Miss Daisy's Secret Russian Diary 1916-1918 edited by Muriel Delahaye, £9.99

MISS Daisy's diary was secretly hidden away in a suitcase as she lived out her life in the safety of Cleveleys, Lancashire. It had been written when she and her two sisters, Ida and May, were working as governesses in St Petersburg during the Russian revolution.

Her detailed daily entries reveal the extraordinary trials of their lives and the danger they faced, including being imprisoned by the Bolsheviks, isolated with the children at the mercy of the marauding Red Army officers and a perilous journey to reunite young charges with their mother who had fled to Copenhagen.

The final dilemma comes when, with the full terror of the 1917 revolution bringing food shortages, strikes and protests, the three women realise that they do not have enough money to return to England.

A truly fascinating book.

CAROLINE REECE

WATERSTONES KENDAL