The New Classics: The Essential Writers of the 21st Century to Read. Famous British Writers Popular English Authors
Everyone knows the plot of Daniel Defoe's novel. However, the book contains many other interesting details about the organization of Robinson's life on the island, his biography, and inner experiences. If you ask a person who has not read the book to describe the character of Robinson, he is unlikely to cope with this task.
In the mass consciousness, Crusoe is an intelligent character without character, feelings and history. In the novel, the image of the protagonist is revealed, which allows you to look at the plot from a different angle.
Why you need to read
To get acquainted with one of the most famous adventure novels and find out who Robinson Crusoe really was.
Swift does not openly challenge society. Like a true Englishman, he does it correctly and witty. His satire is so subtle that Gulliver's Travels can be read like a normal fairy tale.
Why you need to read
For children, Swift's novel is a fun and unusual adventure story. Adults need to read it to get acquainted with one of the most famous artistic satires.
This novel, although artistically not the most outstanding, is definitely a landmark in the history of literature. After all, in many respects he predetermined the development of the scientific genre.
But it's not just an entertaining read. It raises the problems of relations between the creator and creation, God and man. Who is responsible for creating a being that is destined to suffer?
Why you need to read
To get acquainted with one of the main works of science fiction, as well as to feel the difficult problems that are often lost in film adaptations.
It is difficult to single out the best play by Shakespeare. There are at least five of them: Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth. The unique style and deep understanding of life's contradictions made Shakespeare's works an immortal classic, relevant at all times.
Why you need to read
To begin to understand poetry, literature and life. And also to find the answer to the question, what is still better: to be or not to be?
The main theme of English literature in the early 19th century was social criticism. Thackeray in his novel denounces his contemporary society with the ideals of success and material enrichment. To be in society means to be sinful - this is approximately Thackeray's conclusion regarding his social environment.
After all, the successes and joys of yesterday lose their meaning when a well-known (albeit unknown) tomorrow dawns ahead, which we all will have to think about sooner or later.
Why you need to read
To learn to relate more easily to the life and opinions of others. After all, everyone in society is infected with "fair ambitions" that have no real value.
The language of the novel is beautiful, and the dialogues are the epitome of English wit. Oscar Wilde is a subtle psychologist, which is why his characters turned out to be so complex and multifaceted.
This book is about human vice, cynicism, the difference between the beauty of the soul and the body. If you think about it, to some extent each of us is Dorian Gray. Only we do not have a mirror on which sins would be imprinted.
Why you need to read
To enjoy the amazing language of the UK's wittiest writer, to see how much the moral image can not match the external, and also to become a little better. Wilde's work is a spiritual portrait not only of his era, but of all mankind.
The ancient Greek myth about a sculptor who fell in love with his creation acquires a new, socially significant sound in the play by Bernard Shaw. What should a work feel for its author if this work is a person? How can it refer to the creator - the one who made it in accordance with his ideals?
Why you need to read
This is the most famous play of Bernard Shaw. It is often staged in theaters. According to many critics, "Pygmalion" is a landmark work of English drama.
A universally recognized masterpiece of English literature, familiar to many from cartoons. Who, at the mention of Mowgli, does not hear Kaa's long hissing in his head: "Man-cub ..."?
Why you need to read
In adulthood, hardly anyone will take up The Jungle Book. A person has only one childhood to enjoy the creation of Kipling and appreciate it. So be sure to introduce your children to the classics! They will be grateful to you.
And again the Soviet cartoon comes to mind. It's really good, and the dialogue in it is almost entirely taken from the book. However, the images of the characters and the general mood of the narrative in the original source are different.
Stevenson's novel is realistic and rather harsh in places. But this is a good adventure work that every child and adult will read with pleasure. Boarding, sea wolves, wooden legs - the marine theme attracts and attracts.
Why you need to read
Because it's fun and exciting. In addition, the novel is disassembled into quotes, which everyone must know.
Interest in the deductive abilities of the great detective is still great today thanks to the huge number of screen adaptations. A lot of people are only from films and are familiar with the classic detective story. But there are many screen adaptations, and there is only one collection of stories, but what a one!
Why you need to read
H. G. Wells was in many ways a pioneer in the science fiction genre. Before him, people were not at enmity with, he was the first to write about time travel. Without The Time Machine, we would not have seen either the movie Back to the Future or the cult TV series Doctor Who.
