One Hell of a Life: Brian Close – Daring, Defiant and Daft has been named Wisden’s Book of the Year for 2024. Stephen Chalke’s biography of the former England, Yorkshire and Somerset captain has been selected by this year’s Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack reviewer David Woodhouse as the outstanding cricket book of the last 12 months.

Explaining his selection in the 162nd edition of cricket’s most famous publication, which is published today, Woodhouse writes, “Chalke is an oral historian who takes us into the recesses of the county dressing-room and the human heart. He writes with affection for the way it was, but is clear-eyed about the absurdities and iniquities of the way it worked … [he] has now been involved in the biographies of an entire XI of county pros, weak in the batting but strong in the memory. This portrait of ‘the most fascinating character in post-war English cricket’ may be the best of all.”

Fairfield Books founder Chalke has now won the prestigious Wisden Book of the Year on three occasions, having previously been recognised for No Coward Soul – The Remarkable Story of Bob Appleyard (2003) and Tom Cartwright – The Flame Still Burns (2007). In total 11 Fairfield titles have now won national book of the year awards including three of the last four Wisden Book of the Year awards.