Books that made me

The H Is for Hawk author on drawing inspiration from Douglas Coupland, finding comfort in le Carré and crying over fan-fiction

The physicist on grappling with Heidegger, the lyricism of Kerouac, and the book that transformed his understanding of science

The novelist on being spooked by Sarah Waters, finding comfort in Agatha Christie and how The Wind in the Willows inspired her to write

The bestselling crime writer on the influence of Ian Fleming, learning from Saul Bellow and crying over Annie Proulx

The novelist on graphic memoirs, Maurice Sendak and the joy of reading mild celebrity gossip

The American Gods and Good Omens author on his friendship with Gene Wolfe, crying over Diana Wynne Jones and falling under the spell of CS Lewis

The Zimbabwean writer and lawyer on crying over Maggie O’Farrell’s Hamnet, the influence of Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o and the books she feels have been overlooked in 2020

The author on gifting copies of Danez Smith’s Homie, feeling disillusioned by Morrissey and the book that changed his life

The author on being inspired by Sue Townsend, frightened by Beatrix Potter – and the monologue she wishes she’d written

The High Fidelity author on how Anne Tyler changed his life, his love for Larry McMurty’s westerns, and why he’s pleased he didn’t write David Copperfield

The winner of the 2020 International Booker on struggling through Proust and being terrified of Roald Dahl’s Witches