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Orange Prize for Fiction's "50 Essential Reads by Contemporary Authors"

Book awards: Orange Prize for Fiction's "50 Essential Reads by Contemporary Authors"
To support the 2004 award, the Orange Prize for Fiction researched the UK's first ever living library of 50 contemporary 'essential reads'.
The books were chosen by a sample of 500 people attending the first week of the Guardian Hay festival and represent the audience's definitive 'must have' bookshelf by living writers.
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American Pastoral (Philip Roth)
American Pastoral
1
Philip Roth
Atonement (Ian McEwan)
Atonement
2
Ian McEwan
Being Dead
Being Dead
3
Birdsong (Sebastian Faulks)
Birdsong
4
Sebastian Faulks
The Blind Assassin (Margaret Atwood)
The Blind Assassin
5
Margaret Atwood
Captain Corelli's Mandolin (Louis De Bernieres)
Captain Corelli's Mandolin
6
Louis De Bernieres
Cloudstreet (Tim Winton)
Cloudstreet
7
Tim Winton
The Corrections (Jonathan Franzen)
The Corrections
8
Jonathan Franzen
Disgrace (J. M. Coetzee)
Disgrace
9
J. M. Coetzee
Enduring Love (Ian McEwan)
Enduring Love
10
Ian McEwan
Faith Singer (Rosie Scott)
Faith Singer
11
Rosie Scott
Fingersmith (Sarah Waters)
Fingersmith
12
Sarah Waters
Fred & Edie (Jill Dawson)
Fred & Edie
13
Jill Dawson
Fugitive Pieces (Anne Michaels)
Fugitive Pieces
14
Anne Michaels
Girl With a Pearl Earring (Tracy Chevalier)
Girl With a Pearl Earring
15
Tracy Chevalier
The Golden Notebook (Doris Lessing)
The Golden Notebook
16
Doris Lessing
Grace Notes (Bernard MacLaverty)
Grace Notes
17
Bernard MacLaverty
The Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood)
The Handmaid's Tale
18
Margaret Atwood
High Fidelity (Nick Hornby)
High Fidelity
19
Nick Hornby
His Dark Materials (Philip Pullman)
His Dark Materials
20
Philip Pullman
Ali Smith: Hotel World
Ali Smith: Hotel World
21
The House of the Spirits (Isabel Allende)
The House of the Spirits
22
Isabel Allende
Middlesex (Jeffrey Eugenides)
Middlesex
23
Jeffrey Eugenides
Midnight's Children (Salman Rushdie)
Midnight's Children
24
Salman Rushdie
Misery (Stephen King)
Misery
25
Stephen King
Money (Martin Amis)
Money
26
Martin Amis
Music and Silence
Music and Silence
27
The Name of the Rose (Umberto Eco)
The Name of the Rose
28
Umberto Eco
One Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
One Hundred Years of Solitude
29
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (Jeanette Winterson)
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit
30
Jeanette Winterson
The Passion (Jeanette Winterson)
The Passion
31
Jeanette Winterson
The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
The Poisonwood Bible
32
Barbara Kingsolver
A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
A Prayer for Owen Meany
33
John Irving
Rabbit Angstrom Series
Rabbit Angstrom Series
34
The Regeneration Trilogy
The Regeneration Trilogy
35
Riders (Jilly Cooper)
Riders
36
Jilly Cooper
The Secret History (Donna Tartt)
The Secret History
37
Donna Tartt
The Shipping News (E.Annie Proulx)
The Shipping News
38
E.Annie Proulx
Slaughterhouse-Five (Kurt Vonnegut)
Slaughterhouse-Five
39
Kurt Vonnegut
Smilla's Sense of Snow (Peter Høeg, Trans. Tiina Nunnally)
Smilla's Sense of Snow
40
Peter Høeg, Trans. Tiina Nunnally
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