Books of the Year

It's our final post of the year, and, as always, we've asked people to recommend the books they most enjoyed reading this year.  

First up this year is Miss Douglass: 'This year I have been on a mission to read as many books as I can: at the moment I have read 54. The one that surprised me the most, so much so that I am now reading more books by the same author, was Elantris by Brandon Sanderson. 

Usually, I can predict where a book is going, so it is rare that a plot twist surprised me. Elantris had two different plot twists that surprised me.'  

Book of the Week

The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
Recommended by Allen Li

‘We imagined we were being responsible but were only being cowardly.’ This line from Julian Barnes’ The Sense of an Ending captures the essence of the story, as the narrator’s carefully constructed sense of self begins to crumble. What he once believed to be a stable, ordinary past is overturned by fragments of memory that he has forgotten or purposefully cast aside. 

Play of the Week: Hamlet

In today's post, Miss Mazur introduces the senior school production of Hamlet by William Shakespeare.

Books of the Week

Today we have several recommendations, kindly suggested by Mr Hager and Theo Katzenellenbogen.

Endeavour by Peter Moore 

Recommended by Mr Hager

This is an amazingly readable non-fiction work centred around the ship Endeavour and Captain Cook’s extraordinary voyage to the Pacific Ocean in 1769, and his role in the exploration of Tahiti and Australia. 

SPS Predict the Booker Prize 2025: and the winner is ...

On Monday evening, SPS readers gathered in the Kayton Library, and online, via the live-stream, for our annual Predict the Booker event. Six Paulines, from the 5th form to the U8th, stepped up to the podium, each of them recommending one of the shortlisted novels and attempting to win the audience's vote. 

But is the audience vote worth winning? As our host, the imperturbable Mr Mahmoud, politely pointed out, when it comes to predicting Booker prize-winners, the SPS audience have a spectacular record of unrelenting wrongness. For six successive, success-less years, we've failed to back the right horse.  So could this be the night that finally broke the curse? Read on, and find out …

Book of the Week

Next Monday, the Kayton Library is hosting its annual 'Predict the Booker' Event. Six Pauline readers explore and appraise the shortlist for this year's Booker Prize for Literature, before the audience vote on which novel they think will win: you can find out more about the event here, and the shortlisted novels here, and we'll be reporting on the event in next Wednesday's post.  

Meanwhile, today's book of the week - a classic of the horror genre - is perfectly poised between two significant dates: last Friday's Hallowe'en, and next Saturday's anniversary of Bram Stoker's birth in 1847.  Yes, our book of the week is Dracula - recommended by Tom Ritchie.  

The Greatest Literary Dog is ...

Thanks so much to everyone who voted in last week's poll to determine which literary dog SPS readers think is the greatest. Your votes were spread widely between the different candidates, and we'll be bringing you the results in a moment - but first of all, a role call of shame: the dogs we forgot ...

Mrs Cummings was kicking herself: 'I cannot believe I forgot about Gaspode! Terry Pratchett was famously a cat person but Gaspode is a delight. Gaspode possesses human-level intelligence and the ability to speak, as well as an extensive collection of diseases (including 'Licky end' which is only found in pregnant sheep). He is enamoured of the werewolf, makes filthy jokes and is a 'thinking brain' dog for Foul Ole Ron. A canine Dickensian urchin he appears in various books, but is best in Men at Arms.' 

Great Literary Dogs ...

This week, in a post we arrived at by a rather circuitous route*, we're focussing not on books of the week, but on dogs. We asked staff and departments to nominate their favourite dogs in literature, and here are their responses.  

Mr Hager (whose own dog, Cormac, is named after the late, great American novelist Cormac McCarthy) starts us off:  'Can I suggest Mr Bones from Paul Auster’s Timbuktu?  

It’s been ages since I read it but it’s pretty ambitious to do a whole novel from the perspective of a dog.  Mr Bones and his master (who is old and ailing) travel to Baltimore in a quest to find his master’s old English teacher.  The novel meditates upon death, the afterlife, and the state of America.'  

Black History Month

Today's books of the weeks have all been chosen in relation to Black History Month: Standing Firm in Power and Pride.