They say that all life is a dream, and besides, a nasty, miserable, short dream, although you won’t dream another one anyway.
Why you need to read
To look at the origins of many of the sci-fi ideas that have become popular in modern culture.
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07.05.14 12:34
Brilliant classic detective stories and love stories full of tragedy, lengthy biographies and incomparable subtle humor, a world of bewitching fantasy and adventurous adventures. British literature is rich in masterpieces!
Famous British writers and their best works
Pioneer Geniuses
In order to tell about all the most worthy representatives of Great Britain who created wonderful works (from plays and poems to short stories and novels), you need a voluminous volume. But let's get acquainted (more or less adhering to the chronology) at least with some of them!
Geoffrey Chaucer is considered to be the pioneer of English literature. It was he (it was in the XIV century) who first began to write his works in his native language (and not in Latin). Among his "program" creations, we note the ironic "Canterbury Tales" and the voluminous heroic-romantic poem "Troilus and Chryseis". The earthly in Chaucer is intertwined with the sublime, vulgarity coexists with moralizing, and everyday pictures are replaced by passionate scenes.
Recently, here and there, there have been disputes over another recognized classic - William Shakespeare. They doubted the authorship, attributed his works to other personalities (up to Queen Elizabeth the First). We will stick to the traditional point of view. The immortal lines of sonnets, the colorful characters of tragedies, the life-affirming optimism of the comedies of the Great Bard are modern to this day. His plays are leading in the repertoires of theaters (in terms of the number of productions), they are endlessly filmed. Some "Romeo and Juliet" filmed more than fifty (counting from the era of silent films). But Shakespeare worked in the distant XVI-XVII centuries!
Novels for ladies, and not only
"Women's" prose in the British classics is vividly represented by Jane Austen (who has not read the book "Pride and Prejudice" transferred more than once to the movie screen!). And also the Bronte sisters. The emotional and tragic "Wuthering Heights" by Emily and the very popular and now (again, thanks to film adaptations) "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte are the best examples of literature of the first half of the 19th century. But both sisters died very early, and many of their plans remained unfulfilled.
The powerful prose writer Charles Dickens is the pride of Britain. In his works one can find realism and sentimentalism, a fabulous beginning and riddles. He did not have time to finish The Secret of Edwin Drood, and readers still rack their brains over it. But this novel could become the best detective work of that era.
Mystery and adventure
In general, the founder of this genre is a friend of Dickens, Wilkie Collins. His "Moonstone" is considered the first detective story written in English. Very interesting and full of mysticism and secrets is the novel "The Woman in White".
Two Scots - Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson - contributed to British literature. They were unsurpassed masters of historical adventure novels. "Ivanhoe" of the first and "Treasure Island" of the second are masterpieces.
Two more personalities stand apart: the gloomy romantic John Gordon Byron and the ironic Oscar Wilde. Read their lines! It `s Magic. Life did not indulge both, but the stronger the emotions in the works.
Graceful prose, humor and masters of the detective
Wilde was persecuted for his homosexuality. Suffered from it and his other compatriot - Somerset Maugham. An English intelligence agent, he is the author of the most elegant prose. If you are in a bad mood, re-read "Theater" or re-watch the film - even with Via Artmane, even an American one, with Annette Benning, wonderful medicine!
Other great pep writers are Jerock K. Jerome and Pelham G. Wodehouse. Didn't you laugh when you read about the adventures of the "three in a boat" or the misadventures of the half-hearted aristocrat Bertie Wooster, patronized by the stiff valet Jeeves?
Even those who do not like detective stories will sooner or later turn to the work of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. After all, his hero Sherlock is the favorite object of modern filmmakers.
What can we say about Lady Agatha! Christie is perhaps the most famous detective (may she forgive us such a dissonant word!) Of all times and peoples. And words are superfluous. Poirot and Marple glorified the British woman for centuries.
In the arms of fantasy
A huge amazing world - with its own language, geography, funny (courageous, terrifying, cute, and not very different!) inhabitants - was invented by John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, honor and praise be to him. For fantasy fans, his "Lord of the Rings" is what the Bible is for believers.
Among modern British writers, Joanne Rowling has achieved the greatest fame and success. Seeing some images in a half-asleep one day and deciding to write down the story of an orphan boy that came to mind, the impoverished housewife became one of the revered prose writers of our days. Screen adaptations of "Potteriana" were seen by millions, and the author herself became a multi-millionaire.
