BBC Arts and the charity the Reading Agency have unveiled a reading list of 70 great books from the last 70 years in honor of Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee.
The books—10 from each of the last seven decades—are all by authors from the Commonwealth of Nations. They were selected by “an expert panel of librarians, booksellers, and literature specialists.”
The oldest book on the list is The Palm-Wine Drinkard, written by Nigerian author Amos Tutuola and published in 1952.
Books from the 1960s on the list include English writer Anthony Burgess’ A Clockwork Orange and Kenyan author Ng?g? wa Thiong’o’s A Grain of Wheat, while the 1970s are represented by books including Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John Le Carré (England) and Who Do You Think You Are? (also published as The Beggar Maid) by Alice Munro (Canada).
Other 20th-century books to be honored include Canadian author Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, English novelist Kazuo Ishiguro’s The Remains of the Day, and Trinidadian writer Earl Lovelace’s Salt.
More contemporary books to make the list include Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria), The Book of Night Women by Marlon Janes (Jamaica), Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue (Cameroon), and Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart (Scotland).
“The list offers brilliant, beautiful and thrilling writing produced by authors from a wide range of Commonwealth countries over the last seventy years to engage all readers in the discovery and celebration of great books,” the BBC wrote. “Spanning 31 countries and six continents, this truly international collection is a fitting tribute to the most widely traveled monarch in history.”
Michael Schaub is a Texas-based journalist and regular contributor to NPR.
