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Tricky. Camilla Send a noteboard - 23/04/2010 11:12:36 AM
Please list the 5 best British authored books you've ever read. I'm curious of what you've read, and how I can expand on my British literature.


5 isn't doable.
But I'll give you 5 English books that are not Shakespeare or Austen or Wodehouse or Tolkien or Arthur Conan Doyle or the rest of the pantheon of established literary gods that everyone knows about (that does not mean you shouldn't read them. They are excellent).

Helen DeWitt's The Last Samurai
Nick Harkaway's The Gone-Away World
Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman's Good Omens
Lord Dunsany's something or other. There is a good Penguin collection of his stories.
Tom Stoppard's Travesties (provided you've already read Oscar Wilde and Shakespeare.

I know I'll change my mind the minute I press submit. 5 really is an absurd number.
*MySmiley*
structured procrastinator
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5 best books of British Authorship you've ever read lyringlas - 21/04/2010 08:10:56 PM 1411 Views
Hmmm. Difficult. Rebekah - 21/04/2010 08:15:31 PM 895 Views
Re: Hmmm. Difficult. lyringlas - 21/04/2010 08:35:03 PM 845 Views
Okay. Replace P&P with Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. Rebekah - 21/04/2010 09:15:59 PM 807 Views
It is a book... Jacob - 23/04/2010 06:22:05 PM 916 Views
Hm. Maybe. Rebekah - 26/04/2010 03:08:12 PM 958 Views
Harumph. Ghavrel - 21/04/2010 08:51:25 PM 975 Views
And of course Huxley's Brave New World. Ghavrel - 21/04/2010 08:52:49 PM 823 Views
So now, if you would, edit it down to just five. The Shrike - 21/04/2010 09:13:13 PM 984 Views
No. I do enough editing as is. Ghavrel - 21/04/2010 10:17:56 PM 849 Views
Thanks lyringlas - 21/04/2010 09:21:15 PM 1025 Views
It is very good. Ghavrel - 21/04/2010 10:18:08 PM 968 Views
I've read a bit about it... LadyLorraine - 21/04/2010 11:04:52 PM 1002 Views
Interesting. The Shrike - 21/04/2010 09:08:35 PM 1003 Views
Re: Interesting. lyringlas - 21/04/2010 09:19:41 PM 1010 Views
Without rules, peoples' best "5" becomes meaningless. Hard decisions need to be made. The Shrike - 21/04/2010 10:00:08 PM 874 Views
Yes, but then the number was arbitrary to begin with... Legolas - 21/04/2010 10:26:02 PM 866 Views
I disagree for the above stated reasons. The Shrike - 21/04/2010 10:30:13 PM 944 Views
I agree, #1 problem people had in composition classes... LadyLorraine - 22/04/2010 12:00:19 AM 991 Views
I was forced to read JUDE the OBSCURE in high school. Jacob - 21/04/2010 09:50:37 PM 1031 Views
It's in my top ten books of all time. The Shrike - 21/04/2010 10:02:01 PM 944 Views
what are the others in your Top 10 of All Time? lyringlas - 21/04/2010 10:11:29 PM 831 Views
Here goes, The Shrike - 21/04/2010 10:36:21 PM 1125 Views
...I think that's the first time I've noticed Lackey on anyone's top books list. <3 LadyLorraine - 22/04/2010 12:13:26 AM 1006 Views
As a gay teenager, albeit a happy one in NYC, her books were still powerful for me. The Shrike - 22/04/2010 01:00:21 AM 854 Views
I think I might just reread some of them sometime soon. LadyLorraine - 22/04/2010 01:10:30 AM 982 Views
omg, naming top 10 is impossible. Aeryn - 22/04/2010 03:57:24 AM 1057 Views
I enjoyed it as well Larry - 21/04/2010 10:45:53 PM 929 Views
It's a powerful and shocking beginning to any book. The Shrike - 22/04/2010 01:01:03 AM 924 Views
Indeed Larry - 22/04/2010 03:07:48 AM 894 Views
Well, I was 16 Jacob - 23/04/2010 06:14:15 PM 938 Views
It might be worth at least trying to re-read LadyLorraine - 22/04/2010 12:01:47 AM 803 Views
I seem to recall that it was actual dislike. Jacob - 23/04/2010 06:15:37 PM 937 Views
The movie version of Jude the Obscure is bad. Really bad. And doesn't make me want to read the book. Legolas - 21/04/2010 10:28:44 PM 897 Views
I'm old and frequently forget nationalities Mossman - 21/04/2010 09:25:07 PM 1005 Views
I loved Watership Down when I first read it! *NM* lyringlas - 21/04/2010 10:10:45 PM 424 Views
Difficult Beqi - 21/04/2010 10:00:09 PM 867 Views
Let's see... Legolas - 21/04/2010 10:37:07 PM 808 Views
Leaving aside the usual suspects (Shakespeare, Milton, Dickens, Chaucer, Hardy, Austen) Larry - 21/04/2010 10:49:35 PM 926 Views
Hm.... A Deathwatch Guard - 22/04/2010 12:44:20 AM 1009 Views
This is a very difficult task. Tom - 22/04/2010 02:16:07 AM 866 Views
I love your number one. I love that book The Shrike - 22/04/2010 02:51:15 AM 837 Views
It was the book I had in mind when talking about Island at the Center of the World. Tom - 22/04/2010 02:57:32 AM 952 Views
Definitely agree with Greg about the Wedgwood book. LiterateDog - 22/04/2010 04:06:49 PM 913 Views
I suppose it depends on definitions... jh - 22/04/2010 04:34:40 PM 869 Views
I'd count him as both The Shrike - 22/04/2010 07:11:58 PM 956 Views
Irish by accident of birth, English to the depths of his soul by the grace of God. *NM* Tom - 22/04/2010 10:12:28 PM 470 Views
I think you mean snoopcester - 22/04/2010 11:09:22 PM 846 Views
Oh wow. nossy - 22/04/2010 02:29:38 AM 910 Views
just remembered the Herriot books. nossy - 24/04/2010 03:48:18 PM 814 Views
James Herriot has a special place in my heart. LadyLorraine - 25/04/2010 01:45:50 AM 845 Views
Mine also snoopcester - 26/04/2010 11:02:19 AM 871 Views
Begone, you! *NM* nossy - 26/04/2010 02:54:07 PM 378 Views
What did I do? *NM* snoopcester - 26/04/2010 02:56:37 PM 407 Views
You might try The Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall. *NM* heartbreak - 22/04/2010 04:08:30 AM 416 Views
I'm going to cheat and give you two different lists Brian - 22/04/2010 06:54:18 AM 910 Views
Ooo nossy - 22/04/2010 06:54:21 PM 912 Views
If I wanted to be really specific I could say book 1: The Sword in the Stone Brian - 23/04/2010 02:37:24 AM 1099 Views
Only 5? snoopcester - 22/04/2010 11:43:32 AM 803 Views
Never delved much into British literature, but here are my five. Vodalus - 22/04/2010 07:43:24 PM 894 Views
Tricky. Camilla - 23/04/2010 11:12:36 AM 1133 Views
Re: 5 best books of British Authorship you've ever read BlackAdder - 23/04/2010 08:43:46 PM 1002 Views
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