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20 BOOKS Y O U

MUST READF R O M A L L - T I M E C L A S S I C S T O T H I S Y E A R ’ S

E S S E N T I A L R E A D S , H E R E ’ S E M E R A L D S T R E E T ’ S D E F I N I T I V E G U I D E T O T H E P E R F E C T B O O K S H E L F

2 0 N O V E L S Y O U M U S T R E A D


2

E M E R A L D S T R E E T I S A U N I Q U E , F R E E , D A I L Y E M A I L F R O M S T Y L I S T M A G A Z I N E . I T ’ S F U L L O F P L A C E S T O G O , F A S H I O N T R E N D S , M U S T - B U Y

B E A U T Y P R O D U C T S , B O O K S , C U L T U R E A N D I D E A S . F O R T H E L A T E S T N E W B A R S A N D R E S T A U R A N T S A S W E L L A S E X P E R T T I P S S I G N U P N O W A T

E M E R A L D S T R E E T . C O M

TRAILER HAPPINESS

177 Portobello Road, London, W11

A roaring fire greets drinkers at Trailer Happiness.

Not the sort you toast marshmallows over – the

sort you drink. The Zombie Volcano Bowl (£20) is

a miniature ceramic volcano, filled with rum, set

alight and served with several straws. It’s the Tiki

bar’s star attraction and it’s lethal (there is a limit

of two per person, per night), so make sure you

order a jerk chicken sandwich (£8) for some

sustenance. Afterwards, you can hit the Sixties-

inspired dance floor and shimmy away to the

sounds of northern soul and Motown.

Know somewhere better? Email us at

[email protected]

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Our day off work isn’t looking

too shiny. Rain on a Bank

Holiday may well be a solid

British tradition (like pork

pies, or inventing new kinds of

pop music) but the last few

were pretty decent. Still, even

terribly inclement weather can

be an opportunity to showcase

a good accessory. Our choice

would be this peacock-

patterned umbrella from

Liberty (£35). We almost want

the sky to start dripping now.

Experience (and

BBC weather

forecasts) may

have us expecting

rain on Monday,

but aren’t Bank

Holidays

supposed to be

about optimism?

Let us be rash and forget about the looming grey

clouds; let us instead turn towards this lovely gold

bottle of sunscreen from St Tropez (£15), which

contains a newly developed active ingredient to

stimulate the body’s own sun defences.

WE ARE BEING REALISTIC ABOUT

NEXT MONDAY…

…BUT THEN

AGAIN

CATHI UNSWORTH RECOMMENDS

The Knockout Artist by Harry Crews

“Harry Crews is the greatest outsider writer of 20th

century America, and the story of glass-jawed boxer

Eugene Biggs feels like nothing but the truth. It would

be my dream to write a book as real as this.”

Bad Penny Blues by Cathi Unsworth is out now,

Serpent’s Tail.

LISA JEWELL RECOMMENDS

The Vanishing Act Of Esme Lennox by Maggie

O’Farrell

“Maggie O’Farrell’s first novel caused a big stir in the

literary world when it was published 10 years ago. But

for me, by far her best book is The Vanishing Act Of

Esme Lennox. This is O’Farrell at her absolute best.”

The Making Of Us by Lisa Jewell is out now, Century.

Indulge yourself during UK Spa Fortnight.

We’ve teamed up with The Good Spa Guide

to give you amazing 2-for-1 deals on

indulgent treatments, breaks and days at

spas across the UK. Offer ends 12 June

Two for one

spa treats

Having trouble reading this email? Please click here to see an online version

Friday 27 May 2011

THE BOOKS THESE WRITERS THINK

YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT

Whether it’s the lesser-known novel from a famous author or a forgotten short

story, there’s always that one, special book that you want to shout about. The one

you lend to someone, don’t get back, and then buy another copy to lend to someone

else. We’ve asked five of our favourite authors to recommend their favourite ‘lost’

classic for us to read.

KATIE WARD RECOMMENDS

All Passion Spent by Vita Sackville-West

“Lady Slane is a widow who sacrificed her ambition to

be an artist in order to raise her children. The comedy

comes from her dreadful offspring, who believe her to

be batty. The novel is a gentle lesson in not leaving

things too late.”

Girl Reading by Katie Ward is available now, Virago.

ESI EDUGYAN RECOMMENDS

How German Is It by Walter Abish

“One of the most original novels I have ever read. It

recounts the story of Ulrich Hargenau, a writer who

returns to Germany after a long sojourn abroad.

Experimental without being obscure, the novel is one

of astonishing strangeness.”

Half Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan is out 2 June,

Serpent’s Tail.

CAITLIN DAVIES RECOMMENDS

The Story Of An Hour by Kate Chopin

“I first read this 25 years ago and it still makes me

laugh out loud. It’s a bit overblown, with a real sense

of Victorian melodrama and ecstasy, but it’s also very

daring and way ahead of its time.”

Caitlin Davies’ The Ghost Of Lily Painter is available

from 2 June, Hutchinson.

LISA LYNCH RECOMMENDS

Silas Marner by George Eliot

“Of all the books I read as a kid, this had the biggest

effect on me. In fact, it damn near broke my daft lit

tle

heart. But not half as much as it would if ever it w

ere

forgotten or truly ‘lost’.”

Lisa Lynch is author of The C-Word, available now,

Arrow.

The best-looking ladies’

loo in London? Probably

Rain, rain

don’t go away

Demonstrate

your huge

good taste.

Forward this

to a friend

E X C L U S I V E E M E R A L D S T R E E T O F F E R

Why is the fictional

world of espionage so

alluring, even the grittier

kind? “It’s the threat of

the familiar,” says

literary critic and English

academic Lucy Scholes.

“Everybody’s scared of

that on some level.” The

Cold War-set film

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier,

Spy, based on John Le

Carré’s book, is out on

Friday, so we asked Lucy

for her best spy novels.

xxxx

OPERATIVE: IAN FLEMING

FILE: CASINO ROYALE

“You couldn’t make this list without James Bond, and

Casino Royale is the first in Fleming’s series about

007. The books are less glossy than the films, they’re

darker and more violent. People don’t often expect

them to be, but they’re very well written too.”

OPERATIVE: JOHN BUCHAN

FILE: THE 39 STEPS

“You might be familiar with the films, particularly

Alfred Hitchcock’s version. The 39 Steps is set just

before the outbreak of World War One, there are

German spies everywhere and it’s really very, very

good. It’s also the first appearance of Richard Hannay,

who crops up in Buchan’s later books.”

OPERATIVE: IAN MCEWAN

FILE: THE INNOCENT

“This is one of McEwan’s earlier books, and, if you’re

only familiar with Atonement or On Chesil Beach, it’s

well worth going back to. The Innocent is set in 1955,

has a very Cold War plot, and concerns an English

man working in Berlin and having an affair with a

German woman.”

