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UK's favourite book is...
- Thread starter Darren
- Start date
Hm, quite nice...It could be worse...Congratulations to Tolkien! But it should be considered if this victory isn't due to the film...I wish it wasn't, because it would mean than they in fact chose the film, not the book, and futhermore, than any book could win if there was a recent film based on it...I hope I'm wrong...
fluffy bunny
Member
To be fair, in the UK the LotR won award for 'Best Novel of the 20th Century' in 1997 (before the movies!) from three sources - Channel 4 / Waterstone's, the Folio Society, and SFX, the UK's leading science fiction media magazine; I'm fairly sure the (London) Times did one too (1999?).
Halo
New Member
Well, Hitchhikers had a fairly fondly remembered TV series, and as for Pride and Prejudice, I believe that many people voted for that on the strength of the BBC production and fancying Colin Firth as Mr Darcy! I'm not saying everyone did, but the book, although very clever and funny, is quite hard going, in my opinion.
Hurrah for The Lord of the Rings!!!
That's the one I wanted to win, especially as Clive Anderson made it SO obvious that he disliked it. The negative comments he made were blatant and incredibly unfair, as he didn't seem to make them about the other books. So up yours, Clive Anderson! 
Hurrah for The Lord of the Rings!!!
That's the one I wanted to win, especially as Clive Anderson made it SO obvious that he disliked it. The negative comments he made were blatant and incredibly unfair, as he didn't seem to make them about the other books. So up yours, Clive Anderson! I did wonder about LOTR being so popular because of the film - but as already said it has been popular in the polls long before the film was released, even in countries other than the UK.
I thought it was great - not my personal favourite - but I can see why it got the nation's favourite vote.
I have only read two of the top five but I will defintely be reading the other three in the new year.
I thought it was great - not my personal favourite - but I can see why it got the nation's favourite vote.
I have only read two of the top five but I will defintely be reading the other three in the new year.
Martin
Active Member
I live in holland, so I haven't seen the actual program, but I believe Harry Potter came fifth?
That, for sure, has to be because of the films and the popularity, and not because of the quality on its own! They're nice books, very well written and all, but does it really beat, for instance, 'Great Expectations'?
Cheers, Martin
That, for sure, has to be because of the films and the popularity, and not because of the quality on its own! They're nice books, very well written and all, but does it really beat, for instance, 'Great Expectations'?
Cheers, Martin
Martin
Active Member
Well... at the moment, Harry Potter and LotR are very popular, because of the films, mainly. In a few decades, the interest in these books will have waned, they will ben less popular, but their quality (or lack thereof) remains. This proves that popularity is something alltogether different than quality.
'Pride and prejudice' and 'Great Expectations' will not always be as popular as LotR or Harry Potter, but you'll have to agree that they are the better books, quality-wise. (Although, LotR... There's not much better than that, but that's just my personal opinion).
Cheers, Martin
'Pride and prejudice' and 'Great Expectations' will not always be as popular as LotR or Harry Potter, but you'll have to agree that they are the better books, quality-wise. (Although, LotR... There's not much better than that, but that's just my personal opinion).
Cheers, Martin
murphyz
New Member
I find it exceptional that books such as P&P and Great Ex can stand the test of time and still appear in charts so long after they were written. Imagine writing a novel in the 19th Century and then thinking it would be in a list of 100 favourites over a century later - wow.
Of course, only time will tell if the likes of Harry Potter would be remembered as fondly in 2103...but something tells me it won't. When the children of today have passed it onto 2 generations of their family it may possibly die out, as I'm sure hundreds of childrens books did at the time of Dickens. I really can't see it standing the test of time.
Mxx
Of course, only time will tell if the likes of Harry Potter would be remembered as fondly in 2103...but something tells me it won't. When the children of today have passed it onto 2 generations of their family it may possibly die out, as I'm sure hundreds of childrens books did at the time of Dickens. I really can't see it standing the test of time.
Mxx
Martin
Active Member
I agree, and that's why I said that the films have had a lot of influence on the results (would Potter be as huge as it is now, if Hollywood hadn't picked up on it?).
That said, LotR, will stand the test of time, and not because of the massively succesful films. This is the novel that put Fantasy, as a genre, on the map, and within the genre it is still to be surpassed.
All in all, LotR might not be the best book ever, but it's definitely in the top 5.
Cheers, Martin
That said, LotR, will stand the test of time, and not because of the massively succesful films. This is the novel that put Fantasy, as a genre, on the map, and within the genre it is still to be surpassed.
All in all, LotR might not be the best book ever, but it's definitely in the top 5.
Cheers, Martin
murphyz
New Member
We also have to question why Lord of the Rings and His Dark Materials were classed as one book instead of 3 (yes, I know LotR is six books) and Harry Potter was put in separately as 4 books? Very odd.
I was quite surprised with His Dark Materials, as they are in book form only. yes, they are slightly older than Harry Potter, but with no blockbuster film and none of the tacky merchandise it did quite well to get on. I don't rate them much myself, and they certainly wouldn't go in my personal list - but well done to pullman anyway.
