It's Always Summer Somewhere: A Matter of Life and Cricket - A BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK & SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLE

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***** A BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK & SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER "Felix White's beautifully, elegantly and passionately written book reminds me why I love cricket so much. And reading, come to that." - Stephen Fry "The love of cricket is both communal and individual. Felix has a wonderful knack of evoking both in a book full of life, joy and resilience." - Gideon Haigh "Whether you love cricket or are still confused by the rules of the game, you'll love this. Felix's writing is warm and witty. A joy to read." - Cariad Lloyd Felix White, for reasons often beyond him, has always been deeply in love with cricket. His passion for the game is at the fore on the BBC 's number one cricket podcast and 5Live show, Tailenders, which he co-presents with Greg James and Jimmy Anderson. It's Always Summer Somewhere is his funny, heartbreaking and endlessly engaging love letter to the game. Felix takes us through his life growing up in South West London and describes how his story is forever punctuated and given meaning by cricket. Through his own exploits as a slow left arm spinner of 'lovely loopy stuff', to the tragic illness of his mother, life with The Maccabees and his cricket redemption, Felix touches on both the comedic and the tragic in equal measure. Throughout, there's the ever-present roller coaster of following the England cricket team. The exploits of Tufnell (another bowler of 'lovely loopy stuff'), Atherton, Hussain et al, are given extra import through the eyes of a cricket-obsessed youth. Felix meets them at each signposted moment to find out what was really behind those moments that gave cricket fans everywhere sporting memories that would last forever, sending the book into an exploration of grief, transgenerational displacement and how the people we've known and things we've loved culminate and take expression in our lives. It's Always Summer Somewhere is an incredibly honest detail of a life lived with cricket. It offers a sense of genuine empathy and understanding not just with cricket fans, but sports and music fans across the world, in articulating our reasons for pouring so much meaning into something that we simply cannot control. Culminating in the heart-stopping World Cup Final in 2019, the book finally answers that question fans have so often asked... what is it about this game?

Felix White is a musician, broadcaster and co-founder of independent record label, Yala! He has also, for as long as his conscious memory extends, been in love with the game of cricket. Neither of his parents - from Lebanon and the Isle of Wight - were into the game, so it is a slight mystery to everyone that he took to it as much as he did. He co-presents BBC podcast Tailenders with Greg James and England's most successful ever fast bowler Jimmy Anderson, which has proved a 'safe space' in which to channel his enthusiasm for it regularly. The Maccabees, the band for whom he is renowned, released four studio albums and split at their commercial peak after 14 years together, off the back of a UK number one album and major festival headline shows. He lives in South London where he continues to work on numerous musical projects, including film scores, and has still not overcome his rational fear of a cricket ball.

Felix White's beautifully, elegantly and passionately written book reminds me why I love cricket so much. And reading, come to that. * Stephen Fry * This is a tender, hilarious and perceptive coming-of-age tale to make both your heart and sides ache. Felix White has delivered a phenomenal writing debut. * Pete Paphides * Like his bowling action, Felix White's honest and slightly nutty memoir has a lovely loop to it. I was often surprised and moved by his passionate understanding of cricket as comfort, consolation and rock and roll remedy. * Toby Jones * The love of cricket is both communal and individual. Felix has a wonderful knack of evoking both in a book full of life, joy and resilience. * Gideon Haigh, author of The Cricket War and Stroke of Genius * I f**king loved this book! Felix White writes beautifully about his complete and utter love of music and cricket, but this story is so much more than that. At the heart of it is a little boy dealing with profound loss. He does this through his total immersion in his two passions, one of which he watches from afar and through the other, he forms a band. This resonated hugely. * Ed O'Brien, Radiohead * Felix writes so beautifully, with humour and sensitivity, about family and loss, about the emotional power of music, and about perennial cricketing underachievement. I loved it. * Eleanor Oldroyd, BBC Sports * A deeply moving book on both the large and the small of life, and how each is used to help survive the other. Cricket is both a metaphor for slow grief and the means of escaping it. The trivial becomes vital. * Geoff Lemon, author of Steve Smith's Men * Whether you love cricket or are confused by the rules, you'll still enjoy this. Felix's writing is warm and witty. A joy to read. * Cariad Lloyd, comedian and Griefcast host * A beautifully evocative book about the three most important things in the world: love, sport and music. * Kelly Cates, Sky Sports football anchor * It's in such a tender way that Felix tells his story of loss - so perceptively intertwined are the passions that nourish him and the lovely, loopy game that he can't look away from. A special and beautiful book. * Adam Collins, The Final Word podcast co-host and cricket commentator * Felix's charmingly written voyage of self-discovery through cricket and music reminds us of the power in understanding the hands we are dealt, and how the journey itself is one to embrace. * Isa Guha, Test Match Special *