Life on Mars by Tracy K Smith
Recommended by Mr Hager

Life on Mars,Tracy K Smith’s 2011 poetry collection, is a remarkable, versatile work which takes ‘space' as its central metaphor, alongside the work of David Bowie and great science-fiction films of the past. She pushes the boundaries of what ‘space’ can mean, and sues it to ask many questions about life and death, about religion and the quest for meaning in life, about the direction that we as a human race are moving in - as well as specifically the direction of travel in America - and about the best and worst of human actions towards each other.

Devils and Angels

The Booker Prize shortlist was announced yesterday: you can find out which novels made the cut here. On 9th November, the Kayton Library is hosting our annual 'Predict the Booker' event. Six Pauline readers will be debating the merits of the books on the shortlist, and trying to win the audience vote for their selected nominee: will we agree with the Booker judges? We have a track record of 100% failure so far - but this year could be different!! You can read the report of last year's event here.  

Appropriately enough, today's post focusses on creative writing, featuring a short piece of work in progress by Harper Katz, and an extract from Alex Twinch's historical novel, Heresy of Angels, which formed the basis of his EPQ.  If you're interested in reading more Pauline creativity, here's a link to the  digital version of the most recent edition of Pandemonium, the SPS creative writing magazine. 

Leaver's Post

Surely it's too early in the term for a leaver's post? Sadly, it's not: this week we say goodbye to Mr Staniforth, our Theatre Technical Manager, who has been overseeing Pauline productions with patience and calm good humour for the last fifteen years. Mr Staniforth has also been a regular contributor to the blog, and his memorably eclectic suggestions for our annual Book of the Year posts have steered us well off the beaten path, towards many new, intriguing and excellent books and writers. We are deeply honoured that he took the time to answer the blog's questions before he departs.  

What were you reading when you were a teenager?

As an early teen I was saving pocket money to buy second hand copies of Alistair MacLean and Jack Higgins, action adventure books. These haven’t lasted, although I am not immune to the pleasure of the airport novel. 

I have kept The Way to Dusty Death and The Golden Gate on my shelves as an adult, as well as a signed copy of one of Jack Higgins’s books. I wrote to him to settle an argument I was having with a friend, who insisted that Frederick Forsyth and he were the same author writing under different names. They are not, and I have a signed letter from Mr Higgins (calling me David, curse my handwriting!) confirming such. 

Jack Higgins and Frederick Forsyth. Not the same writer.  

My mother – who is an English teacher – put Thomas Hardy and Jane Austen in my hands, but while I read them, they never really stuck.  

Book of the Week

If you love books, there's a lot going on this term that you might want to get involved in. This week's meeting of the Senior English Society takes place today at 12.55 in E1, with Mr Hager, and the Milton Society, a new Junior English Society, run by Mr Gardner also has its first meeting this lunchtime, at 12.55 in E4. Mr Gardner writes: 

'The Milton Society is a society open to anyone in the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Forms who is interested in literature. We will meet weekly in E4 (Wednesdays, 12.55-1.30pm) to explore great works of literature across the ages. This term, we are going to focus on Shakespeare’s Hamlet. We will read extracts from the play and watch videos of performances, and there will also be the chance to join a school trip to the National Theatre later in the term. You will also have the chance to watch the SPS Drama production in December! Come along to discover what Hamlet is so upset about, and decide for yourself whether this play deserves its reputation as one of the greatest things ever written.'

Dr Pryce's creative writing society continues on Monday lunchtimes, and the Kayton Library will be hosting its annual 'Predict the Booker Prize' event later in the term (more about both of these in a later post). In the meantime, here's today's Book of the Week:

Indignation by Philip Roth

Recommended by Rohan Pillai

Indignation, written in the 21st century, is set in 1951, against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, and is narrated in the first person by a nineteen year old named Marcus Messner, who details his experiences at a college in Ohio. The plot revolves around how small actions can have severe consequences, especially in an environment where the main character’s views are in contrast with the rest of society, as well as the effect of the past on current events.

Book of the Week

Welcome back! We hope you've all had a fabulous summer, with plenty of time to relax (and read). It's the start of a new term, and here to kick off this year's posts is our first book of the week.  

Haven by Emma Donoghue

Recommended by Miss McLaren

Holidays can be a kind of haven, and small islands are often popular destinations. No wonder - they can offer an escape from everyday routines, and a different way of being, surrounded by the beauty and tranquillity of apparently unspoiled nature, places where you can relax and unwind, freed from the pressures of the outside world. The haven at the centre of Emma Donoghue's novel is very, very different ...

