Lemony Snicket
American novelist Daniel Handler reveals his current shadowy, noirish bedtime choice...
The hugely popular children’s author – otherwise known as American novelist Daniel Handler – shares the suitably espionage-themed stories that are currently joining him under the duvet...
Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
More than 30 years before it was made into a movie, Harriet the Spy was a groundbreaking book: its unflinchingly honest portrayal of childhood problems and emotions changed children's literature forever. Happily, neither Fitzhugh's style has dated nor her themes become obsolete, and it is still recognized as one of the finest children's novels around. The fascinating story centres around an intensely curious and intelligent girl, Harriet, who literally spies on people and writes about them in her secret notebook, trying to make sense of life's absurdities. When her classmates find her notebook and read her painfully blunt comments about them, Harriet finds herself a lonely outcast. Fitzhugh's writing is astonishingly vivid, real and engaging, and Harriet, by no means a typical, lovable heroine, is one of literature's most unforgettable characters.
The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler
Down-and-out drunk Terry Lennox has a problem: his millionaire wife is dead and he needs to get out of LA fast. So he turns to his only friend in the world: Philip Marlowe, Private Investigator. He's willing to help a man down on his luck, but later, Lennox commits suicide in Mexico and things start to turn nasty. Marlowe finds himself drawn into a sordid crowd of adulterers and alcoholics in LA's Idle Valley, where the rich are suffering one big suntanned hangover. Marlowe is sure Lennox didn't kill his wife, but how many more stiffs will turn up before he gets to the truth?