OPERATIVE: GRAHAM GREENE

FILE: OUR MAN IN HAVANA

“Graham Greene’s Our Man In Havana is a black

comedy, based on the author’s own experiences in

MI6,” says Lucy. “Greene’s a fantastic writer anyway

and this one, despite being gritty and dark and about

the problems of trusting local sources, has a real

comedic edge.”

OPERATIVE: ANNA FUNDER

FILE: ALL THAT I AM

“Anna Funder wrote an amazing non-fiction book

called Stasiland, about former East Germany, and All

That I Am is her first work of fiction, although it is

based on true events. It follows a group of left-wing

activists who flee to the UK when Hitler comes to

power. Just read it.”

THIS EMAIL CONTAINS

CLASSIFIED INFORMATION

Lucy Scholes always gets a

thrill out of a good spy novel

CLICK HERE TO ENTER

Emerald Street’s editorial team is celebrating

Coast’s 15th birthday this month by

selecting its favourite five birthday celebration

dresses, and you could win them all.

Win 5 dresses

from Coast


Wednesday 14 September 2011

“Makes my work day SO much better.” @LA3112

Share with a friend

Tomorrow night, BBC Four is

showing the last of the

wonderful Elegance And

Decadence: The Age of the

Regency programmes, so dive

into the previous two episodes

on iPlayer tonight. We’re very

enamoured of presenter Dr

Lucy Worsley, who by day

holds the impressive title of

chief curator at the Historic

Royal Palaces. We also like

her hair, but that makes us

feel shallow.

US photographer

Luis Gispert’s

latest project saw

him track down

the owners of

several cars that

are meticulously

customised and

decked out in

faux-designer bling. Fendi, Gucci and LV seem the

most popular choices for decorating a low-riding

logomobile. His pictures of the vehicles, with

previously taken empty landscapes visible through the

windscreens, are fascinating, bright and eerie.

EL PARADOR ROJO

213-243 High Road, London, N15

This is a real in-the-know place, unless you’re part

of north London’s Colombian community. El

Parador Rojo isn’t the loveliest place to look at,

with basic furnishings and the traffic of Tottenham

High Road thundering past, but the food is

amazing. The buñuelos (savoury dough balls) are

great on the side with a serving of salsa verde, but

pretty much anything you order will be good. The

coffee is also something special, made with

Colombian beans and served in huge cups. No

website, you really do have to seek this one out.

TOMORROW ON EMERALD STREET: WEEKEND FUN. TELL YOUR FRIENDS.

WANT MORE? Is advertising finally growing up? Take a look.


[email protected]

CATCH UP ON THE

REGENCY ERA

CUSTOMISED

WITH LOVE

Illustration: Francesca Waddell Photography Getty Images





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Try something different: the buñuelos

at El Parador Rojo are divine

In the last episode historian Lucy

looks at the years leading up to

George IV’s coronation

CLICK HERE TO ENTER

A N E M E R A L D S T R E E T A D V E R T O R I A L

Win a girls night

out for you

and three friends

We want to know about your unusual dating

stories. Tell us all about it and you could win a

girls night out at a London restaurant, thanks to

the people behind hilarious comedy What’s Your

Number? Have you got any funny stories about

an ex or a disastrous date? Let us know your

story in fewer than 50 words for your chance to

win this amazing prize.

TRAM AND SOCIAL

46-48 Mitcham Road, London, SW17

We hadn’t a clue this gem of a pub existed until a

friend led us by the hand to the almost missable

black gates and through a narrow, fairy light-

festooned courtyard. It’s like finding the Potter-

famed platform nine and three-quarters. Once in,

it opens up into a huge venue with 75-foot ceilings,

a mezzanine, dance floor, and huge pipes that

belie its former incarnation as a tram shed. Huge

chandeliers loom and Chesterfield sofas and old

clocks complete the feel of a grand old mansion

that has been invaded by Tooting’s hippest.


[email protected]

Tomorrow on EmErald StrEEt: fine Things To do in your area. Tell your friends

WANT MORE? Fake tan, bright nails, sunscreen: the summer’s best beauty buys.

Illustrations: Francesca Waddell







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As you may have spotted, the

past two editions of Emerald

Street have been guest edited

by Claudia Winkleman.

Unfortunately Claudia is

currently ill and has had to

pull out of all her work

commitments. We’ve

thoroughly enjoyed having her

be a part of Emerald Street

and are sure that you have

too. Best wishes from all of the

team Claudia and get well

soon.

Our guest editor

Claudia might be

off sick, but we

couldn’t fail to

mention one of

her favourite

organisations:

Roald Dahl’s

Marvellous

Children’s Charity. The charity helps seriously ill

children, raising money for individuals and

organisations and providing nurses, equipment and

toys. Claudia is an ambassador, but look at their site

and see what you can do.

A much-loved book is a precious thing, absorbing and exciting and we’re always

after recommendations for the next page-turner from friends and colleagues. We

asked around the office to find out people’s absolute favourites

THE CLASSY FAMILY SAGA

“I love all four of AS Byatt’s Frederica novels – soap-

opera engaging, but full of ideas and knowledge. Start

in the Fifties with The Virgin In The Garden,

(Vintage, £9.99) focusing on schoolgirl Frederica’s

involvement with a play about Elizabeth I. If you like

it, you can follow the Potter family and those around

them through to the early Seventies.”

anna fielding, Emerald Street editor

THE VICTORIAN THRILLER

“I love a good twist and turn, and there are so many

clever ones in Fingersmith by Sarah Waters (Virago

Press, £7.99). It has you gasping constantly, as the

plot switches from one protagonist to another, and the

layers of double-crossing get ever-more complex.

Unputdownable and beautifully written, it’s easy to

see why this was shortisted for so many awards.”

megan Conner, Stylist senior writer

THE FASHION HISTORY

“Style City: How London Became a Fashion Capital by

Robert O’Byrne (Frances Lincoln, £35.00) is an

amazing fashion book about the journey of London’s

fashion scene. It’s very in-depth and covers a whole

range of styles and scenes. It’s an incredible insight

into what makes Londoners (and the rest of Britain)

such stylish people. I’m always dipping into it.”

morag Paterson, Stylist fashion assistant

THE GOTHIC DRAMA

“Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier (Virago Modern

Classics, £7.99) has it all: a love story, romance,

murder, intrigue and fashion. I’ve read it about five

times and I could read it again right now. It also

contains one of the best first lines in literature: ‘Last

night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.’ It’s a signal

for me to settle down, happily, and read.”

amy grier, Stylist Junior writer

THE TEENAGE COMEDY

“Right now it’s Diary of a Chav: Trainers And Tiaras

(Hodder, £5.99) I had to stop reading it on the bus as

it was making me laugh out loud too much and people

were starting to give me funny looks. Writer Grace

Dent is hilarious and the way main characer Shiraz

Bailey Wood speaks is spot on. Yes, it’s for teenagers,

but it’s so funny you should read it anyway.”

