Will You Read My Book? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Animal Farm

'Animal Farm' was written by George Orwell, and is a satire on revolution and the corruption of power. One of the best known lines from it is 'all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others'. The rejection notice implies that the publisher did not actually read the book or totally misunderstood it if he did. 'Watership Down' was written by Richard Adams and published in 1972. Anna Sewell wrote 'Black Beauty', which appeared in 1877 and Beatrix Potter was the author of 'The Tale of Peter Rabbit' from 1902.

Answer: Seagull

The book was 'Jonathan Livingston Seagull', which was eventually published by Avon Books and sold over seven million copies. It was made into a film in 1973, with well-known film critic Roger Ebert describing how he walked out after 45 minutes of viewing.

He went on to say that the book was 'banal' and that 'it made "The Little Engine That Could" look a work of depth and ambition'. It's just as well he wasn't a publisher.

Answer: Joseph Heller

The novel was eventually published in 1961, having been rejected numerous times. One editor stated 'I haven't really the foggiest idea about what the man is trying to say'. The first extract was published under the title 'Catch 18' but the novel was renamed to avoid confusion with 'Mila 18' by Leon Uris. 'Catch 22' has become integrated into the English language to describe any situation which is logically impossible, although it is also used to define any bureaucratic nightmare.

Answer: John le Carré

This was a rejection notice for 'The Spy Who Came in From the Cold', which found another publisher in 1963. Le Carré had worked for both MI5 and MI6, the British intelligence services, and left to become an author full time following the success of this novel. Among Len Deighton's novels are 'The Ipcress File' and Eric Ambler wrote 'The Mask of Dimitrios'. Fleming, of course, is the creator of probably the most famous spy of all in James Bond.

Answer: Dr. Seuss

The book was 'And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street', and Vanguard Press was the publisher to recognise its potential. Among the rejections was one saying the book was 'too different from other juveniles on the market to warrant its selling', which I would have thought would be a positive, not negative, point. All the other children's authors were British, which should have narrowed your options.

Answer: Pearl S Buck

One rejection notice read 'I regret that the American public is not interested in anything on China'. The novel was published in 1931 and won the Pulitzer Prize the following year. Pearl S Buck wrote numerous other novels, including 'East Wind, West Wind', short stories, biographies and non-fiction works and won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1938.

Answer: Vincent Van Gogh

The book was published in 1934 and was so successful that it was made into a film of the same name, starring Kirk Douglas, in 1956. Irving Stone also wrote about all the other names given as options. Michelangelo was the subject of 'The Agony and the Ecstasy', published in 1961 and also filmed, with Charlton Heston, in 1965. John Noble, an American artist, was the subject of 'The Passionate Journey' from 1949. Sigmund Freud, the psychoanalyst, was covered in 'The Passions of the Mind' in 1971.

Answer: John Grisham

A limited print of 5000 copies 'A Time to Kill' was eventually published by Wynwood Press. The book was made into a film in 1996. Grisham has gone on to great success with other books, including 'The Pelican Brief', 'The Firm' and 'The Client', all of which have been adapted into films.

Answer: Sylvia Plath

Sylvia Plath married British poet, Ted Hughes, in 1956 and they had two children together. By 1963, they had separated and Sylvia was suffering from severe depression. She committed suicide by gassing herself at the age of only thirty. Her first collection of poems, 'The Colossus and Other Poems', was published in 1960. An autobiographical novel, 'The Bell Jar', was published in 1963.

The other options are all American poets born in the 19th century, Cummings in 1894, Dickinson in 1830 and Frost in 1874.

Answer: Soul

Written and compiled by Mark Victor Hansen and Jack Canfield, the book contains uplifting and motivational stories. The title reflects the use of chicken soup to nourish the body, with the stories designed to nourish the soul. It has spawned a whole series of over 200 titles, with books designed for teenagers and grandparents, among other groups.