Earlier today I was compiling a list of my top ten books on the World Book Night website. They are currently in the process of selecting the 25 titles to be given away next year and are asking people to give their suggestions.

It seemed simple enough, search for the title, drag and drop the cover into your list and then explain why you made that choice. That’s the part that took me forever. I can say which my 10 books are, the top 6 have been the same for years and numbers 7 to 10 tend change depending on what I have recently read. But explaining why you love a book is so much harder. In fact I gave up and instead spent my time looking at other people’s choices and their reasons why. At the moment To Kill a Mocking Bird is the favourite, closely followed by Pride and Prejudice and The Book Thief.

What is interesting about the list is that, in theory anyway, it shouldn’t be simply a list of people’s favourite books, but of the books that they think others should read. It made me think about the books that I have given or passed on the most. I realized I have a three tiered system. If I like a book I will tell my friends and family about it; if I really like a book I will give them my copy to ensure they read it; and if I love a book then I go out and buy copies for other people so that I don’t lose mine. It’s because of this that I still have my original copy of my no. 1 book The Wolves of Willoughby Chase.

Madeleine Allan, doing work experience at A&B