The Nile is the longest and one of the most historically significant rivers in the world, sustaining diverse cultures, and is therefore a brilliant subject for a biography. From the headwaters in the Ruwenzori mountains and the highlands of Ethiopia, it flows through thousands of miles of swamp, desert and lakes… and all that before it reaches Egypt. Alan Moorehead devoted two books just to the story of Europeans going to "conquer" the Blue and White Niles. Robert Twigger, who lived for seven years beside the Nile in Cairo, calls his river Red not just for the blood spilled into it, but also for the wine poured by a mad medieval sultan, for the bloom of algae and a dozen other reasons. If this is a biography, by which I understand a history of the (human) life lived on and beside the river, then it is a very particular one. In fact it is more a book of Twigger's favourite stories concerning the Nile, and not always tied to it (as, for instance, when he strolls off east with Saladin to face the Crusaders and Assassins). And nor is this all of the Nile – the book is very Egypt-centric. But if you have read Twigger before, you will know to expect divergence, wit, a weakness with the esoteric, and an ability to make even the most obscure details seem relevant. All of which is perfectly suited to this subject and makes for an entertaining and absorbing read.