Duncan Madden, freelance writer, consultant, strategist and author of Found in Translation, selects from his library some of his favourite and formative reads…
• Underland
by Robert MacFarlane (2019)
Few things I’ve read are as visceral as MacFarlane’s descriptions of his descents into ‘deep time’. His journeys through the world’s underland are recounted in prose so crisp and resonant that it often left me gasping for breath.
• The Lord of the Rings
by JRR Tolkien (1954)
No other novel has delivered a more real and detailed imaginary world. Tolkein’s depth of research, especially in his appendices, which detail the histories, cultures, genealogies and languages of his characters, is awe-inspiring.
• The Secret History
by Donna Tartt (1992)
Tartt’s university fantasia is utterly compelling – at times beautiful and heartfelt, at others cold and savage. A multi-layered modern thriller.
• Stoner
by John Williams (1965)
Stoner is testament to the power of words and their ability to illuminate the mundanities and disappointments of an ordinary life. Williams is brilliant at conveying emotion in every form.
• Barbarian Days
by William Finnegan (2015)
Finnegan has lived an extraordinary life dedicated to his two great loves: surfing and writing. His tour de force memoir travels the world in search not only of waves but the context and meaning they give to his very existence.
• Into Thin Air
by Jon Krakauer (1996)
Krakauer’s account of the disaster on Mount Everest in 1996 that saw eight climbers die on its slopes was the first book I read that was unputdownable – the story is extraordinary and the writing electric.
• Chasing the scream
by Juval Hari (2015)
A book of redemption for Hari, who had torpedoed his journalistic career and reputation, and fallen into drug use. He explores, through extraordinary stories, the nature of addiction and how our understanding of its causes is all wrong.
• NW
by Zadie Smith (2012)
A character study that wanders extraordinarily between narrative styles and formats to reflect the complexity of life in the corner of northwest London in which I lived for more than a decade.
