First Impressions

This week's First Impressions, the competition in which you have to identify a book from its opening sentence, comes from an inveterate traveller from Berkhamsted with catholic tastes: "Mr Trench went out to look for his ether cylinder, into the blazing Mexican sun and the bleaching dust."

Entries should be submitted to First Impressions, The THES, Admiral House, 66-68 East Smithfield, London E1 9XY, faxed to 0171-782 3300 or emailed to theschat@thes.co.uk

The winner receives a Pounds 20 book token and the closing date is December 15.

The winner of last week's competition, who identified John Chadwick's The Decipherment of Linear B, is Nicholas Brown of the University of London.