The Austerity Olympics: When the Games Came to London in 1948 by Janie Hampton 

Aurum Press 2008. Political and social history of the first post-war Olympics, with interviews from over 100 competitors, spectators and judges. Go to her website on the link above to see details of her biography of Joyce Grenfell which I loved.

Small Island by Andrea Levy. Review 2004, £9. Glad it won the Orange as it is nicely balanced and has a wonderful ear for dialogue. I read it just before Brick Lane and after The White Family. As a trio, they have a bundle of messages about so-called 'integrated' Britain. 

Brick Lane by Monica Ali. Doubleday 2003, £9. I'm glad I read it after all the hype. It has an authenticity and compassion that I didn't find in the clever clogs White Teeth. And there's lots of room for the reader to fill in the gaps and understand what she doesn't throw at you.

The Radetsky March by Joseph Roth. Granta trs 2002 / 1951, £6.39. Amazing book with an anti-hero who represents the dying empire. Wonderful translation by Michael Hofmann.  

The Ninth Life of Louis Drax by Liz Jensen. Bloomsbury 2004, £11.89. Proud to be her friend; she has such an ear for voice. Full of tension and enjoyable writing. Look forward to the film.  

Death and the Penguin by  Andrey Kurkov, Harvill Press 2002 £5.59. Zany with an Eastern European seriousness; Kafta-esque without the frustration.

Young Turk by Moris Farhi, Saqi 2004, £6.99. A novel about humanity, integrity, sharing and coming to terms with growing up. Written with affection.

The Flood by Maggie Gee. Saqi 2004, £9.09. A clever piece of intertwining of themes and characters from her other novels with a 'What if' view of social injustice in our world. 

Beloved by Toni Morrison.  Penguin, 1988 £5.59. I should have read this ages ago. Amazing; shocking and written with graphic originality.  

Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss. Profile Books, 2003, £6.99. A best-seller - OK, I liked it too. Someone who can make punctuation funny is truly inspiring. Could have been better edited.

Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne Fadiman. Penguin 1998, £5. I just loved this. Bookish, intellectual, amusing and charmingly written.

They Were Counted: Book 1 of the Transylvanian Trilogy (The Writing on the Wall) by Miklos Banffy, Arcadia Books 1999, £12.99. At 600 pages, this is a real epic describing a vanished era. Like The Leopard -- and should be as well known. Tour de force of translation.

Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee Vintage £5.59 . Particularly resonant if you've been to South Africa. Thought-provoking about rape and violence.

Music & Silence by Rose Tremain, Vintage 2000, £5.59. The Colour by Rose Tremain, Chatto and Windus 2003, £11 Possibly the most absorbing books I read in 2003.

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett, Fourth Estate 2002, £5.59. Beautifully written, moving and finely observed.

His Dark Materials Trilogy: Northern Lights / The Subtle Knife / The Amber Spyglass (His Dark Materials) by Philip Pullman, Scholastic 2001, £14. Absorbing, thought-provoking, and literary tour de force, with many insights into our society and emotions pitched at a level that appeals equally to children and adults. Deserves all its success -- didn't think the play worked, though