Tom gormer, Stylist Photography director

THE SPY THRILLER

“I love spy fiction, it’s my favourite genre and Travels

With My Aunt by Graham Greene (Vintage Classics,

£7.99) combines aspects of the mundane with

humour and plenty of pace and suspense. Greene was

all about escaping from the ordinary and the search

for the exotic and challenging. This book makes you

want to board a plane and flee.” alexandra

fullerton, Stylist fashion director

THE COMING-OF-AGE NOVEL

“The Rotters’ Club by Jonathan Coe (Penguin, £8.99):

Seventies Birmingham, terrorism, prog rock, striking

factory workers and missing swimming shorts. It

follows a group of school boys as they adjust to the

world around them. A brilliant and funny coming-of-

age story and a truly great read.”

francesca Brown, Stylist Production editor

Share with a friend

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Wednesday 22 June 2011

“Wa-hey! Good times!” @LDNgirl788

OUR SEVEN GENUINE, PROPER

FAVOURITE BOOKS...EVER

Tram and Social is a

delight for all the senses

We wish Claudia a

speedy recovery

NEWS ABOUT OUR

GUEST EDITOR

MAKE A MARVELLOUS

DIFFERENCE

YE OLDE CHESHIRE CHEESE

145 Fleet Street, London, EC4

This is old-world charm, thickly applied. They

even have sawdust, actual sawdust, on the floor.

‘The Cheese’ has been around since 1666, when it

was rebuilt after the Great Fire of London. It can

be a touch touristy (‘Like something out of Charles

Dickens darling!’), but on an early weeknight it

empties out, allowing it’s charm to show. The

pub’s warren-like network of small rooms and

perilously low ceilings impart a feeling of cosiness,

rather than subterranian gloom. And our friend,

visiting from New York, loved it.


[email protected]

TOMORROW ON EMERALD STREET: WE’VE GOT YOUR PLANS FOR THE WEEKEND. TELL YOUR FRIENDS.

WANT MORE? Never grew out of your doll’s house? Take a look at a miniature Hong Kong.

Illustrations: Francesca Waddell







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Rural Shropshire village Much

Wenlock hosted one of the

first national Olympics in

1850. There’s even a London

2012 mascot named after it.

The Olympic Opening

Ceremony takes place a year

today, but for a no-sweat

alternative try Yew Tree Farm,

with chickens wandering the

grounds and hilly views,

making it an ideal getaway for

the city person longing for

their own open spaces.

Piggy plays

guitar. A small

pink one. Lucy

also rolls out

rugs, waves,

stands on her

hind legs and

plays power

chords. The

multi-instrumentalist pig also bangs out a tuneful

melody on a keyboard in her desperation to impress

her rather demanding owner. Pigs are known for

being smarter than dogs, but they rarely get to show

just how entertaining they can be.

Emerald Street likes breaking rules. The Man Booker longlist was released

yesterday, so we asked five authors for their own Booker winner, from

any place and any time.

REVOLUTIONARY ROAD

BY RICHARD YATES

“I can’t think of a more devastating, unflinchingly

truthful portrait of a marriage than the story of Frank

and April Wheeler in Revolutionary Road. It has a

broader setting of course — a railing against the

conformity of fifties America, against suburbia,

convention and mundanity, but it’s also an intensely

intimate work.” Laura Barton, journalist and author

of Twenty-One Locks

CHRISTIE MALRY’S OWN DOUBLE

ENTRY BY BS JOHNSON

“Novelists who are determined to grind away at the

very idea of the novel tend to produce correspondingly

arid work, but Christie Malry’s Own Double Entry is

one of the funniest British books ever written.

Johnson was almost forgotten until a few years ago,

when Jonathan Coe brought out a biography; the

revival must continue.” Ned Beauman, author of

Boxer, Beetle

LIFE: A USER’S MANUAL

BY GEORGES PEREC

“Georges Perec’s sprawling, maddening and utterly

readable Life: A User’s Manual is set in a French

apartment building where time has been frozen at

23 June 1975, Perec tells the story of its occupants

both present and past, and creates one of the most

enjoyable and ingenious novels of the 20th Century.”

Stuart Evers, author of Ten Stories About Smoking

STITCHES BY DAVID SMALL

“If rules and attitudes changed, I’d love to see Stitches

win the Booker prize. It’s a graphic memoir about

growing up in the fifties with a closet-lesbian mother

and a radiologist father, who gives his son frequent

X-Rays ‘for his health’. It’s wonderful and deeply

felt but unsentimental.” Evie Wyld, author of

After The Fire

LUCKY BUNNY

BY JILL DAWSON

“I’d imagine this year’s Booker will be a shoo-in for

Alan Hollinghurst’s The Stranger’s Child but as I

haven’t read it yet, I’m free to award my fantasy prize

to Jill Dawson for Lucky Bunny. I adored the central

character – a Mandy Rice-Davies confection with an

even bigger heart – and have never come across an act

of literary ventriloquism like it.” Polly Samson,

author of Perfect Lives

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Wednesday 27 July 2011

“Miles away: but still can’t resist checking.” @lialoukas

THE OLYMPICS. THIS FARMHOUSE.

WHAT CONNECTS THEM?

PERSONALITY GOES

A LONG WAY

OUR VERY OWN

BOOKER PRIZE LIST

Share with a friend

Vist Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese

and feel like you’ve stepped

onto a Harry Potter set

Relaxing’s not an Olympic

sport? It so should be

AN ALMOST TRUE TALE

Obsession and a strong Catholic element run through

Graham Greene’s The End Of The Affair, reportedly

based on Greene’s own romance with married woman

Lady Catherine Walston. “A bittersweet tale that’s

incredibly moving,” says David.

THE BIG HISTORICAL PICTURE

“Boris Pasternak’s Dr Zhivago is part-love story,

part-big historical book,” says David. The story of Lara

and the doctor takes in World War I, the Russian

Revolution and the Russian Civil War. “But the wider

context doesn’t make the relationship element any

less moving.”

THIS ONE WILL MAKE YOU CRY

So, Mr Nicholls does know what it’s like to cry over a

book: “Tess Of The d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy

makes me sob and sob. People think of Tess as a

passive character but that’s just not the case. A

powerful book.”

DAVID’S ALL-TIME FAVOURITE

“Ah, Tender Is The Night by F Scott Fitzgerald is

always my number one,” says David of Fitzgerald’s

last novel. Set in the South of France in the Thirties,

the book explores jealousy, madness and, as David

says, “it’s very beautiful and lyrical and intensely sad.”

TOWPATH CAFE

42 De Beauvoir Crescent, London N1

The Towpath Cafe on the Hackney stretch of the

Regent’s Canal is so cool, its fame has spread by

word of mouth. People flock there for gourmet

coffee and an ever-changing menu of fresh,

seasonal food like gazpacho (they also do a rather

sophisticated grilled cheese toastie) and excellent

house wines. There’s a cheerful mix of chairs on

the canal path and cosy sheltered seats in an inner

alcove. This year they added an additional area

with rugs for sunny days. The Towpath is perfect

for early evening dates and Sunday brunch.


