My new book is officially out today from The Boydell Press.

In fact, in the mysterious way of modern publishing, it seems to have been available from various outlets for a few weeks now, as I discovered with surprise when I got a letter about it from a reader, weeks before its advertised release date.

Sleeping in Temples is my fourth book, a collection of personal essays about what it’s like to be a performing classical musician: what motivates us, what the ups and downs are, how we work at the music, what effect it has on our lives and characters, and why we persist in being devoted to classical music despite being  aware that most people look elsewhere for their musical heroes.

The book is substantially longer than my last one, and I think the tone is more serious, because of what I feel is the nature of the challenge facing many classical musicians. It’s not all heavy stuff, though; the serious chapters are interspersed with lighter ones, and longer chapters with shorter ones.

You can order the book direct from the publisher or from your favourite online retailers. Here for a start are links to the Guardian Bookshop, and to The Book Depository. It should also be available from larger bookstores. A friend bought a copy this week from Hatchard’s in Piccadilly.

In the next weeks you can hear me speaking about the book at McAlister Matheson bookshop in Edinburgh on November 13 at 6pm, and at the Bath Book Festival on November 14 at 5.15pm in St Swithin’s Church, with some live piano music too.

Why is the book called ‘Sleeping in Temples’? All is explained in the last chapter.