J. K. Rowling also received the most votes overall for her books.  Favourite adult novel:  Harper Lee:  To kill a Mockingbird, the story of racial discrimination in Alabama, U.S.A..  Favourite non-fiction title:  The Bible.  Most votes, adult fiction writer, all titles:  Catherine Cookson, closely followed by Rosamunde Pilcher.  Most votes, adult non-fiction writer, all titles:  Delia Smith, the TV cook and cookery writer.   Second most favourite children's author, closely following J.K Rowling, was Jacqueline Wilson, who writes very popular children's books about the problems contemporary children encounter in life. 

 A complete list of the books voted for follows, with details of comments and suggestions.

Niky Rathbone, Arts Languages and Literature 0121 303 4229 e-mail: Niky_Rathbone@birmingham.gov.uk

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 COMPLETE LIST OF THE BOOKS VOTED FOR

 The books voted for are mainly adult novels; a brief description has been included where it seemed necessary.

They are in alphabetical order by author. For a quick flip, click on the letter in the alphabet to go to the authors surname

a  b  c  d  e  f  g  h   j  k  l  m  n  o  p  q  r  s   t  u   v   w  x   z

New Central Library For Birmingham....?
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for a comprehensive view of the best of regional writing, visit the West Midland Creative Literature Collection a century or more of regional writing from Jerome K Jerome to Jim Crace - appearing at Pershore Library 17th January - see month ahead

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 Aiken, Joan:   All and More

Alcott, Louisa M: Little women           

Andrews, Virginia:  Fallen hearts

Archer, Jeffery: Not a penny more, not a penny less

Attenborough, John: One man's inheritance

Austen, Jane: Pride and prejudice       

Bagley, Desmond: Any novels

Iain Banks:  The Wasp factory

Barclay, Tessa: Any of her books

Barker, Pat:            Regeneration

Bennett, Alan: Talking heads (collected playscripts)

The Bible       

Binchy, Maeve: Evening class           

Binchy, Maeve: The glass lake

Binchy, Maeve: Light a penny candle

Binchy, Maeve:Tara Road

Blyton, Enid: any children's book about the Famous Five

Bogarde, Dirk:  All his biographies

Bowling, Harry: Tales about Liverpool and Merseyside

Bradford, Barbara Taylor:  A woman of substance

Bronte, Emily:  Wuthering Heights

Bukowski, Charles: Post office

Burnett, Frances Hodgson: The Secret garden (children's book)

Byatt, A. S.: Possession

Carey,  Peter: Oscar and Lucinda

Carnegie, Dale: How to win friends and influence people (self-help)

Catto, Nancy  The Heart of the continent

Chambers, Aidan:  Postcards from No Man's Land

Chambers twentieth century English dictionary

Chang, Jung: Wild Swans   

Chaucer, Geoffrey:  Canterbury tales

Chinn, Carl:  All his books on the history of Birmingham

Jonathan Coe:  What a carve-up (This is a new novel by a Birmingham author)

Christie, Agatha: The Clocks

Clancy, Tom: The Hunt for Red October

Clark, Alan: The Alan Clark diaries

Clark, Mary Higgins: Let me call you Sweetheart

Cleaver, Eldridge:  Soul on ice

Colette:            Gigi

Cookson, Catherine: Any novel       

Cookson, Catherine: The Black candle

Cookson, Catherine: The Black velvet gown   

Cookson, Catherine:  The Cinder path

Cookson, Catherine: A Dinner of herbs

Cookson, Catherine:  Our Kate

Cookson, Catherine: The Year of the virgins

Coppard, Yvonne: Not dressed like that, you don't  (children's book)

Cornwell, Bernard:  The  Sharpe novels

The Countryside companion

Cox, Josephine:  Any novel

Dahl, Roald:     Any novel

Dahl, Roald: Charlie and the chocolate factory

Dahl, Roald:  George's marvellous medicine (children's book)

Dahl, Roald:  The Magic finger (children's book)

Dahl, Roald:  Matilda  (children's book) 

Dahl, Roald : The twits (children's book) 