[email protected]

Have you ever fancied taking

your shoes off and jumping in

a lake? Here’s how you find

that lake, and many other

alfresco swimming spots. The

Outdoor Swimming Society

has produced an interactive

map. You can input your

postcode or location and it’ll

show you the nearby rivers,

lakes and lidos plus if you’ve

got a local watering hole you

want to share, you can add it

to the map.

We have

conducted

exhaustive

research into this

subject and after

squandering

countless office

hours frantically

firing little balls

at other little balls, steering spaceships around cubes

and so on, we can report that the best way to waste a

Friday afternoon before a Bank Holiday is with

Bubble Shooter. Just don’t tell your boss we told you

where to find it.

THE NEAR-PERFECT CLASSIC

“Can I have two by Fitzgerald?” Oh, go on then. “The

Great Gatsby is almost the perfect book. Despite

never actually seeing the love story, you totally

understand the intensity of the relationship between

Gatsby and Daisy.”

Almost everyone has

fallen in love with One

Day: the novel pulled us

through highs and lows,

before leaving us sobbing

somewhere a bit too

public, wondering why

things were over and

how they could end like

that. The film version

opens this evening, and

we’re more than ready to

give our affair another

try. Emerald Street had

wondered which books

have the same emotional

pull for One Day author

David Nicholls?

“Look forward to reading

them every day. Keep

them coming.” @Mrs_G22

“Made it easier to

come back to work after

two days off.”

@wouldilietoyou

“I love Emerald Street”

@Miss_RichyRich

If you’re enjoying

please tweet about it!


Friday 26 August 2011

“Love Emerald Street… such great updates.” @RubyandMillie

WHICH BOOKS MAKE DAVID

NICHOLLS CRY?

Share with a friend

SWIM WILD

THIS WEEKEND

FRIDAY AFTERNOON IS

NOT PRODUCTIVE TIME

Anne and Jim. About

to make you weep

What the signs says

Towpath Cafe: hats

not mandatory

ON MONDAY’S EMERALD STREET: WE HAVE FRIENDS ROUND FOR BANK HOLIDAY LUNCH. TELL YOUR FRIENDS.

WANT MORE? Sky’s Alex Crawford has done some of the best reporting from Tripoli. See more women on the front line.

Illustrations: Francesca Waddell Photography: Focusfeatures.com







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3

T H E A L L - T I M E C L A S S I C S

THE GREAT GATSBY BY F Scott Fitzgerald

HOWARDS END BY EM Forster

LOVE IN A COLD CLIMATE BY Nancy Mitford

TO KILL A MOCKING BIRD BY Harper Lee

THE GROUP BY Mary McCarthy

EXCELLENT WOMEN BY Barbara Pym

REBECCA BY Daphne du Maurier

T H E M O D E R N M U S T - R E A D S

HEARTBURN BY Nora Ephron

GHOSTWRITTEN BY David Mitchell

COVER HER FACE BY PD James

THE BLIND ASSASSIN BY Margaret Atwood

WOLF HALL BY Hilary Mantel

VALLEY OF THE DOLLS BY Jacqueline Susann

GIRLFRIEND IN A COMA BY Douglas Coupland

T H E N E W F A V O U R I T E S

ONE DAY BY David Nicholls

SUPER SAD TRUE LOVE STORY BY Gary Shteyngart

VISION OF LOVELINESS BY Louise Levene

THE RULES OF CIVILITY BY Amor Towles

THE BEST OF EVERYTHING BY Rona Jaffe

A VISIT FROM THE GOON SQUAD BY Jennifer Egan



4

ot a great success when it was

first published, The Great

Gatsby has gone on to achieve

much-deserved status as one of

the finest American novels. Set

in the years following World War One, among the

wealthy but dysfunctional elite of Long Island and

New York, it sees everyman Nick Carraway

become part of the fashionable set for a summer –

only to watch the group spectacularly implode in a

mess of adultery, decadence and lies. The

enigmatic Gatsby, owner of the finest house and

thrower of the wildest parties, entrances Nick –

and ends up teaching him much more than how to

be a great host. Dripping in glamour, cocktails and

ambition, it feels like a treat despite the shocking

ending. It’s easy to feel more sophisticated just

owning it and the read itself is a treat.

About the author: Now much admired,

Fitzgerald was never convinced that he was taken

seriously during his lifetime. One of the most

famous writers of the Jazz Age, he was a notorious

drinker and party-goer, constantly lurching

between financial crises. However exhausting it

must have been for him, though, it made for great

material.

Sample quote: “There was music from my

T H E A L L - T I M E C L A S S I C

THE GREAT GATSBY

BY

F Scott Fitzgerald1 9 2 5

neighbour’s house through the summer nights. In

his blue gardens, men and girls came and went

like moths among the whisperings and the

champagne and the stars.” – Nick Carraway

Did you know? Finished before the book,

the first-edition cover art for The Great Gatsby is

one of the most famous dust jackets in history. By

a relatively unknown artist named Francis Cugat,

it so inspired Fitzgerald that he wanted to

incorporate the painting and how it made him feel

into the book. Look at the irises of the woman’s

face: they’re reclining nudes.

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ssentially a story about English

class warfare, this is also a novel

with a huge heart. It sees three

types: a wealthy family determined

to play by the book, an ambitious

but pitifully poor young man, and two feisty,

well-educated sisters in the middle trying to bring

the two together. Howards End is a house in

the Hertfordshire countryside that means a huge

amount to each of them and also symbolises

the future of England. What seems like a gentle

Edwardian-read turns out to be much, much more

– about love, sex, marriage, money, sympathy

and snobbery. These are characters created over

a century ago, but their struggles remain

powerfully moving. The movie adaptation starring

Emma Thompson and Anthony Hopkins won

the Oscar for best picture, as well as Best Actress

for Thompson.

About the author: Born in 1879 novelist,

short-story writer and essayist, Edward Morgan

Forster is well known for the gentle irony and dry

humour with which he wrote about the English

class system in the early 20th century. His Italian-

set novels, Where Angels Fear To Tread and A

Room With A View, are also classics.

Sample quote: “I felt for a moment that the


HOWARDS END

BY

EM Forster1 9 1 0

whole Wilcox family was a fraud, just a wall of

newspapers and motor-cars and golf-clubs, and

that if it fell I should find nothing behind it but

panic and emptiness.” – Helen Schlegel

Did you know? Zadie Smith’s Orange

Prize-winning 2006 novel On Beauty is a modern-

day homage to – and retelling of – Howards End;

set in New England at the turn-of-the-millenium .

