Thursday 1 September 2011

Desert Island Books : your best reads of all time



Now that many of us have had our summer holidays we wondered if any of your holiday reads were special enough to take with you to a desert island?
If you could only take 5 books would you choose a classic? A book on your "must read" list? 
A brand new title by a favourite author? An old well thumbed novel? A non fiction favourite?

Or if you had a suitcase washed up with a lucky dip selection what would you like to find inside?.....

Your moderator this month is : Jill

39 comments:

Val said...

Desert Island books - what an intriguing idea! I've just seen an new book by Barbara Ewing ( author of the Mesmerist) called Circus of Ghosts set in New York in the 1840's which I'd definitely like to find in my suitcase as I enjoyed the Mesmerist. Her new book, if not a sequel, looks like it covers similar themes.

The Phantom said...

Well, this is interesting…
But - Before I answer, can I ask a question?...

• How long am I going to be marooned on this island?
If it’s just a few weeks, then I’ll take some fiction, but if it’s longer than that, then I won’t…I don’t know about you, but I can NEVER read a novel twice.

Please advise.

Thank-you,

The Phantom.

Bex-Read said...

Dear Phantom, I think you'll be there for at least six months.....
so will you be taking the Encyclopedia Britannica? Jill

Bex-Read said...

Circus of Ghosts is a great title - makes me want to read it - but what is a Mesmerist? Is it like a hypnotist? Jill

Val said...

A Mesmerist is a bit like a hypnotist. It was well known in Victorian times when the novels are set. You should try The Mesmerist - Bexley Village and Bostall reading groups both enjoyed this book.
And Phantom - never read a novel twice?!!!! Do you really mean never???? I have several favourites that I go back to from time to time. Jane Eyre for instance, or Pride and Prejudice or To Kill a Mockingbird or Great Expectations...... I suspect that The Phantom must be a man ?!

The Phantom said...

Dear Jill,
Thank you for your prompt reply.
"At least six months" you say...SIX MONTHS! Noooooo! I'll go insane.
It'll have to be mostly non-fiction, then, and I`ll give it my best thoughts and let you know presently.
(Can I really have a set of Encyclopedias?)

Will said...

Well, I`ve just read the ‘blurb’ about Barbara Ewing’s “The Mesmerist”, and it sounds quite racy to me! (No wonder the Erith Library Reading Group enjoyed it so much…)
Suitable read for a desert island?....

The Phantom said...

I’ve been thinking about this, and I can’t fit what I’d want into a suitcase? Any chance of a giant, book filled cargo container being washed up, please?...
If so, then I`d like a complete set of Wisdens, the entire set of the wonderful Dictionary of National Biography, AND a complete run of Encyclopaedia Britannica, just to be going on with.
Then maybe the complete Oxford History of England series, and maybe a full set of Hansards…Oh, and how about a daily paper? Any chance?
(If not, I`ll have to revise my choices, I suppose…)

Bex-Read said...

Dear Phantom - ordinary desert island rules abandoned - you can take what you like - the opportunity to live a dream!Jill

The Phantom said...

Hello, Val…’Phantom’ here…
No, never read novels more than once – what’s the point? You know how it ends…(Although, I confess, in my youth I did read Lord of the Rings over & over, and now – in my dotage – I`ve read ‘Rogue Male’ for a second time…Splendid book, still the same ending though).
And as for your question “I suspect that ‘the Phantom’ must be a man?” …well, I may decline to answer that, as I would prefer to retain an element of mystique…(but I do have a shed, if that helps?)…

Bex-Read said...

Good gracious, Phantom! A daily paper? I think not - I'm sure even fantasy islands don't have daily deliveries. However - wouldn't you like some light reading as well, in the form of some fiction? maybe Robinson Crusoe for some useful tips? Or are you planning to build a shed from all those books? Is that why you've asked for so many?
Jill

The Phantom said...

No daily paper…Harrumph!

OK, then…How about some poetry (am becoming quite partial to a bit of verse, these days)…I`d want something substantial, though…a whacking great big compendium? Something like `Palgrave’s Golden Treasury`, please. Or can anyone else suggest something similar?

Val said...

Well I've been reading Dicken's Bleak House for the Bexley Village Reading group over the summer and I'd love to have a few really thick books like that to keep me busy on my desert island. Can any one suggest any others?
As to poetry I keep meaning to read William Blake's poetry again as I studied it for A level and read Chevalier's Burning Bright recently which although fiction features Blake in the story.

Bex-Read said...