Dante Alighieri: The Divine comedy

Davis, Lindsay:  One virgin to many

Dayus, Kathleen:  All her books on old Birmingham

De Bernieres, Louis: Captain Corelli's mandolin

Dexter, Colin: The Remorseful day

Dickens, Charles: All his novels

Charles Dickens: A Christmas Carol

Dickens, Charles: The Old Curiosity Shop

Dickens, Charles: David Copperfield

Dickens, Charles:  Great expectations

Dickens, Charles: The Pickwick Papers

Doyle, Conan:  Sherlock Holmes

Elgin, Elizabeth: I'll bring you buttercups

Elliot, George:  Middlemarch

Eilott, George:  The Mill on the Floss

Elliot, George:  Silas Marner

Ferguson, Sir Alex:  Managing my life (autobiography)

Ferrars, Elizabeth:  Sleep of the unjust

Fine, Anne: The Anne Fine trilogy  (children's books)

Francis, Dick:  Any novels

Francis, Dick:  Proof

Fremlin, Celia: The Hours before dawn

Gallagher, Diana:  Prime evil:  Buffy the vampire slayer

Garland, Alex:  The Beach

Gaye, Jackie:  Scapegrace (A new book set in Birmingham)

Geddes, Anne: Thoughts with love (children's book)

Golding, William:  Lord of the Flies

Goudge, Elizabeth:The Bird in the tree

Goudge, Elizabeth: The Dean's watch

Graham, Kenneth:  The Wind in the willows  (children's book)

Graham. Winston: The Poldark series

Grass, Gunter: The Tin drum

Gurdjieff, George, ed. P. D. Ouspensky:  Fragments of an unknown teaching (philosophy)

Halliwell, Leslie: Halliwell's film guide

Hardy, Thomas:  Far from the madding crowd 

Hardy, Thomas:  Tess of the D'Urbervilles

Hartley, L. P: The Go-between

Harvey, Sarah: Misbehaving

Heyer, Georgette: Any novels

Highsmith, Patricia: The Talented Mr. Ripley - see Books Into Films

Hitler, Adolph: Mein Kampf

Holt, Victoria: The Shadow of the lynx

Hughes, Shirley: Dogger (children's book)

Hughes, Ted:  Moortown

Hugo, Victor:  Les Miserables

Huxley, Aldous:           Point counterpoint

Jacobs, Anna:  The Gibson trilogy

Jacobs, Naomi:  All her novels

Jong, Erica: Fear of Flying

Julian of Norwich:  Revelations of divine love

Kerr, Judith:  When Hitler stole Pink Rabbit  (children's book)

King-Smith, Dick:  Godhanger (children's book)

King-Smith, Dick:  Lady Daisy  (children's book)

Kipling, Rudyard: Kim

Lawrence, D. H.: The Fox

Lawrence, D. H.:  The Rainbow

Leary, Dr. Timothy: The Politics of ecstasy - see Widdicombe Corner

Lee, Harper:            To kill a mockingbird  

Lewis, C. S.:  The Magician's nephew

Lewis, C. S: Prince Caspian

Llywelyn, Morgan: Druids

McCaffery, Ann: The White dragon

McCourt, Frank: Angela's ashes

Macdonald, Ruth:  Herald of the New Age

McGartland, Martin:  Fifty dead men walking

McGibbon, Rob:  Westlife, our story  (biography)   

McGrath, Manda: Wise virgin

Magnusson, Sally: Family life

Mailer, Norman:  Harlot's ghost

Mailer, Norman:  Tough guys don't dance

Matheson, Richard : I am legend

Middlebrook, Martin:  The First day on the Somme

Miller, Henry: Nexus

Milliman, Dan:  Way of the peaceful warrior, a book that changes lives

Milne, A. A: Winnie the Pooh (children's book)

Mitchell, Margaret:  Gone with the wind   

Morton, Andrew:  Diana, her true story

Murdoch, Iris:  The Sea, the sea

Murphy, Jill:   Worst Witch all at sea  (children's book)

Neels, Betty: Any novels

Owen, Harold: Journey from Obscurity

Page, Jan:  The Chocolate monster (children's book)

Palin, Michael:  Around the World in 80 Days

Palin, Michael:  Full circle:  A Pacific journey  (travel)

Patterson, James:  Along came a spider (children's book)

Pert, Candace: The Molecules of Emotion

Peters, Ellis: The Cadfael series

Pike, Christopher:  The Friends trilogy (children's books)

Pike, Christopher:  The Last Vampire (children's book)

Pike, Christopher: Road to nowhere (children's book)

Pilcher, Rosamunde:  Any novels

Pilcher, Rosamunde: Coming Home 

Pilcher, Rosamunde:  September    

Pilcher, Rosamunde:  The shell seekers         

Plato's Republic (philosophy)

