 | The Wonder Spot by Melissa Bank
Buy used from: £0.01 A very enjoyable coming-of-age novel. Banks may not be a prolific but her writing is engaging.
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 | The Awakening: And Other Stories (Oxford World's Classics) by Kate Chopin
Buy used from: £2.90 In my opinion, Kate Chopin's short novella marks the beginning of a new intimacy in writing. Her work made possible countless other writers.
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 | Collected Stories (Vintage classics) by John Cheever
Buy new: £9.99 / Used from: £9.83 Cheever's writing is a crisp and strong as the martinis that fuel his many characters. Great stuff.
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 | Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
Buy new: £5.99 / Used from: £1.50 An amazing writer. Read everything you can find of hers, starting with this.
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 | The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
Buy used from: £0.22 If you enjoyed Harper Lee's work, you may also like this novel. It's not as innocent but it is powerful.
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 | Will You Please be Quiet, Please? by Raymond Carver
Buy new: £5.99 / Used from: £3.39 There are many fine collections of Raymond Carver's short stories. This is my favourite. Sharp, spare prose and unforgettable lives.
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 | Lolita (Penguin Classics) by Vladimir Nabokov
Buy new: £6.24 / Used from: £3.45 A controversial choice perhaps, but it is really very well written. Even though it was written over 50 years ago, it still seems to capture the essence of white middle-class America.
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 | The Ice Storm by Rick Moody
Buy new: £5.99 / Used from: £0.01 A fascinating novel from a talented young writer.
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 | Cowboys Are My Weakness: Stories by P Houston
Buy used from: £6.58 Pam Houston is a talented writer whose short stories are full of wit and courage. Great fun to read and re-read.
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 | Birds of America by Lorrie Moore
Buy new: £6.99 / Used from: £0.26 Another strong selection of short stories from a talented writer. Moore is wildly funny and free.
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 | Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
Buy new: £5.99 / Used from: £1.22 Hilarious!
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 | Angle of Repose (Penguin Modern Classics) by Wallace Stegner
Buy new: £10.99 / Used from: £5.22 Stegner's novel can be challenging. Not only is it long but the narrator is frequently unsympathetic. That said it is a memorable and moving novel.
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 | The Invisible Man (Penguin Classics) by H.G. Wells
Buy new: £5.99 / Used from: £1.50 Really, really good. I read this years ago but it has stayed with me.
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 | Defiance by Carole Maso
Buy used from: £0.31 Not an easy read, but an interesting one nonetheless. Violent, edgy and intellectual.
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 | The Contortionist's Handbook by Craig Clevenger
Confusing but has moments of sheer brilliance.
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 | The Big Sleep and Other Novels (Penguin Modern Classics) by Raymond Chandler
Buy new: £8.44 / Used from: £3.97 Books like this make me wish I could travel back in time.
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 | H is for Homicide by Sue Grafton
Buy new: £6.99 / Used from: £0.01 Either you love Kinsey Millhone, or you don't. Grafton is a sharp writer and most of the series is outstanding. This one is an early favourite.
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 | The Body Farm by Patricia Cornwell
Buy new: £4.89 / Used from: £0.01 Easily one of her best books.
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 | Geek Love (Abacus Books) by Katherine Dunn
Buy new: £6.99 / Used from: £6.00 An unforgettable novel that will capture you from the first page.
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 | She's Come Undone (Oprah's Book Club) by Wally Lamb
Buy used from: £0.01 Deeply moving story from a talented writer.
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