An entirely personal list of favourite books in response to the frequently asked question - "Sir, can you tell me a good book"......

(This is not an educationally recommended Gordano endorsed list, and if some of these books have rude words in them then deal with it. You have been warned).

- The Moonstone - Wilkie Collins. One of the first detective stories, written in 1868. Story of an Indian Diamond getting stolen. Really good twist at the end.

- One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest - Ken Kesey. Even better than the Jack Nicholson film.

- Trainspotting - Irvine Welsh. Modern classic. Makes the rest of his books look bad its so good.

- The Unbearable Lightness of Being - Milan Kundera. Wonderful Magic Realist fiction set in Prague sfter the Communist takeover. Fantastic. 

- Samarkand - Amin Maalouf. A book which successfully combines 12th Century Persia, the writing of Omar Khayyam and the story of the Titanic.

- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas - Hunter S. Thompson. Very funny story of drug addled mayhem in the early 70's.

- Hyperion (and sequels) - Dan Simmons. Best Science fiction books. Combines the Canterbury tales, the poetry of Keats and genuinely interesting writing.

- The Beach - Alex Garland. So much better than the distinctly average film.

- A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess. Get past the fact that its not entirely written in normal English and you'll enjoy it.

- In the Name of the Rose - Umberto Eco. Middle ages Christianity through to library design mixed with a gripping murder plot. One of the best books ever written.

- Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Benieres. Well. I liked it.

- Perfume - Patrick Suskind. The story of a perfume in France. Infinitely more entertaining and interesting than it sounds. Really. 

- Great Apes - Will Self. Man wakes up and discovers he's a monkey. So is everyone else. Highly funny.

- The Satanic Verses - Salman Rushdie. The book that almost got him killed. Magical presentation of religion, India and loads of other things.

- Knowledge of Angels - Jill Paton Walsh. Get past the rather naff prologue and this is a really good novel.

- I Claudius/Claudius the God - Robert Graves. Funny "autobiography" of one of the least dynamic of the Roman Caesars. Catalogues the dominance of Augustus through to the insane depravity of Caligula.

- The Master and Margarita - Mikhail Bulgakov. Banned in Russia when it was written, the story of the Devil turning up in Moscow and the mayhem that ensues.

- His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman. Don't just trust the publicity. It really is that good.

- It - Stephen King. Some call it naff horror. I call it a good read.

- The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas. Exploits of 17th Century Musketeers against Cardinal Richelieu.