The bibliography of bullfighting is extensive and is littered with distinguished names: Lorca, Ortega y Gasset, Bergamin representing what one might call the home team; Hemingway, Tynan, François Zumbhiel from outside the Hispanic world. Placed alongside these, A L Kennedy's contribution is modest, as she herself hints with a self-deprecating disclaimer in the opening chapter. Kennedy warns diehard aficionados not to crawl over the mistakes of an interloper (in fact, there are fewer mistakes and less irritation than one is led to expect).

For the uninitiated, the book is a useful road map. The reader ends up knowing the difference between mid-on and silly mid-on in taurine terms. Kennedy also gives the reader a useful quick sweep through the history of the bull in mythology and ancient history, right up to the moment