Five ‘short and sweet’ books perfect for your commute

London’s famed Tube is an unusually good environment in which to whip out a book as the lack of mobile signal and strange, mesmeric quiet make it the ideal place to catch a few pages. But if you’re hopping on at Waterloo and surfacing at Green Park, a fully-fledged novel isn’t a smart choice, you need short, sharp and witty musings on the world around you – here they are.

Essays by George Orwell

Don’t be put off by the title. Between 4-15 pages a piece, Orwell’s observations of the world around us are some of the finest words to be penned by a writer in the last century, whether it’s “Such, Such Were the Joys” or “Thoughts on the Common Toad”.

Available from Amazon at £11

Brit Wit: The Perfect Riposte for Every Social Occasion by Susie Jones

This slim, 160 page paperback is a compilation of the wittiest, rudest and most whimsical aphorisms of the greatest Britons of our time, is the perfect book to read if you want to arrive at the office with a smile on your face and a joke up your sleeve.

Available from Amazon at £10

253 by Geoff Ryman

A book for the commuter, about the commuter, by a commuter. 252 passengers and one driver begin the slow commute from a station on the outskirts of London, with a page dedicated to the life of each of the passengers, this is a book about everyone you’ve ever met on that daily, 20 minute journey but never had the courage to speak to.

Available from Amazon at £12

Art as Therapy by Alain de Botton

In a book that will shake you the core, your commute will become a daily meditation as De Botton takes you through hundreds of paintings, each providing the perfect therapeutic solution to your good, bad or average day.

Available from Amazon at £17

The Rules of Work by Richard Templar

If the office is the playing field then this is the rule book. Templar’s book is a bible for any upward looking, determined individual, a clear and simple guide on how to approach each day that could make the difference in your personal trials and tribulations.

Available from Amazon at £7