John Grindrod

John Grindrod edited Shouting at the Telly, contributed to Hang the DJ: An Alternative Book of Music Lists and has worked in publishing for over a decade.

My favourite books of the decade are:

Funny, moving, wildly imaginative and phenomenally well observed. The story of an overweight psychic haunted by ghosts from her childhood, it's remarkable for the details of Mantel's storytelling and the fantastical tale she tells which becomes utterly convincing the more you read.

Buy the book

I love modern history books, and this has been my favourite from a terrific crop including works by Dominic Sandbrook, David Kynaston and Andew Marr. The revelatory interviews with key players, be they strikers, activists or Edward Heath himself, makes for a gripping read.

Buy the book

Best telly book of the decade, this is an absolute must-read for anyone wanting to write for TV or trying to understand how drama is produced in Britain. It's much more honest, rude, funny and outrageous than I'd expected, as Davies records via emails to Cook the struggles to produce a truly great TV show.

Buy the book

Back to top

Tim Harford

Tim Harford is the author of The Undercover Economist. He writes about the economics of everyday life in his books and as a Financial Times columnist. He also present some radio and TV.

My favourite books of the decade are:

The obvious choice of book of the decade for me is The Truth About Markets by John Kay - and not just because I was John's research assistant for some of the time when he was writing the book. John is a superb writer, sharp economist and a hugely creative thinker. I am only now coming to realise what an influence The Truth About Markets has been on me.

Buy the book

A more recent choice is David MacKay's Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air, a surprise bestseller despite its exuberant nerdiness. When I interviewed Professor MacKay for More or Less, he mentioned that he's not "pro-nuclear" or "pro-renewables" - he's just "pro-arithmetic". Well said.

Buy the book

Almost equally nerdy is David Allen's Getting Things Done. Awkwardly-written and thoroughly Californian, it makes my list for its sheer brutal effectiveness. Not every book must be elegant or moving. This one isn't. But it works.

Buy the book

Back to top

Henry Hitchings

Henry Hitchings was born in 1974. Educated at the universities of Oxford and London, he wrote his doctoral thesis on Samuel Johnson. He has contributed to many newspapers and magazines and is the author of The Secret Life of Words.

My favourite books of the decade are:

This is probably my top non-fiction book of the decade - a crisply written, detailed and utterly convincing account of the events leading up to 9/11, packed with anecdotes so good it amazes me no one has made it into a film.

Buy the book

An ambitious attempt to write a general history of language, Ostler's book is magnificently successful - and seems to me to have been underappreciated. It's a work of erudite exposition rather than impassioned argument, which perhaps explains this, but there is something fascinating on every page.

Buy the book

My favourite kind of novel - big, ambitious, exuberant and funny, but also poignant. It has a tremendous narrative sweep. Granted, it isn't subtle, and it's uneven, but it's richly textured, humane and very entertaining.

Buy the book

Back to top

<<< Back         Next >>>