Erotic escapades of David Lawrence's characters, John Fowles' throwing heroes, HG Wells' other worlds, Thomas Hardy's tragic plots, Jonathan Swift's and Bernard Shaw's evil satire, Robert Burns' ballads, Galsworthy's and Iris Murdoch's realism. This, too, is the wealth of British literature. Read and enjoy!
What is a book for us? For some, a book is a way for self-development, for others it is an opportunity to hide from the outside world. One way or another, a book is a whole world, be it cognitive or fantastic.
We immerse ourselves in it to the tips of our fingers, getting an exciting experience. But how can you combine business with pleasure? After all, it happens that we need to learn something, and we are faced with a difficult choice: to take up a boring textbook and cram it from cover to cover, or to plunge into a story of adventure, love and drama.
A good book is a source of pleasure in itself, as well as a tool for broadening one's horizons and vocabulary.
Reading a boring story, you don’t want to make an effort to understand it. There is a desire to find something special for yourself, a book that would make you memorize every new word, feel the history and empathize with the characters.
In choosing just such a book, we tried to help you by compiling a list of ten excellent modern books written in English. You can try reading them in the original to improve your linguistic skills.
1. "Just Kids", Patti Smith ("Just Kids", Patti Smith)
For those who want light reading and stories about bohemian life.
The book captures from the very first pages: I did not have time to read the first - I was already on the tenth. If you like the spirit of the 60s and the spirit of New York, this book is for you.
This is a story about creative people who, despite the incredibly difficult conditions of life, were looking for themselves, their happiness, and also believed in a brighter future.
Poverty, drugs, the first ups and downs, all-consuming love against the backdrop of the utter chaos of America in the 60s - in a wonderful story about how adults really lived like children, rejoicing in insignificant little things. Love, over which neither time, nor space, nor sexual orientation has power, and Art rises above all this.
This book is capable of inspiring madness and the search for beauty in everything.
2. "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet", David Mitchell
For lovers of history and intellectual plot.
The plot is interesting for its extraordinary themes, and historical orientation, and the peculiarity of the presentation, which is unique to Mitchell.
At the end of the 18th century, the young Dutchman Jacob de Zoet went to Japan to work. The reason for his journey is the desire to achieve his beloved Anna. But he has disagreements with the father of his beloved, because he does not agree to marry his daughter to a poor man. The main character will have to spend almost his entire life in Japan, where he will meet and lose his new love.
The book is about the clash of cultures of East and West, the disagreement of sciences, religions and interests.
3. "Flowers in the Attic" by Virginia Andrews ("Flowers in the Attic, V. C. Andrews)"
For those who want to experience strong emotions.
The novel "Flowers in the Attic" tells the reader about the Dollangenger couple. The couple has four wonderful children, and everything is going well, until one day the head of the family gets into a car accident. The ideal life of the main character collapsed in an instant. The only thing she could do was to go with her children to her parents, who expelled her many years ago. To have a chance to inherit the fortune of her harsh and cruel father, the heroine will have to win his trust.
An obstacle in this regard are children, about whom no one should know. A loving mother decides to hide her children on the top floor of the parental home in a small and cramped room, where there is nothing interesting but four walls.
Will the children be able to survive what fate has given them when the only thing they see is one room with access to the attic?
4. A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking
For those who want to understand physics, but are afraid.
The famous English physicist Stephen Hawking tells us in a fascinating and accessible way about the origin of the Universe and its possible fate.
The author is passionate about everything that happens around, and conveys his interest to the reader. The book is about physics, but in practice you will see only one formula, which Stephen himself describes with a touch of humor. If you want to expand your horizons by learning more about cosmology and the microcosm, this book will be a revelation for you.
Despite some of the difficulties that may arise when reading, we can conclude that physics can be incredibly exciting.
5. "The Shack", William Paul Young ("The Shack", William Paul Young)
For those who are lost in themselves or disappointed in life.
The main character Mack has lost his youngest daughter. In a painful search, Mac comes across an abandoned hut, where he discovers evidence of the death of his daughter at the hands of a maniac. After this event, Mac is unable to continue to live normally, he is disappointed in the world, in himself, in God, who let him down.
After four years of excruciating suffering, the main character receives a letter in which God advises him to visit that very hut. Mac thinks he's gone crazy, because the addressee is God himself. He decides to go on a journey and check who joked so evilly on him.
6. Watership Down by Richard Adams
For seekers of British children's literature and fairy tales.
