Literature

The power of the written word More books are published per person in the UK than in any other country — 229 million were bought in Britain in 2011. That year’s favorite sold nearly one million copies — and it was a novel. Classic fiction British readers prefer fiction to any other type of books. Some authors are as successful today as when they were alive. Take Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities has sold 200 million copies since 1859. His books have been made into films, television series and even musicals. Watching people Dickens was an expert in observing human beings — Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol or Miss Havisham from Great Expectations, for example. His characters are often based on real people. Like Dickens’ own father, Mr Micawber in David Copperfield went to prison for debt. Watching places Dickens cared about poverty and injustice — think of the story of Oliver Twist. He also described London well, where he lived most of his life. There is a memorable description of fog at the beginning of Bleak House. Interestingly, Dickens wrote and published many of his novels in parts — people read a new chapter of the story every week. A world of his own Another master of language was JRR Tolkien. He was a professor of old English and used it for the names of his characters. He created a whole world from his study of Germanic mythology, first in The Hobbit and then in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. You can see his influence in modern fantasy books and computer games. Crime novels Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories about Sherlock Holmes are famous, but the most successful writer of crime novels was Agatha Christie. Her best-loved character was Hercule Poirot. Christie worked in a pharmacy for a time — this gave her a useful knowledge of poisons. Several books were set in the Middle East after she travelled there with her husband, an archaeologist. She was good at creating suspense — people always wanted to read more. Characters that live longer than their inventors Dickens died in 1870. JRR Tolkien and Agatha Christie passed away in the 1970s. But Marley’s Ghost, Bilbo Baggins and Miss Marple live on nowadays.