Brit Lit Puzzler Trivia Quiz

Answer: Gulliver's Travels

The original title of the book is 'Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'. It is better known as 'Gulliver's Travels' and was written in 1726. It is both a satire and a parody of the travel genre and has endured for centuries. Swift was a cleric and latterly Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin.

The other books were written by Richard Bach ('Jonathan Livingston Seagull'), Daphne du Maurier ('The Birds') and Carl Safina ('Eye of the Albatross') respectively.

Answer: Robinson Crusoe

The original title of this book is also somewhat longer, namely: 'The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, Of York, Mariner: Who lived Eight and Twenty Years, all alone in an un-inhabited Island on the Coast of America, near the Mouth of the Great River of Oroonoque; Having been cast on Shore by Shipwreck, wherein all the Men perished but himself. With An Account how he was at last as strangely deliver'd by Pyrates.'

The original title does give away the plot a bit; nevertheless, it was wildly successful and spawned a host of sequels, translations and alternative versions. Swift's 'Gulliver's Travels', published seven years later, could be seen as a rebuttal of the optimistic portrayal of humankind in Defoe's 'Robinson Crusoe'.

Robert Louis Stevenson wrote 'Treasure Island', Norwegian writer Jo Nesbř wrote the crime novel 'Redbreast' and 'The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood' is Howard Pyle's version of the tale.

Answer: William Shakespeare

Shakespeare was active in the latter half of the Sixteenth century and into the early Seventeenth century. Born in Stratford-upon-Avon, he gained fame in London. "The Winter's Tale' is one of his later plays and has been classed a romance or tragicomedy.

Christopher Marlowe, Francis Bacon or Edward de Vere are sometimes put forward as the actual writers of some or all of the Shakespearean plays.

Answer: To the Lighthouse

Written in 1927, this could be considered partly autobiographical. It is classed as a book of high modernism, which might be summarised as a strong belief in the progress of man in mastering society and nature through science and technology. The book records visits to the island of Skye by the Ramsays, however it was to Cornwall that her own family went in her youth. The lighthouse of the title would be Godrevy Lighthouse at St Ives Bay in Cornwall, as shown in the photo.

'Just After Sunset' was by Stephen King, 'The 5th Wave' by Rick Yancey, and 'A Room With a View' was written by EM Forster.

Answer: Three Men in a Boat

Using a somewhat smaller boat, 'Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog)' was initially intended to be a serious travel guide to the River Thames between Kingston and Oxford. The humour however took over and it has never been out of print since publication in 1889. The dog was fictional but the three men in the book are based on the author and two friends.

Herman Melville wrote 'Moby-Dick'. 'The Death Ship' is the work of B Traven and often described as anarchistic. Captain John W. Trimmer's book 'How to Avoid Huge Ships' is perhaps best known for winning the 1992 Bookseller/Diagram Prize for Oddest Title of the Year.

Answer: Graham Greene

Graham Greene, one of the 20th century's greatest writers, wrote both thrillers and serious Catholic novels. Many of his books have since been turned into films. He also travelled widely and was recruited to work for MI6, the British foreign intelligence agency.

Written as preparation for the screenplay for the 1949 film of the same name, Graham Greene subsequently published 'The Third Man' as a novella. The film is considered a classic.

Answer: A Passage to India

The book, published in 1924, is based on the author's experiences of prejudice in India and ranks highly in the works of 20th century English literature. It was made into a film in 1984, winning two Oscars amongst other awards. The book takes its title from a poem in Walt Whitman's 'Leaves of Grass'.

The other books were authored as follows: 'Ticket of Leave' by Georges Simenon, 'The Ticket that Exploded' by William S Burroughs, and 'Paper Tiger' by Tom Coyne.

Answer: The Daughter of Time

Published in 1951 shortly before her death, it was voted the greatest mystery novel of all time in 1990 by the Crime Writers' Association. It explores whether King Richard III was likely to have murdered the young Princes in the Tower.

The other books were penned by Lyndsay Faye ('Dust and Shadow'), Joseph Hansen ('Fadeout'), and Stephen Hawking ('A Brief History of Time').

Answer: Anthony Burgess

All are authors whose books have caused controversy. It was Anthony Burgess who wrote the dystopian satire 'A Clockwork Orange', hinted at by the photo. An accomplished musician, he composed over 250 pieces as well as writing numerous books in a wide variety of areas.

However, as a result of Stanley Kubrick's film version of the book, Burgess is probably best remembered for 'A Clockwork Orange'. Kubrick's film is based on the original American version of the book (missing chapter 21), resulting in a darker ending to the book (and film) than Burgess intended.

Answer: George Orwell

George Orwell's 'Animal Farm' was published in 1945 and reflected Orwell's dislike of the Stalinist Soviet Union. Written during the Second World War, he initially had difficulty in finding a publisher as the Soviet Union was an ally. With the Cold War following quickly afterwards, however, the book soon became a success.

Dick King-Smith wrote 'The Sheep-Pig' (1983), which was turned into the 1995 film 'Babe'. Aldous Huxley's dystopian novel is 'Brave New World' (1932) and E B White wrote 'Charlotte's Web' (1952), featuring a pig named Wilbur. The pig called Napoleon was the allegory for Stalin in 'Animal Farm'.