MERSEYSIDE is a fascinating place and in this book well-known local historian Cliff Hayes looks not only at the city centre of Liverpool but also at Garston and its docks, Aintree and the Grand National, Speke and the airport, Waterloo and Walton. They are all here, even Bootle and Sefton - the ones that got away. A former merchant seaman, Cliff writes with real insight about life at sea, which was a shared experience for generations of Merseysiders. This part of Merseyside’s history plays an important part in his book, as do the docks. The author even takes a trip on the Royal Daffodil and includes Birkenhead and Wallasey. Anyone who ever clutched a bucket and spade will have fond memories of New Brighton, and Cliff revisits this mecca of sand castles and paddling. He also takes in Southport and crosses the Mersey at Widnes on the transporter. He ends the journey where many Scousers finished up - in Runcorn New Town. His book is a comprehensive, affectionate and finely-illustrated portrait of Merseyside today and yesterday.