Plowden, Alison:  Two Queens in one Isle, the deadly relationship between Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots

Pratchett, Terry:  Any novel  

Pratchett, Terry:  Sorcery

Pratchett, Terry:  Soul music

Proulx, Annie:  The Shipping news

Pullman, Philip  Northern lights

Pullman, Philip:  I was a rat (children's book)

Pullman, Philip:  Northern lights (children's book) 

Pullman, Philip:  The tiger in the well (children's book)

Quinn, Daniel: Ishmael

Reade, Charles:  The Cloister and the hearth

Miss Read: Any novels     

Rendal, Ruth: No more dying then

Rice, Anne:  Interview with the vampire   

Rowling, J. K.:  Any Harry Potter book    (children's books)           

Rowling, J. K.:Harry Potter and the chamber of secrets (children's book)

Rowling, J. K.:   Harry Potter and the goblet of fire (children's book) 

Rowling, J. K.: Harry Potter and the philosopher's stone (children's book)

Rowling, J. K.: Harry Potter and the prisoner of Azkaban (children's book)

Salinger, J. D.: The Catcher in the rye

Sayers, Dorothy: Gaudy night

Schlink Bernard:  The reader

Schreiner, Olive:  The story of an African farm

Serallier, Ian: The Silver sword (children's book)

Sewell, Anna:  Black Beauty

Sharpe, Tom:  Any novel       

Sheldon, Sidney:  The Sands of time

Smith, Bessie:  A tree grows in Brooklyn

Smith, Delia: Delia Smith's Christmas

Smith, Delia: Delia Smith's complete cookery course

Smith, Delia:  Delia Smith's how to cook

Smith, Delia: Delia Smith's summer collection

Smith, Delia: Delia Smith's winter collection 

Smith, William: Any novels

Spring, Howard : Fame is the spur

Spring, Howard:  Rachel Rosing

Steele, Danielle:  Any novel

Steele, Danielle:  Kaleidoscope

Stevens, Kay: The soaring fells

Stine, R. L.: Attack of the graveyard ghouls (children's book)

Stine, R. L.  Creature teacher (children's book) 

Suskind, Patrick:            Perfume

Sutcliffe, Rosemary: The Eagle of the Ninth (children's book)

Syal, Meera:  Anita and me

Taylor, Mildred:  Roll of thunder hear my cry

Thackeray, William:  Vanity Fair

Thomas, Leslie:  All novels

Thompson, E. V. : All novels

Thompson, Flora:  Lark Rise to Candleford    

Thompson, Hunter S.:   Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

Tolkien, J. R. R.:  The Hobbit (children's book) 

Tolkien, J. R. R.:The Lord of the Rings   

Tolkien, J. R. R:The Silmarillion

Tolstoy, Leo: Anna Karenina          

Tolstoy, Leo:  War and Peace

Ure, Jean:  Becky Bananas (children's book)

Uttley, Alison  Little red fox  (children's book) 

Uttley, Alison:  A Traveller in Time

Vale, Brenda:   The Autonomous house: design and planning (architecture)

Van Slyke, Helen:  A Necessary woman

Waddell, Martin:  Can't you sleep, Little Bear? (children's book)

Walker, Alice:  The Colour purple

Walmsley, Leo:  Three fevers

Waugh, Evelyn:  Scoop

Wells, H. G.:  The Time machine        

Wentworth, Patricia:  The Listening eye

White, T. H.: The Sword in the stone       

Wilson, Jacqueline:  All her books(children's books)

Wilson, Jacqueline:  All her books in the Girls series (children's books)

Wilson, Jacqueline:  Buried alive! (children's book)Wilson, Jacqueline: The Dare game (children's book) 

Wilson, Jacqueline:  How to survive summer camp (children's book)

Wilson, Jacqueline:  The Story of Tracy Beaker

Wood, Barbara:  The Prophetess

Woodroffe, Sir John:  The serpent power (yoga)

Wouk, Herman:  The Winds of war

X, Malcolm:  The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Zola, Emile: L'Assommoir

Zola, Emile:  Germinal

 New Central Library For Birmingham....?
Click here for more

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for a comprehensive view of the best of regional writing, visit the West Midland Creative Literature Collection a century or more of regional writing from Jerome K Jerome to Jim Crace - appearing at Pershore Library 17th January - see month ahead

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