Angus Calder , The Myth of the Blitz (Pimlico, UK). A timely antidote to the backs-against-the-wall, "London can take it" tone of most books on this period. Calder dwells instead on the capital's internees - Communists, conscientious objectors and "enemy aliens" - and the myth-making processes of the media of the day.

Roy Porter , London: A Social History (Penguin/Harvard UP). This immensely readable history is one of the best books on London published since the war. It's particularly strong on the continuing saga of London's local government, and includes an impassioned critique of the damage done by Mrs Thatcher's administration.

Ben Weinreb and Christopher Hibbert , The London Encyclopaedia (Papermac/St Martin's Press). More than 1000 pages of concisely presented information on London past and present, accompanied by the odd illustration. The most fascinating book on the capital.