‘The library was always my favourite place to go’
Bestselling novelist Victoria Hislop shares her love of reading and the inspiration behind her new book
(Prima Magazine)
Reading has been Victoria’s escape since childhood. “With no mobile phones and little children’s television, books were our escape into fantasy, she says. At school, the library was her favounte place to go – ‘even the smell of it was special.
Still a passionate reader, she reads anywhere and everywhere: In bed, on the Tube, on the beach, sitting down – or even standing up. There is always time to read!” Victoria’s latest novel, The Wine-Dark Sea, was inspired when she came across a little-known piece of Greece’s history about the thousands of children who were separated from their familes during the Cil War. 1 feel as if I am finding somathing buried and digging it up, like an archaeologist.
The book that shaped my childhood…
I Am David by Anne Holm My primary school teacher read this to the class. It’s a sad but optimistic tale about a child who escapes a concentration camp and travels across Europe alone. Even the teacher was reading it with a lump in her throat. I didn’t know it was possible to be so immersed in a story. It turned me into a reader, simple as that
The book that got me through a difficult time…
Billy Summers by Stephen King
Lockdown wasn’t the easiest time to concentrate, so lneeded something gripping. I read this while I was in bed with Covid – I didn’t want it to end. He is the best living storyteller, in my view.
The book that changed me…
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Until this, I was mostly reading children’s books. Then Wuthering Heights was handed to me. It seemed so grown up and row. It gave me the idea that places are also
The best historical fiction I have read…
War And Peace by Leo Tolstoy Tolstoy takes you to a different place and time -namrating the Napoleonic Wars from a Russian point of view. I went through every emotion and felt deeply for the characters.
The book that made me cry….
London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe A true story about the disappearance and death of a teenage boy and the coruption, crime and violence that lurk beneath the surface in London. I sobbed when finished it.
The character in a book I most relate to…
How To End A Story: Collected Diaries by Helen Garner
Helen is a writer and teacher, and almost everything that happens to her, and how she reacts, resonates with me – whether that’s her feelings about a stranger or her own child. It makes me laugh, cry and not feel alone.
The book that recommend to everyone…
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
This loose retelling of David Copperfield is touching and profound. The deprivation, the drug addiction, the hopes, the aspirations are all vividly evoked. It’s a masterpiece.
My only problem after I finished it was deciding what I could possibly read next that could match it.
The book I’m currently loving….
The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout
When I described this to a friend – ‘It’s about a school teacher who is reaching the end of his career -Ihad to agree it sounded very dull, but it’s not! It’s about what it is to be human, and it’s completely brilliant. There’s not one false note or misplaced word; it’s subtle and perfect.