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6

he follow-up to The Pursuit Of

Love, this novel also features

narrator Fanny, based on

Mitford herself. The novel is

largely about her relationship

with her dear cousin Polly and her eccentric

family, the Montdores. Set amidst the society

classes of England, it sees Polly’s exasperated

parents trying to encourage her to make a ‘great’

marriage, largely to her indifference. But where

the real interest lies is in Mitford’s rapier-sharp

wit and screamingly funny asides about the

eccentricities of the English upper class. They all

seem blindingly insane and utterly intriguing.

About the author: Born in 1904, Nancy

was the oldest of the six famous Mitford sisters.

Her younger siblings included fellow author

Jessica, Deborah – now Dowager Duchess of

Devonshire, and Unity, who married Oswald

Mosley, leader of the British Union of Fascists.

Famously witty, Nancy was one of the Bright

Young Things of London society between the

world wars, and incorporated what she saw

into her novels.

Sample quote: “I should like you to be on


LOVE IN A COLD

CLIMATEBY

Nancy Mitford1 9 4 9

the verge of love but not yet quite in it. That’s

a very nice state of mind, while it lasts.” “But of

course, I had already dived over the verge and was

swimming away in a blue sea of illusion towards,

I supposed, the island of the blest, but really

towards domesticity, maternity and the usual lot

of womankind.” – Lady Montdore talking to Polly

Did you know? Carrie Bradshaw is seen

reading a copy of the novel in Sex And The City 2.

We can but wonder what Mitford would have

made of the film.

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7

o one is ever the same after

reading To Kill A Mocking Bird.

Not only does it work as a

cracking page-turner, but it is

also one of the most powerful

novels dealing with the issues of rape and racial

inequality ever written. Based on the experiences

and Alabama hometown of the author herself, it

has six-year-old Scout Finch narrating her own

coming-of-age story one summer as she makes

unexpected friends and sees her father, widowed

lawyer Atticus, take on a case defending a local

black man accused of rape. One of the few ‘set

texts’ that consistently enthrals in the classroom,

it also leaves adult readers kinder, more

thoughtful and passing their copy of the book

on to anyone they love.

About the author: Notoriously publicity-

shy, reclusive Lee has been played on screen by

no fewer than four actresses, including Sandra

Bullock and Catherine Keener, but hasn’t been

published again since her debut. She hasn’t given

an interview since 1964, claiming ‘It’s better to

be silent than to be a fool’, and the residents of

her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama are

famously protective of her.

Sample quote: “They’re certainly entitled

to think that and they’re entitled to full respect

for their opinions... but before I can live with

other folks, I’ve got to live with myself. The one


TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRDBY

Harper Lee1 9 6 0

thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is

a person’s conscience.” – Atticus Finch

Did you know? Not only was the

Beckhams’ first daughter Harper Seven named

after the author, but so is Harper Peck Voll, the

grandson of Gregory Peck, who played Atticus

in the Oscar-winning film adaptation.

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8

et in New York in the Thirties, this

novel is an exciting feminist read,

as gossipy as it is inspiring. When

eight young women graduate from

the swish Vassar College and move

to the city, their paths diverge as they find

happiness and success in varying measure.

Watching women lust for education and a career,

as much as a family or an unsuitable man is as

refreshing now as it must have been upon

publication, and it is invigoratingly honest about

friendship and sex, as well as being laugh-out-

loud funny at times. Once you’ve read it, you’ll

judge every other ‘friendship novel’ you come

across against this one.

About the author: Seattle-born McCarthy

attended the same Vassar College in New York as

her characters, before embarking on life as an

author and critic. Those she studied with were not

amused to recognise themselves in her novel, and

years later she admitted that she had borrowed

from real life, calling it “putting real plums into an

imaginary cake.”

Sample quote: “Libby had a little secret;

she sometimes made love to herself, on the bath

mat, after having her tub. She always felt awful


THE GROUP

BY

Mary McCarthy1 9 6 3

afterward, sort of shaken and depleted and

wondering what people would think if they could

see her, especially when she took herself what she

called ‘over the top’.”

Did you know? Candace Bushnell claims to

have read the novel more than 10 times. In the

mid-Nineties, her editor told her she should ‘write

a modern-day version of The Group’. She did just

that and called it Sex And The City.

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9

comedic novel about a spinster,

an anthropologist and a

fanciable vicar admittedly

doesn’t sound like an exciting

proposition, but you’re going to

have to trust us: this is a hugely under-appreciated

treat. Set shortly after World War Two and

narrated by self-deprecating thirty-something

Mildred Lathbury, it is defiant, painfully honest

and genuinely hilarious. The title refers to the sort

of ‘capable’ woman who inexplicably never

marries, as Mildred spends most of the novel

either being set up by the well-meaning or let

down by the feckless, while always clocking the

wiles of those who are better with men than her.

The humour is razor-sharp and the gags remain

so relevant, it’s hard to believe that it was

published over half a century ago.

About the author: Pym could have been

a character from one of her own novels; hers was

a life of quiet dignity, she was clearly one of

life’s observers. She graduated from Oxford

University and then served as a WREN during

World War Two before having her first novel

published in 1950.

Sample quote: “I was so astonished that

I could think of nothing to say, but wondered


EXCELLENT WOMEN

BY

Barbara Pym1 9 5 2

irrelevantly if I was to be caught with a teapot

in my hand on every dramatic occasion.” –

Mildred Lathbury

Did you know? Pym took a long hiatus

from writing from 1963 to 1977 when she fell out

of literary favour. An article by Philip Larkin

describing her as the most underrated writer of

the century reignited interest and her next novel,

Quartet In Autumn went on to be nominated for

the Man Booker Prize.

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1 0

ave you ever had the creeping

suspicion that your boyfriend

wishes he were still with

his ex? Welcome to the second

Mrs de Winter’s life. We never

learn her name because she is the narrator of

the novel. After meeting and falling in love

with Max de Winter, she moves into his splendid

West Country mansion, only to realise that

there are reminders of his first wife Rebecca

everywhere. Menacing housekeeper Mrs Danvers

is particularly keen to keep her old boss’s memory

alive and makes a point of tormenting her

successor. Romantic, sinister and with a better

sense of place than any property show could ever

hope, this is a literary page-turner with class.

About the author: Born in early 20th-

century London into a theatrical family, du

Maurier spent much of her life in Cornwall, the

setting for many of her novels. While her work

sold well during her lifetime, it received little in

the way of critical acclaim. Movie adaptations of

her suspenseful novels and short stories have

helped to change the perception of her work.

Rebecca won Best Picture at the Oscars, while her

short stories were the basis for both Hitchcock’s

The Birds and Nicholas Roeg’s Don’t Look Now.


REBECCABY

Daphne du Maurier1 9 3 8

Sample quote: “I am glad it cannot happen

twice, the fever of first love. For it is a fever, and

a burden too, whatever the poets may say.” – Mrs

de Winter

Did you know? During World War Two,

a copy of Rebecca was used as the basis for

a system of codes among German spies. This true

story was later used as the basis for the Ken Follett

spy thriller The Key To Rebecca.

