And The Winner Is.... Trivia Quiz

Answer: Rabbit at Rest

Following the life of Harry "Rabbit" Angstrom from 1960 to 1990, this series from John Updike ends with the death of his hero. This was the second book in the series to win the Pulitzer Prize. "Rabbit is Rich" won in 1982.

Answer: Alice Walker

Set mainly in Georgia, "The Colour Purple" tells the story of female black life in the southern United States during the 1930s. As well as the Pulitzer Prize it also won the National Book Award for Fiction. In 1985 it was made into a film starring Whoopie Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey.

Answer: The Executioner's Song

"The Executioner's Song" is a powerful novel focusing on the last nine months of the life of murderer Gary Gilmore. Gilmore became a sort of celebrity when he fought to have his execution carried out as soon as possible. In 1977 he was executed by firing squad, making him the first person to be executed in the USA since 1967.

In 1982 the book was adapted into a made-for-television film starring Tommy Lee Jones.

Answer: James Agee

"A Death in The Family", an autobiographical novel, was published in 1957, some two years after James Agee died. He is probably better known as a screenwriter, and his film credits include "The African Queen" and "The Night of The Hunter".

Answer: The Way West

"The Way West" is one of a series of six novels that look at the early settlers to Montana travelling the Oregon trail, and the development of Montana from then to the 20th century. The book was later adapted into a film starring Kirk Douglas and Robert Mitchum. A.B. Guthrie Jnr. also wrote the screenplay for the highly acclaimed 1953 film "Shane".

Answer: Dragon's Teeth

The entire series of books covers much of the political history of Europe and America during the early to mid 20th century. "Dragon's Teeth" is set in the 1929 to 1934 period and looks at the Nazi takeover of Germany. When first published, all of the books in the series were immediate world-wide best sellers. Today they seem to have been largely forgotten.

Answer: She died.

Margaret Mitchell died in 1949 after being hit by a car as she was crossing the road. She and her husband were on their way to see a film. The driver, Hugh Gravitt, was drunk at the time and it was later revealed that he had 23 previous convictions for motoring offences. He served four months in jail for involuntary manslaughter.

Answer: Thornton Wilder

This tells the story of a group of people who are killed when an Inca rope bridge collapses. A monk who sees the accident decides to enquire into how the victims came to be there in an effort to make some sense of why each had to die. This was Thornton Wilder's second novel, and it gained him worldwide acclaim.

Answer: The Age of Innocence

Praised for its accurate portrayal of 19th century American east coast upper class lives and manners, "The Age of Innocence" has been adapted for film several times. The 1993 version starring Michelle Pfeiffer won an Oscar for costume design.

Answer: Booth Tarkington

"The Magnificent Ambersons" was the second in Booth Tarkington's "Growth" trilogy, the first being "The Turmoil" and the third "The Midlander". In 1942 it was adapted into a film by Orson Wells, which is widely regarded as one of the best American films ever made. Despite this it failed to win any Oscars, even though it had four nominations.