Mxx
I was quite surprised with His Dark Materials, as they are in book form only. yes, they are slightly older than Harry Potter, but with no blockbuster film and none of the tacky merchandise it did quite well to get on. I don't rate them much myself, and they certainly wouldn't go in my personal list - but well done to pullman anyway.
Mxx
Martin
Active Member
You don't rate them much, you say?
The Big Read - list has only enlarged my interest into the 'His Dark Materials' - books. I haven't read them yet, but it had been hanging in the back of my mind for some time now, and this result has caused me to move it up my mental ladder a few nudges.
I'll be googling it pretty soon, in order to read some reviews and all. There's no twist ending which can be spoiled, right?
Cheers, Martin
The Big Read - list has only enlarged my interest into the 'His Dark Materials' - books. I haven't read them yet, but it had been hanging in the back of my mind for some time now, and this result has caused me to move it up my mental ladder a few nudges.
I'll be googling it pretty soon, in order to read some reviews and all. There's no twist ending which can be spoiled, right?
Cheers, Martin
Bookgatherer
New Member
I was amazed that His Dark Materials and Harry Potter were even in the top 21, and disappointed, though not surprised that Dickens did as well as he did. I would have liked to see Persuasion do better, but both Pride and Prejudice and Emma did very well, as they deserved to. I was overjoyed that Lord of the Rings won. It is fair that it was treated as one book, because it was written as one book and Tolkien disliked the idea of dividing it into a trilogy. It is the first time I have ever wanted Jane Austen to come second in anything, but when I heard the third place announced and knew it was between Lord of the Rings and Pride and Prejudice I knew that I would be delighted whatever the result. It is worrying that both Colin Firth and Orlando Bloom may have gained extra votes for screen appearances, but it also means that the books are constantly being brought back to the attention of potential readers. I know a lot of teenagers who have discovered Lord of the Rings through the films and who now say that though the films are the best they have ever seen, the book is better.
phil_t
New Member
Lord of the Rings at No. 1
Well, no great shocks there then!! Still, they are very popular enjoyable books so im not going to grumble too much about the result
Murphyz - As for why the LotR and Dark Materials were considered as one book as opposed to the HP series, well this is because of the way they have been published - both LotR & DM have been published in a single volume, whereas HP books have always been separate - i believe that is why they were classed that way
Phil
Well, no great shocks there then!! Still, they are very popular enjoyable books so im not going to grumble too much about the result
Murphyz - As for why the LotR and Dark Materials were considered as one book as opposed to the HP series, well this is because of the way they have been published - both LotR & DM have been published in a single volume, whereas HP books have always been separate - i believe that is why they were classed that way
Phil
fluffy bunny
Member
I'd say the joy of reading His Dark Materials was not knowing what exactly was going to happen next. If you asked someone to describe what it's about, that person would find it fairly difficult to summarise in a line or 2.
I quite enjoyed Dark Materials, especially Northern Lights (aka Golden Compass outside the UK). I'm not sure if I'd put it as my top book, but I'd rate it pretty highly. The alethiometer's one of the best story telling devices I've seen in any story period.
Pullman has an uncanny ability of being able to drip feed the reader bits of the story leaving him/her puzzling over the next piece of the puzzle. Each chapter (especially at the beginning of Northern Lights) manages to answer some of the questions, but the answers just dig you deeper and deeper into the mystery wondering what it's all leading up to.
I was wondering about the series thing, but I guess you could argue that in the prologue to LOTR, it says that it's all meant to be one book. At the beginning of Northern Lights, it says pretty much the same thing. Harry Potter can't really be judged as a series yet- it's not finished, so how can you call the series one of the nation's best loved books if you don't know how it's going to end- for all you know books 6 and 7 may be rubbish, leaving the BBC looking stupid. Also loosely connected books eg Pratchett's Discworld are often considered separately (or at least as the Death series, city watch series, witches series etc, but that could have gotten very confusing. The BBC had to strike a balance, and whatever they came up with was always going to be contraversial.
I quite enjoyed Dark Materials, especially Northern Lights (aka Golden Compass outside the UK). I'm not sure if I'd put it as my top book, but I'd rate it pretty highly. The alethiometer's one of the best story telling devices I've seen in any story period.
Pullman has an uncanny ability of being able to drip feed the reader bits of the story leaving him/her puzzling over the next piece of the puzzle. Each chapter (especially at the beginning of Northern Lights) manages to answer some of the questions, but the answers just dig you deeper and deeper into the mystery wondering what it's all leading up to.
I was wondering about the series thing, but I guess you could argue that in the prologue to LOTR, it says that it's all meant to be one book. At the beginning of Northern Lights, it says pretty much the same thing. Harry Potter can't really be judged as a series yet- it's not finished, so how can you call the series one of the nation's best loved books if you don't know how it's going to end- for all you know books 6 and 7 may be rubbish, leaving the BBC looking stupid. Also loosely connected books eg Pratchett's Discworld are often considered separately (or at least as the Death series, city watch series, witches series etc, but that could have gotten very confusing. The BBC had to strike a balance, and whatever they came up with was always going to be contraversial.