Anything that has ever been worth knowing about the Garden of England is detailed in The Little Book of Kent. Chris Price flicked through it.

Have you spotted the sign in Finglesham, near Deal, that directs travellers to Ham and Sandwich respectively? Did you know that Laurel and Hardy cut the ribbon when the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch railway reopened after the Second World War?

This and many other gems of knowledge are bestowed on the readers of The Little Book of Kent by Folkestone-based author Alexander Tulloch.

With chapters on unusual crimes and punishments, famous sons and daughters and the county’s history, the book takes an amusing but informative look at the Garden of England.

A compendium of facts, the book makes it clear early that much of Kent’s culture is down to its close proximity to the continent. It also outlines very early the difference between a Kentish Man or Maid (born west of the river Medway) and a Man or Maid of Kent (born east), with Alexander’s characteristic humour explaining: “If you were born outside the county, no matter how long you have lived there, you are never more than just a foreigner.”

There is a gathering of pace throughout the book, outlining the origin of Kent’s name, its population and little gems like the fact there are more castles in Kent than any other county in England.

After a tour round the county’s major landmarks to set the scene for the rest of the book, the reader is titillated with amusing facts such as places in America which share their name with the county and that a resident of Horsmonden, John Read, is credited with inventing the stomach pump in 1823.

A run through the history of Kent bestows the reader with enough general knowledge without overpowering. The chapter on Kent’s great castles is littered with facts but also the right amount of sentiment.

It says: “Dover might be the largest and strategically most important castle in the land but there is little room for discussion when it comes to choosing the most beautiful: Leeds has to be the winner by a mile.” These subjective points from Alexander are what gives the book its authority and more importantly its readability, much in the style of Bill Bryson or Michael Moore.

After looking at Kent’s literary names and celebrities the book resists the urge to paint Kent as a sea of tranquillity, with a chapter on social unrest in the county through the ages.

Perhaps most fascinating is the history of smuggling by pirates along the Thanet coast or the various riots through history.

The county’s role as a point of defence for the UK is the subject of one chapter, before the book examines its trains and those who have swam, flown and waterskied the English Channel.

For quiz-goers and quiz-masters alike, there is plenty of fodder. Every page has a delightful detail ranging in subject from Mahatma Gandhi’s visit to Canterbury in 1931 to how Sissinghurst Castle garden designer, Vita Sackville-West, had many lovers, the most notable of whom was author Virginia Woolf, who wrote about the affair in her novel Orlando.

The book’s hand drawn illustrations give it a rustic charm, much like the area the book describes.

The Little Book of Kent is available now and published in hardback by the History Press. Cost £9.99.