Leavers' Post

It's our final post of the year, and sadly, at the end of this term, Mr Adelman, Miss Brennan, Miss Dillon, Miss Ahmed, Mr Thumwood, Mr Harris, and the mighty, mighty Dr Mayfield are leaving SPS - but they very kindly paused while packing up their books to answer the book blog's leavers' questionnaire. Dr Mayfield notes that while he can remember the three books he read for his English Literature O Level - Pride and Prejudice, Goodbye to All That and An Inspector Calls - they were possibly the last three 'friction' books he read. So he's answered the questions with classical music - a book blog first, and one we'd definitely be happy to continue.  

And if these suggestions don't give you enough ideas for summer reading, why not check out the library's Book Advisor posters, or their map of the world (outside the Kayton Library), which gives you ideas for books connected to places you might be visiting over the summer. Plus, Mr Gardner has put together an epic list of reading suggestions for the 4th, 5th and 6th forms, which you can find along with other suggestions  on the blog's reading lists page here.   Have fun choosing your summer reading!  

What were you reading when you were a teenager?

Mr Adelman: Some of the most memorable books from my teen years are Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, The Stranger by Albert Camus, The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood and my senior year term paper book, The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner. While the last one felt more like a lesson in discipline and patience than pleasure reading, each book stood out not only for its impressive writing, but for its commentary and ability to make me question my own beliefs.

World Book Day Quizzes - more answers, and the winner ...!!!

In today's post, the last post of term, we bring you the answers to the final rounds of our World Book Day Quiz: Miss McLaren's questions on women writers, and Mr Gardner's annual literary cryptic crossword.  And after that, the announcement you've all been waiting for - this year's winner ....

But quiz answers first. Round 5: women writers.

Question 1: whose first novel had an epigraph by John Milton, and was sub-titled The Modern Prometheus?  This should have been easy. And it was. Although the first edition of the novel was published anonymously in 1818, almost all of you knew the answer to this question was, of course ...

Mary Shelley. 'The Gordon Ramsay Story' was not an answer we were expecting, but the host of Hell's Kitchen undoubtedly has form when it comes to bringing fire to humanity, so yes, Atom, we can see the underlying logic there. If we squint hard enough.  

Guess Who Came to Dinner: the answers (and the winners ...!)

On the last Tuesday of term, we'll be revealing the answers to the final rounds of the Book Blog quiz, and announcing the winner. Last week, the Kayton Library also held its annual World Book Day quiz, which was as popular as ever.  In today's post, we bring you the answers, and reveal who were the winners of those elusive Nando's Vouchers.    

Guess Who Came to Dinner.

Mrs Pemberton

After the excitement buzzing around the table outside the library last week, it is time to reveal who came to dinner with The Kayton Library for World Book Day. 

This year’s clues arranged around the eight table settings certainly sparked some debate and challenged the literary brain-cells of staff and pupils alike. Thank you to all those who got involved and to the Drama Department and Mr Tretiakov for helping to deck out the table with some excellent props.

And so to the answers……..

World Book Day Quizzes: the final rounds ...

 Thanks very much to all of you who had a stab at Mr Green's anagrams yesterday: we'll be revealing the answers in a moment ...

But first, it's the final day of quizzes, and today, there are TWO rounds. It's International Women's Day on Saturday, so to celebrate this, Round 6 - see here - brings you ten questions about women writers.  

And our final round is Mr Gardner's annual, fiendish cryptic crossword: be afraid - be very afraid ... 

He's asked us to publish a disclaimer, because this one is really difficult.  But perhaps he's under-estimating you - see if you can prove him wrong? Here's the grid: and you can find the clues here - good luck!

A quick reminder that it's also the final day to enter the Kayton Library's 'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?' quiz, and win those fabulous Nando's vouchers. Visit the table outside the library, if you haven't already done so, to see if you can identify all the literary guests, or hop back to yesterday's post here and look at the photos. 

Meanwhile, those anagrams. We have to be honest: many of you were clearly baffled.  But come on - Mr Green helped you out with the publication dates, plus occasional clues in the anagrams themselves: so they weren't entirely impossible. Just challenging. Seriously challenging.  And here are the answers.

