[2] Book was born in Bath, but at the age of four moved to India when his father, an officer in the Somerset Light Infantry, was posted.
[4] After leaving school at 16, Book became an apprentice bricklayer and played amateur football as an inside-forward for Peasedown Miners, until he was called up for national service in 1952.
[6] After completing his national service, Book returned to his bricklaying job in Bath and started playing for Frome Town.
At the close of the 1962–63 season, Allison received an offer to coach Canadian team Toronto City over the summer and took Book with him.
[9] After making 81 league appearances, Book followed Malcolm Allison again to Manchester City two years later, this time for a transfer fee of £17,000.
He made his Manchester City debut in the opening match of the 1966–67 season, a 1–1 draw with Southampton,[10] and became a near-permanent fixture in the team.
An Achilles injury sidelined Book for the first four months of the 1968–69 season, but he returned to the team in time for the start of their FA Cup run.
He made 242 football league appearances for the club, and for many years was City's most successful captain in terms of trophies won.
[15] In 1976, Book's City side won the League Cup, making him the first person to win the competition as both player and manager.
[16] City continued their run of form into the following season, enjoying an impressive league campaign where they finished in second place, only a point behind winners Liverpool.