ALISTAIR COOKE

When Alistair Cooke retired in March 2004 and then died a few weeks later, he was acclaimed by many as one of the greatest broadcasters of all time. His Letters from America, which began in 1946 and continued uninterrupted every week until early 2004, kept the world in touch with what was happening in Cooke's wry, liberal and humane style. This selection, made largely by Cooke himself and supplemented by his literary executor, gives us the very best of these legendary broadcasts. Over half have never appeared in print before. It is a remarkable portrait of a continent - and a man.

In May 2005 Penguin will publish 70 unique titles to celebrate the company's 70th birthday. The titles in the Pocket Penguins series are emblematic of the renowned breadth of quality of the Penguin list and will hark back to Penguin founder Allen Lane's vision of good books for all'. Alistair Cooke is one of the world's best-loved broadcasters, whose weekly radio dispatch Letter from America entertained listeners around the globe from 1946 until his death in 2004. Penguin have proudly published editions of Cooke's Letters since 1979, and those in Letters from Four Seasons have been specially selected along the theme of the changing seasons to show the range, intimacy and elegance of his inimitable style.