Dear Phantom - what a good idea. A compendium of poetry would give you a wide variety of reading. The Oxford Book of Travel Verse seems appropriate, or perhaps The Oxford Book of Local Verses to remind you of places at home.
Maybe The Complete Verse and Other Nonsense by Edward Lear to make you laugh? Over 400 pages of quirky humour. Or, for more modern humour and a touch of pathos, Collected Poems by Roger McGough.
Any other suggestions anyone? Jill

Will said...

Hello there, Val ~
If you’re looking for thick books to read on you island (and one with a nautical theme), then I`ve heard good things about Carsten Jensen’s “We, the Drowned”; at 704 pages, that should keep you going!

Bex-Read said...

Hi Val
I read The Way we Live Now by Anthony Trollope, if you want another classic, only 494 pages though. Set in the 1800s, it follows intrigues and unscrupulousness which are not unfamiliar to the modern reader.
Lord of the Rings by Tolkein of course - three books in one.
Or how about a series? an old favourite like the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith or one you've not explored yet?

Anonymous said...

How about cheating and taking a K****e and some spare batteries!

Otherwise, in no order of preference: A Suitable Boy (Vikram Seth) - long, richly detailed, sad, funny, the single best book ever?; Lord of the Rings (Tolkien) - ditto, but not so funny?; War and Peace (Tolstoy) - somebody's got to read it sometime, so it might as well be me whilst marooned; Collected Shakepeare - may as well return to civilisation literate; As big a volume as exists of the collected works of P.G. Wodehouse - light relief, plus you find where Shakespeare pinched his best lines from (shurely shome mishtake,,,)

Grace said...

Another long and very gripping and enlightening book you might like to try is Fall of Giants by Ken Follett - about 800 pages long.
It is set mainly in 1916 and switches between Britain, Germany and Russia with various characters being inter-related –it is very cleverly done. It makes you realise how futile war really is and how ordinary people really don’t want to be killing other people.

The Phantom said...

Re these ‘Kindling’ things you’re all talking about with Desert Island Books?...Can I use them for lighting fires?
And what’s all this about Shakespeare and PG Wodehouse?...I am becoming confused.

Bex-Read said...

A collected works of P.G.Wodehouse sounds good - and for the educational experience I'd chose A Dance to the Music of Time by Anthony Powell. A big favourite with a previous boss - it's also much hated by others, so I'd like to make my own decision. It is series spanning the lives of 300 characters over 70 years. Jill

Will said...

Anthony Powell, eh? (Is he the one we're suppsed to pronounce 'Pole'?)

Sounds good - the trouble is, though, what if you're stuck on your desert island with a whacking great big novel that you discover - after just a few pages - you don't really like it?
Anyone else read it?

Bex-Read said...

Now here's an idea....
There are two book awards coming up - the Man Booker prize and the Specsavers Crime Thriller awards. There are displays for both of these in the Central Library in Bexleyheath - both have a selection of old favourites and something new. Jill

Anonymous said...

I see that you’ve featured Jane Eyre as one of your book jacket choices – one for a desert island?

Rachel said...

Hello all,
Well I've not read any Anthony Powell but I could recommend The Crimson Petal and the White - it's quite a large book (about 800 pages) but such a great read, I could read it over and over again.

If abandoned on an island I'd also take, The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets (vintage style feel-good cheer), A Room with a View (a definite favourite), the complete Agatha Christie (I want to read all of them!) and a collection of Dickens (because I'd like to know I'd done something useful with my time!)

Rachel

Bex-Read said...

We chose Jane Eyre as an example of a classic novel because we felt that some people might decide that it would be a good opportunity to catch up on the books they thought they should have read. Do you have a particular objection to Jane Eyre? Jill

Lisa said...

Rachel - I agree with you about Charles Dickens, I was thinking of only taking a couple but then which ones would you choose? I have got my favourites but perhaps six months seclusion would be enough time to get around to reading the ones that I've always meant to. I'd also take Len Deighton's Hook, Line and Sinker & Game, Set and Match, fantastic cold war spy series that I read years ago but would make for a good easy page turning read to slot in between the Dickens. As for non-fiction I'd take "How to get off of a desert island" for when I've either run out of books or got fed up with my own company.
P. S. Am I allowed chocolate?

The Phantom said...

Well, if Lisa can have chocolate, then I`m definitely having my daily papers delivered!
By the way, on Radio 3 this morning (see what a posh Phantom I am!) they were discussing K*****s, saying that now’s the time to download Anthony Powell’s Dance to the Music of Time, and how e-books will “transform our public libraries”….)
Topical, eh?

Will said...

Hello, Lisa –
It’s interesting you mentioning the Len Deighton spy series…Have you (or anyone) read John le Carre’s `Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy` books? There’s bound to be a revival of interest in them, now that the new film has been released. (And there’s enough of them to keep you reading for quite some time on that desert island…)

Lisa said...