World Book Day Quizzes: Round 4

It's World Book Day!!! And we've got an abundance of book themed quizzes for you. Thanks very much to everyone who participated in yesterday's quiz: we'll be revealing the correct answers (and some of the most inventive wrong ones) in a moment.

But first, here's a link to today's quiz questions, which have been kindly supplied by Mr Green.  He's given you some anagrams of novels related to fantasy, the supernatural and the fantastical: can you figure out their titles? Bonus points, of course, if you can also identify the author ...

You've also got one more day to enter the Kayton Library's 'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?' quiz and win those fabulous Nando's vouchers. Visit the table outside the library, or look at the photos here, to see if you can identify the literary characters each place setting represents. You can submit your answers here.   

Here's Guest 1:

World Book Day Quizzes: Round 3 ...

Many thanks to all those of you who took part in yesterday's quiz: we'll be revealing the answers in a moment ...  

But first, here's the link to today's quiz. It's Mr Harris's regular 'can you judge a book by its cover?' round. Five book covers, titles removed - what are they? (and bonus points if you know who wrote them).  

Yesterday, Mr Hudson flummoxed many quizzers with his 'book titles that are actually quotations'.  The multiple-choice format gave you options - a 1 in 4 chance of getting it right. Sadly, that didn't help ... 

Book 1 was E M Forster's A Passage to India:

World Book Day Quizzes: Round 2

Thanks very much to all those of you who had a stab at Mr Kemp's questions yesterday: answers in a moment ... 

But first, today's questions, which have been set by Mr Hudson, and feature books whose titles are quotations from another writer: can you figure out which one?  Have a go here.

Yesterday's questions from Mr Kemp, on cinematic adaptations of Shakespeare, got many of you off to a good start. Film 1 was Forbidden Planet, a sci-fi classic from 1956:

World Book Day Quizzes: Round 1

It's World Book Day on Thursday, and as usual, SPS is celebrating this with an abundance of quirky, book-themed quizzes. The Kayton Library is once again extending an invitation to its annual 'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner' quiz - can you identify the literary guests from their place settings?

And here on the book blog, we'll be running a short daily quiz. Today's round is brought to you by Mr Kemp. As teacher i/c of FilmSoc, he's devised a series of questions about films based on the works of William Shakespeare: can you figure out which film is adapted from which play?  Enter the quiz here - and the answers will be revealed tomorrow: have fun!

Book of the Week

All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

Recommended by Rayyan Nasir

'Our knowledge of life is limited to death' - Erich Maria Remarque

Remarque's novel All Quiet on the Western Front is a powerful piece of historical fiction, vividly depicting the horrors of the First World War through the eyes of a German serviceman, Paul Baumer, who in stark contrast to the typical war hero stories of the Great War is only a misled young serviceman, as were many of the soldiers consigned to life in the trenches.

Books of the Week

Today's books of the week are recommended by Freddie Hammond Giles.

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

Northanger Abbey, completed by Jane Austen in 1803, was her first fully finished novel. Austen always features ironic, sometimes mocking undertones in her works, and this novel is no different, featuring Gothic satire, particularly referencing the works of Ann Radcliffe. 

Books of the Week

Today's books of the week are both by the Russian author Nikolai Gogol.  

Dead Souls by Nikolai Gogol
Recommended by Theo Brovin

Dead Souls follows the journey of Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov. Having recently arrived in town, Chichikov quickly makes a name for himself among the inhabitants of Town N as a likeable, knowledgeable man. Soon enough, Chichikov embeds himself within the upper ranks, revealing his aptitude for persuasion, and gets to know some of the wealthier inhabitants. Once a little time has passed, our hero begins to receive letters of invitation from his new acquaintances, asking him to experience their hospitality.

Books of the Week

Happy New Year, and welcome back! Our first post of 2025 features reading recommendations from 5J.

Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

Recommended by Julian Bone

Catch 22 chronicles events in the life of Captain John Yossarian, a US airman who is stationed on the imaginary Mediterranean island of Planosa during the second world war.  Yossarian is honest, and against what people usually think of war. Many of his friends die and in a desperate attempt to stay alive, Yossarian tries to be certified as ‘insane’ but is caught in a paradox called Catch-22.