Kirsty's favourites

Hi, I'm Kirsty, John's sister. I live in Leeds where I work as a scientist by day and (hopeful) scriptwriter by night.

My 5 favourite books - quite a choice, and necessitates leaving some great stuff out (which can crop up at a later date, no doubt) but here we go...

A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
Emily got me onto this by first recommending An Equal Music by the same guy (sneaking another one in there - also fantastic) and it was a huge challenge - took months to get through but worth every second. I'm even contemplating a reread.

Fugitive Pieces - Anne Michaels
Uncertain how I came across this - I'm a bit prone to buying a book in a sale if it's got a nice tactile cover and I think this is how it came into my life. It follows the life of a young lad rescued from Poland during the Second World War, and is just a really moving tale.

The God of Small Things - Arundhati Roy
Emily again (I think - it's a while ago now). It seems to be a love-it or hate-it type of book but I love it. Wonderful characters - primarily about the lives of twins Estha and Rahel, and a great insight into life in rural India.

Notes From a Small Island - Bill Bryson
Just a very funny account of Bryson's valedictory tour of Britain. Doens't matter how often I read it (and it's now close to falling apart) it still never fails to make me laugh.

An Anthropologist on Mars - Oliver Sacks
I've been an admirer of Sacks' work for many years. He's a neurologist, with a real gift for understanding the impact of the diseases his patients have on their lives. There's a quote at the start, attributed to William Osler (whoever he is) - "ask not what disease the person has, but rather what person the disease has." Pretty much sums it up.

And that's it for now - looking forward to hearing from everyone else

Kirsty