The main characters in this book are rabbits. These wondrous creatures have left their hometown and set out on an adventure (and trouble) that they will never forget. However, do not worry, quick paws always come to their aid.
The book will appeal to both children and adults, so you can confidently put it in the category of "family reading". The author talks about the life of animals in the forest, and readers follow them step by step and feel sympathy for the little furries.
7. Mindset by Carol Dweck (Mindset, Carol Dweck)
For those who want to deepen their knowledge of psychology.
This book tells about the research on intelligence that was carried out by the famous psychologist Carol Dweck over a period of 20 years. The author describes in detail examples of flexible and fixed consciousness.
Fixed-minded people believe that they have an innate intelligence and talent. All their lives they prove to the world around them that they have certain qualities, instead of developing them. The biggest delusion of such people is that they believe in their talent, which will lead them to success.
You can talk a lot about the role of the individual in history, but we are much more interested in the topic of the role of the individual in the development of the English language. After all, there is no doubt that a number of people whose names we know for sure made an invaluable contribution to English through their literary works. Of course, we are talking about the most famous British writers.
William Shakespeare often called the greatest British writer and one of the brightest playwrights in the world. The writer was born in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. During his career, Shakespeare created about two hundred works that have been translated into many languages and are constantly staged. In addition, Shakespeare himself performed in theaters for a long time. Among the most famous works of the author are the most famous tragedies "Romeo and Juliet", "Hamlet", "Othello", "Macbeth", "King Lear".
Oscar Wilde- Another famous and interesting representative of British literature. He was born in 1856 to an Irish family. Oscar Wilde's talent and sense of humor are recognized worldwide, as is his most famous novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray. The writer has always said that aesthetic feelings are the driving force behind human development, and he repeatedly touched on this topic in his works. Oscar Wilde left a large number of magnificent fairy tales, plays and novels, which are often staged in our time.
Charles Dickens- British writer, who gained popularity during his lifetime, is a recognized classic of world literature. Dickens was born in 1812 in Porsmouth, England, and grew up in a large family. From childhood, the writer was forced to earn a living, and his hardships were later reflected in such famous works as Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, the heroes of which were poor orphan boys. No less famous works are "Dombey and Son", "A Tale of Two Cities" and "Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club", which brought him great fame.
Agatha Christie Often referred to as the Queen of the Detective. The writer, who was born in 1890, is among the most frequently published writers. Agatha Christie gave the world about a hundred works, including detective and psychological novels, short stories and plays. Christie's most famous creations are the play "The Mousetrap", the detective novel "Ten Little Indians", "Murder on the Orient Express" and many others.
Another great master of the detective is considered Arthur Conan Doyle, who gave the world the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes and many other bright characters.
Among modern authors, the British writer stands out Joanne Rowling, famous for a series of books about the wizard Harry Potter and the magical world. These books not only brought her worldwide fame, but also turned her from a single mother living on welfare to a multimillionaire. After the release of all the Harry Potter books, Rowling released several books for adult readers, including under the pseudonym "Robert Gilbraith".
This list can be continued for a long time, but we have listed the real "giants". Without them, the English language, which you can study in courses at, would be completely different. That is why it is so important to remember them and know their names.
Nick Hornby is known not only as the author of such popular novels as "Hi-Fi", "My Boy", but also as a screenwriter. The writer's cinematic style makes him very popular in adapting books by various authors for film adaptation: "Brooklyn", "Education of the Senses", "Wild".
In the past, an ardent football fan, he even splashed out his obsession in the autobiographical novel Football Fever.
Culture is often a key theme in Hornby's books, in particular, the writer does not like it when pop culture is underestimated, considering it as narrow-minded. Also, the key themes of the works are often the relationship of the hero with himself and others, overcoming and searching for himself.
Nick Hornby now lives in Highbury, North London, within easy reach of the stadium of his favorite football team, Arsenal.
Doris Lessing (1919 - 2013)
After the second divorce in 1949, she moved with her son to London, where at first she rented an apartment for a couple with a woman of easy virtue.
The topics that worried Lessing, as often happens, changed during her life, and if in 1949-1956 she was primarily occupied with social issues and communist themes, then from 1956 to 1969 the works began to be of a psychological nature. In later works, the author was close to the postulates of the esoteric trend in Islam - Sufism. In particular, this was expressed in many of her science fiction works from the Canopus series.