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1 1

ased on the real-life breakdown

of her marriage to Watergate

journalist Carl Bernstein, this is

essentially the story of one hell of

a split. We’re left in no doubt as

to Ephron’s intense pain on learning – while

pregnant – that her husband is cheating on her,

but nevertheless this novel remains darkly,

endearingly humorous throughout. The

supporting cast, also based on Ephron’s real

friends and family, are utterly bonkers and of little

help, but they only serve to strengthen the

apparent heart-warming message of the book –

that we muddle through life. Oh, and as the

fictional Nora – Rachel is a cookbook writer, there

are fab recipes between the chapters too. What

more could you want?

About the author: Born in New York to

two Hollywood screenwriters, Ephron was born

to write. A director, novelist, journalist and

playwright, she is behind some of the best

romantic comedies of the past few decades,

penning When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless

In Seattle, as well as a perfect pastiche of The Girl

With The Dragon Tattoo for the New Yorker:

The Girl Who Fixed The Umlaut.

Sample quote: “I look out the window and

T H E M O D E R N M U S T - R E A D

HEARTBURNBY

Nora Ephron1 9 8 3

I see the lights and the skyline and the people on

the street rushing around looking for action, love,

and the world’s greatest chocolate chip cookie, and

my heart does a little dance.” – Rachel Samstat

Did you know? The novel was turned into

an underrated 1986 movie of the same title,

starring Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson as

Ephron and Bernstein – and a very young Kevin

Spacey as the thief on the subway who stars in

a key scene.

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1 2

his, David Mitchell’s debut, is a

precursor to his later, better-

known novels. But for our money,

it’s all the more magical for

displaying the extraordinary

talent of a first-time author. Telling nine

seemingly independent stories that are in fact

loosely interlinked, it is a masterpiece in

storytelling. There are so many brilliantly

captured voices, from the Tokyo jazz-lover, to the

Russian art-thief or London-based ghostwriter

that it makes almost anything seem possible.

Even a description of the different personalities

of each London tube line is extraordinary in how…

right it is. Several of the characters in

Ghostwritten reappear in Mitchell’s later novels

Cloud Atlas, number9dream and Black Swan

Green. You will be left dazzled, blinking at

Mitchell’s talent by the end of this book.

About the author: David Mitchell is a rare

author about whom relatively little is known,

despite his internationally best-selling status and

crop of prestigious literary awards. Born in

Merseyside, he’s 42, has lived in Sicily and Japan,

and currently lives with his family in Ireland. He

has an occasional stammer and has written about

how The King’s Speech “is the first film to portray

my speech defect realistically”.

Sample quote: “I am going to tell you a

secret. Everything is about wanting. Everything.


GHOSTWRITTENBY

David Mitchell1 9 9 9

Things happen because of people wanting. Watch

closely, and you’ll see what I mean.”

Did you know? A movie adaptation of

Cloud Atlas, by the Wachowski brothers of Matrix

fame, recently began production in Germany. It is

to star Tom Hanks, Halle Berry and The Hour’s

Ben Whishaw and will be the most expensive

German film ever made.

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his was crime doyenne Baroness

James’s debut and her first novel

to feature the now famous

detective Adam Dalgliesh, the

poetry-writing policeman who

stars in most of her bestsellers. Beautiful young

housemaid Sally Jupp is strangled in her bed –

but behind a bolted door. Cool, methodical

Dalgliesh works out who the murderer must be.

The gripping novel follows his clear-headed

process of elimination in a house full of suspects

who all seem to have a motive. The novel heralded

a new standard for crime fiction, allowing the

genre to be perceived as something more than

narrative-driven pot-boilers, but to have literary

ambitions as well. It is an absorbing read – not

just because of the case in hand, but because

of the perfect snapshot of early Sixties society

that it provides.

About the author: Phyllis Dorothy James

was born in 1920, her father was a tax inspector

and James herself became a civil servant, working

for the police, National Health Service, Home

Office and Criminal Policy Department until she

finally became a full-time writer in 1979.

Sample quote: “The corpse was the most

unreal of all, a second-rate actress trying


COVER HER FACE

BY

PD James1 9 6 2

unconvincingly to simulate death. Her eyes were

almost closed , but her face held that look of faint

surprise which he had often noticed in the faces

of the dead.”

Did you know? The novel was written on

the train while Baroness James commuted to her

job in the NHS. Puts those creative writing

courses and retreat holidays into perspective…

FABER & FABER, £7.99, KINDLE £6.12

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ntricately plotted and perfectly

observed, Atwood’s Man Booker

winner is as readable as it is

admirable. Featuring two sisters -

cool, reserved Iris and the feistier

Laura – it sees the family hit hard times during

the North American Depression. Iris is married off

to a wealthy industrialist, while Laura meets a

sticky end when she drives off a bridge. But she

leaves a pulp novel behind her – which, presented

alongside Iris’ version of events, provides a novel

within a novel that slowly unfolds into a jaw-

dropping twist. Atwood, always a masterful

storyteller, is at her very best here.

About the author: Novelist, poet, critic,

environmentalist, legend and Twitter-fiend,

Atwood was home-schooled until her teens and

has published more than 30 books, including The

Edible Woman, The Handmaid’s Tale, Alias

Grace and Oryx & Crake.

Sample quote: “Mother might be resting,

or doing good deeds elsewhere, but Reenie was

always there. She’d scoop us up and sit us on

the white enamel kitchen table, alongside the

pie dough she was rolling out, or the chicken

she was cutting up, or the fish she was gutting,

and give us a lump of brown sugar to get us


THE BLIND ASSASSIN

BY

Margaret Atwood2 0 0 0

to close our mouths. Tell me where it hurts, she’d

say. Stop howling. Just calm down and show me

where. But some people can’t tell where it hurts.

They can’t calm down. They can’t ever stop

howling.” – Iris Chase

Did you know? Not only has Atwood been

nominated for the Man Booker prize a staggering

five times (winning it in 2000 for The Blind

Assassin), she has also won the Arthur C Clarke

award for science fiction.

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Set in Tudor England, covering

the 35 years that follow the rise

to power of Cardinal Wolsey, and

650-pages long… it’s not a classic

beach read. But Mantel has two

secret weapons – the England of the 1520s was

a genuinely exciting time, with the king trying

to marry the intoxicating Anne Boleyn, and the

charismatic Wolsey cutting a devastating swathe

through society, and Mantel tells the story with

a pacy modern tone, which makes the pages fly.

If you have spent any of this summer transfixed

by the political and media power play dominating

the headlines, you’ll be just as entranced by

this 16th-century version. Genuinely gripping

and beautifully written, it is a Man Booker winner

to treasure.

About the author: Derbyshire-born law

graduate Mantel has written 11 books, as well

as having been employed as a social worker,

teacher and film critic. She spent five years

researching and writing Wolf Hall and is currently

working on a sequel.

