique form charts, which allows you to trace any player's run of scores in English first-class cricket throughout the season, including Worcestershire.

Last winter's overseas action is also well covered, and the BBC's cricket correspondent Jonathan Agnew has settled well into the editor's chair.

He pens an excellent tribute to the retiring England captain Mike Atherton, even though he wanted him sacked for the infamous "dirt in the pocket" affair a few years ago. Tony Moore