In 2007, the writer was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The world-wide success and love of millions of women brought the writer the novel "Bridget Jones's Diary", born from a column that Helen led in the Independent newspaper.
The plot of the "Diary" repeats in detail the plot of Jane Austen's novel "Pride and Prejudice", up to the name of the main male character - Mark Darcy.
They say that the writer was inspired by the 1995 series and especially by Colin Firth, as he migrated to the film adaptation of The Diary without any changes.
In the UK, Stephen is known as an esthete and a great original, driving around in his own cab. Stephen Fry incomparably combines two abilities: to be the standard of British style and to regularly shock the public. His bold statements about God put many into a stupor, which, however, does not affect his popularity in any way. He is openly gay - last year, 57-year-old Fry married a 27-year-old comedian.
Fry does not hide the fact that he used drugs and suffers from bipolar disorder, about which he even made a documentary.
It is not easy to define all areas of Fry's activity, he himself jokingly calls himself "a British actor, writer, king of dance, prince of swimming trunks and blogger." All of his books invariably become bestsellers, and interviews are sorted into quotes.
Stephen is considered a rare owner of a unique classic English accent, an entire book has been written about the art of "talking like Stephen Fry".
Julian Barnes has been called the "chameleon" of British literature. He perfectly knows how, without losing his individuality, to create works that are different from each other: eleven novels, four of which are detective stories written under the pseudonym Dan Kavanagh, a collection of short stories, a collection of essays, a collection of articles and reviews.
The writer has been repeatedly accused of Francophonie, especially after the publication of the book "Flaubert's Parrot", a kind of mixture of a biography of the writer and a scientific treatise on the role of the author in general. The writer's craving for everything French is partly due to the fact that he grew up in the family of a French teacher.
His novel A History of the World in 10 ½ Chapters became a real event in literature. Written in the genre of dystopia, the novel seeks answers to a number of philosophical questions about the essence of man, his past, present and future.
A favorite of children and adults around the world, the restless Paddington bear was "born" in 1958, when Michael Bond realized at the last moment before Christmas that he forgot to buy a gift for his wife. Out of hopelessness, the author, who had already written many plays and stories by that time, bought his wife a toy bear in a blue cloak.
In 2014, based on his books, a film was made, where London became one of the characters in the story. He appears before us as if through the eyes of a small guest from dense Peru: at first rainy and inhospitable, and then sunny and beautiful. You can recognize Notting Hill, Portobello Road, the streets near Maida Vale Station, Paddington Station and the Natural History Museum in the painting.
It is interesting that now the writer lives in London just not far from Paddington station.
Rowling went from social welfare to the author of the best-selling series of books in history in just five years, which became the basis for films, which, in turn, are recognized as the second highest-grossing franchise.
According to Rowling herself, the idea for the book came to her while traveling by train from Manchester to London in 1990. .
Neil Gaiman has been called one of today's premier storytellers. Hollywood producers are lining up for the film rights to his books.
He also wrote scripts himself more than once. His famous novel Neverwhere was born from just such a script for a mini-series filmed on the BBC in 1996. Although, of course, the opposite is more often the case.
Scary Tales of the Nile are also loved because they blur the lines between intellectual and entertainment literature.
The writer is a laureate of prestigious awards, many of Ian's works have been filmed.
The first works of the writer were distinguished by cruelty and great attention to the theme of violence, for which the author was awarded the nickname Ian Creepy (Ian Macabre). He has also been called the black wizard of modern British prose and a world-class expert on all forms of violence.
In further work, all these themes remained, but seemed to fade into the background, passing like a red thread through the fate of the characters, while not lingering in the frame themselves.
The writer's childhood passed on the run: he was born in Czechoslovakia into an intelligent Jewish family. Because of her nationality, his mother moved to Singapore and then to India. Almost all of the writer's relatives died during the Second World War, and his mother, having married a British military man for the second time, raised her children as real Englishmen.
Stoppard's fame came with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, a reimagining of Shakespeare's Hamlet, which turned into a comedy under Tom's pen.
The playwright has a lot to do with Russia. He was here in 1977, working on a report on dissidents who were kept in psychiatric hospitals. "It was cold. Moscow seemed gloomy to me, ”the author shares his memories.
The writer also visited Moscow during the staging of a performance based on his play at the RAMT Theater in 2007. The theme of the 8-hour performance is the development of Russian political thought of the 19th century with its main characters: Herzen, Chaadaev, Turgenev, Belinsky, Bakunin.