Sample quote: “A man’s power is in the

half-light, in the half-seen movements of his hand

and the unguessed-at expression of his face.

It is the absence of facts that frightens people:

the gap you open, into which they pour their


WOLF HALLBY

Hilary Mantel2 0 0 9

fears, fantasies, desires.” – Thomas Cromwell

Did you know: At the time of the 2009

Booker, Wolf Hall had the shortest odds ever

given by bookmaker William Hill – that’s what

a red-hot favourite it was.

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ovelist Gore Vidal dismissed

Susann by sniping, “She doesn’t

write, she types!” and critics

carped that she “typed on a cash

register”, but any girl who has

read a book on a sun lounger knows the power of

Valley Of The Dolls. Beginning in Forties New

York, it sees three ambitious young women turn

up in the city determined to make something of

themselves. The friends drift in and out of each

other’s lives as they each make a spectacular rise –

and in some cases fall – in show business. It’s

brash and trashy but those are its strengths, not

weaknesses: what it lacks in serious literary

themes it makes up for in ballsy women who want

more than just domestic happiness, and what it

lacks in long words it makes up for in crackling,

quotable dialogue.

About the author: A one-time bit-part

actress and playwright, Susann never became a

‘somebody’ until she wrote this novel. It was an

immediate runaway success and made good use of

everything she saw during her showbiz days. She

hated the movie adaptation, though, and walked

out of its premiere.

Sample quote: “Love shouldn’t make a


VALLEY OF THE DOLLS

BY

Jacqueline Susann1 9 6 6

beggar of one. I wouldn’t want love if I had to

beg for it, to barter or qualify it. And I should

despise it if anyone ever begged for my love. Love

is something that must be given – it can’t be

bought with words or pity or even reason.” – Allen

Cooper (to Anne)

Did you know? Susann’s editor was the

legendary Michael Korda, who also published

fellow bonkbuster superstar Harold Robbins, as

well as work by Richard Nixon.

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he story of a teen romance with an

epic twist, it opens in Vancouver

in 1979 with a monster house

party at which Karen not only

loses her virginity, but also ends

up falling into a coma. What follows is years of her

boyfriend Richard doing his best to cope –

including looking after the child that their union

brings, then Karen’s eventual awakening. Told

through a series of narrators, the bizarre series of

events – which also include the end of the world –

don’t make this feel so like a big ‘voice of a

generation’ novel as an intimate, emotional one.

The earlier teen scenes are particularly moving. If

you ever worried that Coupland is all about the

gimmicks, this is the novel to prove otherwise.

About the author: Born in 1961 on a

Canadian air base, Coupland was first offered a

writing job after a magazine editor read a postcard

he’d sent to a friend. He became instantly

renowned when his first book Generation X:

Tales For An Accelerated Culture was published

in 1991. Perfectly capturing the ennui of that era’s

grunge-obsessed youngsters, he has since become

known as ‘one of the great satirists of

consumerism’. His novels are often as tender and


GIRLFRIEND IN A

COMABY

Douglas Coupland1 9 9 8

understanding as they are quirky and zeitgeisty.

Sample quote: “I didn’t realise then that

so much of being adult is reconciling ourselves

with the awkwardness and strangeness of our own

feelings. Youth is the time of life lived for some

imaginary audience” – Richard

Did you know: The book’s title is inspired

by the 1987 single of the same name by The

Smiths. Several other song titles and lyrics from

the band are sprinkled throughout the novel.

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t’s getting harder and harder to

find someone who hasn’t read

(and adored) One Day. With the

film adaptation out in September

and a flip-book edition in shops now,

it’s going to be everywhere this autumn. Taking

place over 20 years, revisiting a pair of

newly graduated students who spent one night

together, it charts the couple’s friendship

and what that becomes with a tenderness and

humour that has made both men and women cry

on public transport. If ever there was a book that

deserved this level of success, it’s this one:

as funny as it is sad, and as romantic as it

is knowing, the story of Dexter and Emma is one

of the reads of the decade.

About the author: Nicholls was an actor

for eight years before he made the move

into scriptwriting. He worked on Cold Feet,

and adaptations of Much Ado About Nothing and

Tess Of The D’Urbervilles. His first novel, Starter

For Ten, was made into a film starring James

McAvoy. He is currently working on his fourth

novel and a movie adaptation of Dickens’

Great Expectations.

Sample quote: “‘Live each day as if it’s your

last’, that was the conventional advice, but really,

who had the energy for that? What if it rained

T H E N E W F A V O U R I T E

ONE DAYBY

David Nicholls2 0 0 9

or you felt a bit glandy? It just wasn’t practical.

Better by far to simply try and be good and

courageous and bold and to make a difference.

Not change the world exactly, but the bit around

you. Cherish your friends, stay true to your

principles, live passionately and fully and well.

Experience new things. Love and be loved, if

you ever get the chance.” – Emma Morley

Did you know? Nicholls makes a cameo

appearance in the movie adaptation of One Day,

walking up a staircase in a key nightclub scene.

HODDER FLIPBACK, £9.99, KINDLE, £4.99

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1 9

et in New York in the not-too-

distant future, this love story takes

place in a society where people

barely talk any more, preferring to

stream thoughts, emotions or just

stats to each other via souped-up smart phones

called ‘apparti’. It all seems very far away… and

yet alarmingly close. Lenny is a 39-year-old who

doesn’t seem to fit in: he’s a romantic, he still

reads books, he longs for a girlfriend. The

commodified world that Shteyngart presents

is both terrifying and hilarious, and the romance

he creates is as adorable as it is heartbreaking.

There are few books as likely to make you laugh

out loud on the bus – and then look in terror

at your own phone.

About the author: Born in St Petersburg,

Shteyngart lived there until he was seven – in

a square featuring a huge statue of Lenin. He

moved to America with his family but much of

his work remains rooted in his “Russian-ness”,

now mixed with his “New York Jewishness”. His

first novel, The Russian Debutante’s Handbook

(2002) was named one of the decade’s best

debuts by The Guardian and follow-up

Absurdistan (2006) won numerous awards, as did

Super Sad True Love Story when it came out


SUPER SAD TRUE

LOVE STORYBY

Gary Shteyngart2 0 1 0

in the US last year. He writes his books in bed.

Sample quote: “Do not throw away your

heart. Keep your heart. Your heart is all that

matters. Throw away your ancestors! Throw away

your shyness and the anger that lies just a few

inches beneath. Accept the truth! And if there

is more than one truth, then learn to do the

difficult work – learn to choose. You are good

enough, you are HUMAN ENOUGH, to choose!” –

Lenny Abramov

Did you know? There are a series of

hilarious spoof book trailers for Super Sad True

Love Story on YouTube starring James Franco.