Hi Will,
I have read the first of Le Carre's George Smiley series The spy who came in from the cold but for some reason I've never got round to the rest of them although as the film is out I may try as I do enjoy a good cold war spy story, incidentally if anyone is looking for an epic spy novel The company by Robert Littel is very good, it's about the CIA from WWII up to the 1990's.
Lisa

Elena said...

I've read a book from the Specsavers Crime display called Before I Go To Sleep by S J Watson.

I was recommended this title by a colleague of mine, who was very excited about it!
The plot is very original, and the character likeable but you do feel sorry for her and you find yourself thinking how terrible it would be to be in that situation! There are so many twists and turns, I couldn't put it down. I was quite antisocial actually. The ending is definitely one of the best I have read. I have now recommended it to another colleague of mine, who said to me WOW! Think that says it all. Best book I have read all year. Warning-you won't sleep!!!!!

Thank you to Jo for the recommendation.

Jo said...

Dear Elena
I'm glad you liked the book. The story is a gripping psychological thriller that really messes with your mind! You think you know what is coming, then the plot twists and you end up going in a different direction.
The plot is centred around a lady called Christine, who wakes up every morning not remembering her past or even her name. She starts keeping a journal to help her to remember and she realises that something isn't quite right with what she is being told, but she can't work out what it is or why.

Even the title is clever because you do have to finish it before you go to sleep!!

Fantastic story, I read it in one day and I can't wait to read the next book written by this author!

I hope they write it quickly!!!

Bex-Read said...

I'm delighted to hear that this book from the Specsaver Crime Awards list is such a great story - I wonder how it will fare in the voting? The awards are announced on the 9th October.
Has anyone else read anything on this list?
Jill

Lisa said...

I haven't read the individual novels nominated but I have read some of the authors on the lists. Sister by Rosamund Lipton is on my bookshelf waiting for me, I read Afterwards (by the same author) recently for my reading group and I couldn't put it down so I'm hoping that Sister will be just as much of a page turner. I've read a few of the older Frederick Forsyth's The day of the jackal and The fourth protocol and they are fantastic. I've also read all of Mark Billingham's novels except for Good as dead as that one doesn't seem to stay on the library shelves long enough for me to borrow it! I'm a big fan of Tom Thorne and he and his colleagues all come alive as you're reading. I'd recommend Mark Billingham to any crime fan.

Bex-Read said...

Well, here we are with a surprise Indian Summer of desert island proportions! Does this inspire anyone to a last nomination for books to take to a desert island?
By the way - did you know that the person who inspired Daniel Defoe to write Robinson Crusoe, sailed into Erith 300 years ago on October 14th 1711?
Jill

The Phantom said...

Hello, Jill – yes, you’re right about this freakishly hot weather being suitable for Desert Islands…
And you mention about Alexander Selkirk, the model for ‘Robinson Crusoe’…Well, having recently read a biography about the said Mr Selkirk (by Diana Souhami) I can only say that it was very, very VERY revealing, and not necessarily in a good way – I’ll say no more. (You have been warned…)

Bex-Read said...

Well done, Phantom! I wondered if someone would know who I was talking about.
Alexander Selkirk arrived at Erith after being rescued from a desert island.
If you'd like to find out what the Phantom is enigmatically hinting at...the biography he mentions will be available to borrow from a display in the Central Library starting on 1st October. Many of the books that have been suggested this month for a desert island read will also be there, as well as other travellers tales.
Look out for the display in the travel section from 1st - 22nd October.
Jill

Lisa said...

Isn't this unexpected Indian summer lovely, on a day like this I wouldn't want anything too heavy, a bit of romance maybe? Pride and prejudice or Emma. Mr Darcy and Mr Knightley may get your pulse racing a bit but nothing too taxing for the brain. Losing yourself in the world of Jane Austen whilst sipping a nice long cool drink, mmmm, what a wonderful way to spend an afternoon.
Phantom - I'm not sure I like the sound of Alexander Selkirk's revelations although they do sound intriguing, perhaps you can précis it for us Bex-readers?

Lisa said...

I've just remembered, although it's not hugely interesting, there is a Selkirk Drive and a Defoe Close in Erith and Defoe Close runs off of Selkirk Drive, now I know where they got their names from.

The Phantom said...

Re the real life Alexander Selkirk…
Well, I`m a shy, timid, unworldly sort of Phantom, so I’d rather not repeat some of Mr Selkirk’s leisure interests…Suffice to say, they were unconventional, and not very wholesome. Read the book to find out more…