April, 1984. Winston Smith, thinks a thought, starts a diary, and falls in love. But Big Brother is watching him, and the door to Room 101 can swing open in the blink of an eye. Its ideas have become our ideas, and Orwell's fiction is often said to be our reality. The definitive book of the 20th century is re-examined in a radical new adaptation exploring why Orwell's vision of the future is as relevant as ever.

This book was chosen by a member of Library staff as their favourite book. They have written a short piece to explain why.

What makes it so powerful are details that we all recognise. The dictatorship is omnipotent, yet in the England of “Airstrip One” sinks are still blocked, greasy canteens serve sloppy food and tower blocks smell of cabbage. When Winston Smith sleeps and dreams of freedom he wakes up with the name “Shakespeare” on his lips. Unlike the brilliant abstract novel We (by Yevgeny Zamyatin), that inspired Orwell, this dystopia feels very close by.

'Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird.'

Voted the most life changing book by a female author.

A lawyer's advice to his children as he defends the real mockingbird of Harper Lee's classic novel - a black man charged with the rape of a white girl. Through the young eyes of Scout and Jem Finch, Harper Lee explores with exuberant humour the irrationality of adult attitudes to race and class in the Deep South of the thirties. The conscience of a town steeped in prejudice, violence and hypocrisy is pricked by the stamina of one man's struggle for justice. But the weight of history will only tolerate so much.

To Kill a Mockingbird is a coming-of-age story, an anti-racist novel, a historical drama of the Great Depression and a sublime example of the Southern writing tradition.

This book was chosen by a Student studying Biomedical Sciences. They have written a short piece to explain why.

“To Kill a Mockingbird” proved to be one of the most influential books I have ever read. The characters, the plot, and the complete atmosphere of the novel struck a chord with me, and I’ll never forget how I felt when I first finished it. I saw people with faults, flaws, and failures, and I could relate to those people. I have faults and flaws, but that’s just what people call “normal”. After I finished the book, I understood the importance of treating people as equals, helping out whenever I could, and talking and listening to those who needed it, because I could finally see the ordinary person for what they truly were: someone who wants nothing more than to do good and be good, a sort of “mockingbird” if you will. And as it was stated by Atticus Finch in Harper Lee’s masterpiece of writing and literature, it is a sin to kill a mockingbird.

In this thrilling adventure tale by the 'Father of Science Fiction', three men embark on an epic journey under the sea with the mysterious Captain Nemo aboard his submarine the Nautilus. Over the course of their fantastical voyage, they encounter the lost city of Atlantis, the South Pole and the corals of the Red Sea, and must battle countless adversaries both human and monstrous.

Verne's triumphant work of the imagination shows the limitless possibilities of science and the dark depths of the human mind. This new version by award-winning translator David Coward brings Verne's novel vividly to life for a new generation of readers.

This book was chosen by a Student studying Physics.