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e’ve all eyed a well-cut cocktail

dress on TV and found ourselves

wishing we’d been born in time

to enjoy the Sixties. Vision Of

Loveliness turns up the dial on

that feeling, then smacks you with the

consequences of a career based on a well-turned

ankle. Jane is bored of her life in suburbia and

dreams of glamour, excitement, even just a decent

cashmere jumper. When she finds a crocodile-skin

Hermès bag full of cash, she tracks down its

owner, Suzy St John and makes an exciting new

friend. Together they take to the clubs, shops and

bars of London, using their charm and good looks

to live the life they believe they deserve. Yet,

before long Jane realises presents don’t come for

free. Indeed, they often come at a very high price.

Perfectly evoking the grime and the glamour of the

early Sixties, just before they started swinging,

this is an absolute must for anyone who’s ever

wished they could just pull on a wasp-waisted

pencil skirt and become someone else.

About the author: Levene is the dance

critic for The Sunday Telegraph. She has also

worked as an advertising copywriter, window

dresser, radio presenter, office cleaner, crossword

editor, college professor and a salesperson.

N E W F A V O U R I T E

VISION OF LOVELINESS

BY

Louise Levene2 0 1 1

Sample quote: “Suzy and Henry’s chat had

reached the whispers and giggles stage and he was

stroking her tiny white wrist as he spoke. She was

leaning across the table with her pretty face

propped on her other hand, smiling into his eyes

and occasionally lowering those big, fat false

eyelashes as if everything he said was utterly

fascinating. Which it wasn’t, quite honestly, not

what Jane could catch.”

Did you know? Joan Collins OBE herself is

a fan, saying, “I loved this book. It wonderfully

evokes the essence of the Sixties.” If it’s good

enough for Joanie…

BLOOMSBURY, £11.99, KINDLE £6.78

W



2 1

f you think you don’t like historical

fiction but know you do like Art Deco

jewellery, then this is the novel for

you. Taking place in 1937 after New

York’s Wall Street crash, The Rules

of Civility is a year in the life of twentysomething

Katey Kontent – who’s been described as Dorothy

Parker meets Holly Golightly. A wannabe career

woman with an eye for a party who knows how to

type fast, steal silk stockings and get strangers to

buy her champagne. What she doesn’t know is

how to stop falling in love, which messes things up

for her. Set in the world of sleazy jazz clubs,

louche literary magazines and men you’re not sure

if you can trust, this is a novel packed with period

detail, yet wearing it lightly. It has the kick of a

modern read with the setting of a classic one, and

is the most glamorous page-turner of the year.

About the author: Boston-born Towles

was educated at Yale and Stanford. He moved to

New York when his fellowship to teach in China

was cancelled on account of the Tiananmen

Square massacre: “I had all my belongings in my

car and had no idea what to do with myself. As it

turned out, an old friend needed a roommate in

New York, so I moved here.” It's this idea of New

York being a city of chances that is played out in

the novel. Towles now has a ‘day job’ at a

Manhattan investment firm and wrote The Rules


THE RULES OF CIVILITY

BY

Amor Towles2 0 1 1

of Civility in his spare time. He says he’s a fan of

“early 20th-century painting, Fifties jazz,

Seventies cop shows, breakfast pastries, pasta,

liquor and cookies made by his grandmothers”.

Sample quote: “That New Year’s, we

started the evening with a plan of stretching three

dollars as far as it would go. We weren’t going to

bother ourselves with boys. More than a few had

had their chance with us in 1937, and we had no

intention of squandering the last hours of the year

on latecomers.” – Katey Kontent

Did you know? Towles says that his

grandmother, who lived in New York during the

Thirties, provided much inspiration for the book.

SCEPTRE, £12.99, KINDLE £6.99

I



2 2

riginally published in 1958 but

newly reissued, Jaffe’s debut novel

was a great success but gradually

fell out of literary favour – until

Don Draper was seen reading it in

bed in an episode of Mad Men. The story of

a group of five girls working together at a New

York publishing company, it’s a classic tale of

friendship and ambition, and a prototype Sex And

The City. What makes it worthy of a place on our

bookshelves over 50-years later is the humour and

sparky dialogue, which makes it feel as if those

girls could sidle up to our desks today for a proper

gossip. The hemlines might be different but the

banter’s all too familiar.

About the author: This was the first of

seven novels written by New Yorker Rona Jaffe,

who sadly died of cancer six years ago, written

in the Fifties while she was working in publishing.

She later established The Rona Jaffe Foundation,

the only scheme of its kind dedicated to

supporting women writers exclusively. It’s gone

on to award US$850,000 (£515,000) to nearly

100 female writers.

Sample quote: “In her messy, overcrowded

closet she found a red dress she had liked and

forgotten she owned. It was a meeting-people

dress for parties; a blonde girl in a red dress

always seemed to be able to manage without

introductions. It wasn’t as if she hoped to


THE BEST OF EVERYTHINGBY

Rona Jaffe1 9 5 8

meet anyone non-boring at this party, actually she

was only going there because there would be food

and good Scotch and it would be a way not

to be alone.”

Did you know? The book was made into a

1959 movie of the same name. Starring some of

New York’s most famous buildings – and Joan

Crawford – it was nominated for two Oscars.

PENGUIN, £8.99, KINDLE £4.49

O



2 3

t first this seems like a novel all

about Bennie Salazar, rock star-

turned-record executive, and his

assistant Sasha. But A Visit

From The Good Squad is much,

much more. Told as a series of 13 short stories

looking at the past, present and near future of a

cast of characters, it’s actually a novel about

feelings, about music, and about human beings.

Edgy and individual (one notorious chapter is

presented in the style of a PowerPoint

presentation), yet completely inclusive, it’s a book

that will bring out the obsessive in you. Smiling at

people reading it, searching online for others who

have read it, buying copies for those you want to

read it: these are symptoms of having encountered

one of the very best novels of the past year. No

wonder it won this year’s Pulitzer prize for fiction.

About the author: Raised in San

Francisco, Egan now lives in Brooklyn and writes

for magazines. She realised she wanted to be a

writer when backpacking as a teenager, she

started a journal to stave off homesickness. She

still writes her fiction long-hand onto legal pads.

Sample quote: “The pause makes you think


A VISIT FROM THE

GOON SQUAD

BY

Jennifer Egan2 0 1 1

the song will end. And then the song isn’t really

over, so you’re relieved. But then the song does

actually end, because every song ends, obviously,

and THAT. TIME. THE. END. IS. FOR. REAL.” –

Sasha’s son

Did you know? The same week Egan won

this year’s Pulitzer Prize, it was confirmed that the

novel is currently being made into a series by

HBO. WE. CAN. NOT. WAIT.

CORSAIR, £7.99, KINDLE £4.04

A

W R I T T E N B Y

Alexandra Heminsley

C O M M I S S I O N I N G E D I T O R

Michael Hogan

E D I T O R

Anna Fielding

C R E A T I V E D I R E C T O R

Matt Phare

S U B - E D I T O R

Melanie Rockett

P H O T O G R A P H Y

Packshot Factory

© Shortlist Media Limited 2011

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