This volume of Bicycle Stories from Boneshaker magazine is the second collection of highlights from previous issues, and is equally eclectic and enjoyable as the first one.
- Pros: Introduces you to the best of this delightful magazine
- Cons: If you like what you read, you can't get any more
The team from Boneshaker magazine have been a regular presence at Bepoked shows, no doubt finding a receptive audience for their beautifully crafted products amongst those who appreciate fine workmanship.
Back at the 2016 show they displayed the first volume of Bicycle Stories, which we reviewed here. Since then there have been a few developments at Boneshaker magazine: some expected and welcome, and others unexpected and less welcome.
In the former camp is this second volume of 'greatest hits', covering the last 10 issues; in the latter camp, the team have announced that issue 20 will be the last one.
The formula is just the same as before, so 'this volume brings together just a few of our favourite moments from Boneshaker issues 11 to 20'. The page count is the same (at 220), although the number of chapters falls by 16 to 41: this is probably a reflection of the changing nature of features in the magazine, which have grown in average length over the years.
There is a wide-ranging mix of articles and poems, enhanced with photographs and illustrations to varying degrees; as before, the contributions focus on the sort of areas that regular magazines don't, 'celebrating creativity and freedom, wanderlust and activism'.
As is often the way with any such collection, some articles will be of more interest than others, but there is enough variety here to ensure that everyone will find something to enjoy.
My highlights included extensive coverage of 'tall bikes': I am unlikely to have one, but am interested in knowing about them. How tall is a tall bike you might ask? The answer is tall enough that if you have a Bluetooth speaker at the bottom of the bike, and a phone up with the rider, the connection can be unreliable. The tallest reached 20 feet, 2 1/2 inches, and earned a Guinness World Record.
Another highlight for me was the inspiring article about 'the Piratas', who have half the number of legs (and sometimes arms) of most of us, yet manage to achieve twice as much as most people on a bike. It has encouraged me to seek out the documentary about them, which passed me by when it first appeared in 2014.
Bicycle Stories will not offer regular readers of the magazine anything new – except the chance to complete their collection. For others it represents the best opportunity to discover what is on offer at Boneshaker, although ironically, if you do like what you see, you will only have the remaining back issues available to satisfy you.
> Read more road.cc reviews of books for and by cyclists here
Verdict
A welcome collection of highlights from a rather different style of magazine
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road.cc test report
Make and model: Boneshaker Bicycle Stories Volume 2
Size tested: 220pp
Tell us what the product is for
From Boneshaker:
A 220-page limited edition book with foil-block embossed double-gatefold covers.
Welcome to Boneshaker: Bicycle Stories volume #2
Celebrating creativity and freedom, wanderlust and activism, this volume brings together just a few of our favourite moments from Boneshaker issues 11 to 20.
Intended as an anthology to keep and cherish, it represents Boneshaker's evolution over recent years, exploring the mystery and wonder of life on two wheels, connecting a community of bike-loving friends that reaches all over the world. In creating this book, we've reproduced many of the features faithfully, just as they appeared in the original magazines – other stories and pictures have been given more room to breathe. We've even corrected some of the typos. But not all of them, doubtless.
Now that Boneshaker as a semi-regular journal has come to an end, we're releasing this limited edition book as a celebration for our readers and contributors: the people who kept Boneshaker rolling all these years. This book is for you."
220 pages. Free shipping in the UK
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?
Title: Bicycle Stories – volume 2
Publisher: Boneshaker magazine
Date: April 2018
Format: Paperback
Pages: 220
Price: £20
No adverts means a higher cover price.
Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose
Lives up to the promise of delivering highlights from the most recent Boneshaker magazines.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the product
It will introduce you to writing that you might not normally encounter.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product
Would these have been your choice of highlights?
Did you enjoy using the product? Yes
Would you consider buying the product? Yes
Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes
Use this box to explain your overall score
It does a very good job of delivering highlights from the most recent Boneshaker magazines.
About the tester
Age: 55
I usually ride: My best bike is:
I've been riding for: Over 20 years I ride: Every day I would class myself as: Expert
I regularly do the following types of riding: commuting, touring, club rides, sportives, general fitness riding