VERONICA HENRY: What Book...?

PUBLISHED: 13:31 EST, 21 November 2013 | UPDATED: 13:31 EST, 21 November 2013

...ARE YOU READING NOW?

The Misbegotten by Katherine Webb - a wonderful tangle of darkness and intrigue set in Bath, which I know well, so it’s fun recognising the landmarks and soaking up the atmosphere. It has strumpets and dastards galore, and a heroine called Starling - who could resist?

...WOULD YOU TAKE TO A DESERT ISLAND?

Probably the complete works of Elizabeth David, so I would be a cordon bleu cook by the time I was rescued (in theory). I love reading recipe books for relaxation, and Elizabeth’s writing is so evocative. It really takes you to another place, so it would provide the perfect distraction from my isolation and give me solace.

...FIRST GAVE YOU THE READING BUG?

I was the archetypal book worm, so was raised on all the classics. I was particularly obsessed by the Chalet School series, by Elinor M Brent Dyer.

But the book that opened my eyes to commercial, blockbusting fiction was Jaws, by Peter Benchley. I read it in one gulp on a flight from Washington DC to England when I was sent back to boarding school aged 12, and it blew my mind. It’s about so much more than a shark.

Small town politics, mid life crises, emotional relationships, family pressures - the shark is the catalyst for the drama, and I was totally mesmerised by the way Benchley handled the narrative and juggled all the characters, and how their strengths and weaknesses drove the plot. Jaws-dropping.

...LEFT YOU COLD?

It's probably heresy to say it, but I’m not a huge fan of Pride And Prejudice. I much prefer the sweeping passion and murky secrets of Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights. I can appreciate P and P’s merits but I don’t feel envious of Jane Austen’s writing in the way I do of either Bronte’s. A mad woman in the attic sticks in my mind far longer than a bloke in a wet shirt (yes, I know that was the film ...)