The Good Books, Catherine Hokin: ‘I come from a working class background which prized education, our house was full of books’

Catherine Hokin on the books of her childhood, her best books of the year so far, and reading in rainy Glasgow.

The first book I remember reading:

I’ve loved stories since as long as I can remember – I come from a working class background which prized education and our house was full of books. I loved The Little House on the Prairie series, and classics like Five Children and It and The Secret Garden but the first book I can remember discovering for myself was The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. I loved that book with a passion: it woke my reading brain up to the possibilities of magic in ordinary things and the beauty of an imaginary world. I’m a fan of magic realism to this day and I think that’s where it started.

A book I recommend to everyone:

I read a lot and I’m constantly recommending books to people, especially my husband who basically views me as his personal library. I think the one I’ve recommended most over the years is probably Perfume by Patrick Süskind. It’s got everything: darkness, obsession, a great plot and the most incredible descriptions of scents and landscapes and people. It’s perfection in a book!

The best books I have read in this year:

The Colour Storm by Damian Dibben which is set in Renaissance Venice and is about the hunt for a mythical colour that all the great artists are desperate to find. It’s rich and multi-layered and wonderful.

Joan by Katherine J. Chen which tells the story of Joan of Arc and is a complete masterclass in how to write historical fiction.

Still Life by Sarah Winman: a huge sweep of a novel with a giant cast of characters which feels old-fashioned in the best possible way.

A book I didn’t finish/enjoy:

The book I’ve enjoyed least is, ironically, one that I have had to read more times than I want to count. I used to be an English teacher and one of the exam set texts every year was The Old Man and the Sea. I tried, I really did but I couldn’t bear it. Neither could the kids. Interestingly though it was the only book I ever taught where threatening to make a class watch the film instead of reading the novel really made them focus. The movie was awful too!

An author that has inspired me:

I would have to choose Susan Kay. Her novel Legacy about Elizabeth the First is an incredible psychological study and probably one of the first books I read where I thought, that’s it: that’s how to write historical characters so they feel real. And, if I can have a second pick, I’d also choose Margaret George for the same reason. Her fictional The Autobiography of Henry VIII brought such a freshness to the genre.

My favourite place to read:

I’d like to say in the garden but I live in rainy Glasgow so that’s often a wish waiting to be fulfilled! have a nook in our kitchen between the fireplace and the window: armchair, cushion, throw, pretty lamp and near the kettle. Works as well in June as it does in December.

Catherine Hokin is the author of several novels inspired by World War Two, including the Hanni Winter series. Her latest book The Secret Hotel in Berlin is out now and can be bought here.

Read more of The Good Books here.

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