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Founded in 1988, the Hay Festival has become a much anticipated yearly tradition for book lovers. Today it is not just a celebration of literature – though this remains the primary focus – but also of music, film and British culture. In honour of this year’s event, we’ve compiled a list of books in which characters and authors alike celebrate reading and literature.
“I’d have… rooms piled with books, and I’d write out of a magic inkstand.” Jo March
Jo March is renowned for her independence, wilfulness and quick temper. Boyish and boisterous, she defies many of the gender norms of her society. She rejects the idea of marriage in favour of independence, desiring to make a living from writing books. Jo is often the favourite out of the four March sisters due to her ability to remain true to herself. Though her independence often leaves her isolated, her passion for writing eclipses all other desires. It is for this reason that we’ve chosen Little Women as our first literary festival inspired read.
“I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of any thing than of a book!” Miss Bingley
Elizabeth Bennet is often remembered for her feisty character and sharp intelligence. Like Jo March, she resists the constraints of her patriarchal society and desires to retain her own independence. Though she professes herself not to be ‘a great reader’ in response to her mother’s claim that she is, her intellectual maturity is due in part to her enquiring mind and literary knowledge. While Jane Austen’s own support for the intelligent female reader is projected through Elizabeth, she employs other characters such as Miss Bingley (quoted above) to raise this discussion.
‘I too liked reading, though of a frivolous and childish kind.’
Jane Eyre simply could not be missed off our list of literary festival inspired books. Jane, like Jo and Elizabeth, is an intelligent and spirited protagonist with a love for reading. She may not be as charming as Elizabeth or as sharp as Jo, but she too desires to create a life where she remains in control of her destiny. Books appear throughout the novel, often at more formative moments. The story opens with her hiding in a window recess, reading Bewick’s A History of British Birds in order to escape her abusive household. Later in the story, she expresses her joy in reading Gulliver’s Travels more than once and the spark stimulated in her by simply hearing the word ‘book’.
“Don’t you just love poetry that gives you a crinkly feeling up and down your back?” Anne Shirley
Anne Shirley is one of literature’s best-loved characters. Charming, spirited, wilful and intelligent, she is a fine example of feminine independence. Anne is, of course, an avid reader. The lure of books is so strong that she is unable to resist reading Ben Hur at school when she should be studying and gets into trouble for it. Even at home, she requests that her books be locked away until she has finished her schoolwork so that she cannot be tempted. Anne lives in a world of imagination, spurred on by her free spirit and her devourment of great literature.
‘What really knocks me out is a book that, when you're all done reading it, you wish the author that wrote it was a terrific friend of yours.’ Holden Caulfield
In contrast to the other books on this list, The Catcher in the Rye presents a male perspective through Salinger’s famous teenage protagonist, Holden Caulfield. Despite being expelled from several schools, he is an intelligent character and a lover of books. In his own words, ‘I’m quite illiterate, but I read a lot.’ He desires to understand the world better through reading what he wants rather than confirming to educational expectations. Though Holden is a difficult and unlikeable character, his search to understand the world better through reading and his struggle with self-image make him a relatable character for younger readers.
‘A blessed companion is a book - a book that, fitly chosen, is a life-long friend.' Douglas William Jerrold
This publication is dedicated to all those who love reading. A compendium of excerpts from some of the world’s best-loved writers, it presents many discussions about books and reading. Books are bewitching and corrupting, fascinating and transportive. They may be worshipped or despised, read again and again or cast aside. Famous novelists, poets, diarists and essayists – including Chaucer, Shakespeare, Austen, Dickens, Boswell and Ruskin – share their insights about the fascinating and frustrating nature of books. For the modern bibliophile, this volume will allow you to participate in centuries of bookish discussions!
If, like the characters explored in this blog, you are a bibliophile then you’ve come to the right place. Our book recommendations are perfect for anyone wishing to celebrate books this summer, at the Hay Festival or another literary event. Books can empower and inspire, make us laugh, make us cry, stimulate our imaginations, change our outlooks and transport us to other worlds. Whether old or new, classic or relatively unknown, it is no secret that books have the power to change lives.
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