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Reading lists

20 books everyone should read in their forties

Photograph of Louis de Berneries beside graphic of three book jackets: Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Light Over Liskeard, and The Dust that Falls from Dreams

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Where to start reading Louis de Bernières’ books

The Autumn of the Ace

Louis de Bernières is the master of historical fiction which makes you both laugh and cry. This book follows an unforgettable family after the Second World War.

De Bernieres is a singular, cherishable voice.

Louis de Bernieres is in the direct line that runs through Dickens and Evelyn Waugh... he has only to look into his world, one senses, for it to rush into reality, colours and touch and taste

[The Autumn of the Ace is] penned with de Bernières's quiet, deprecating humour and sharp observation

Both heart-warming and heart-wrenching, this novel will captivate the senses and make you laugh as well as cry. Brimming with incredible, quirky characters and beautiful, lyrical writing, The Autumn of the Ace is the ideal book for lovers of historical fiction

Louis de Bernières is the bestselling author of Captain Corelli's Mandolin, which won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize Best Book in 1995. His most recent books are So Much Life Left Over, The Dust That Falls From Dreams and The Autumn of the Ace, the short story collection Labels, the children's book Station Jim and the poetry collection The Cat in the Treble Clef.

'De Bernieres is a singular, cherishable voice' Mail on Sunday 
 
From the master of historical fiction, this book follows war hero Daniel Pitt and his unforgettable family after the Second World War. 
 
Some bonds are hard to break... 
 
Daniel Pitt was an RAF fighter in the First World War and an espionage agent for the SOE in the Second. Now the conflicts he faces are closer to home. 
 
Daniel's marriage has fractured beyond repair and Daniel's relationship with his son, Bertie, has been a failure since Bertie was a small boy. 
 
But after his brother Archie's death, Daniel is keen for new perspectives. He first travels to Peshawar to bury Archie in the place he loved best, and then finds himself in Canada, avoiding his family and friends back in England. Daniel and Bertie's different experiences of war, although devastating, also bring with them the opportunity for the two to reconnect. 
 
If only they can find a way to move on from the past... 
 
For more adventures with flying ace Daniel Pitt, see The Dust That Falls From Dreams and So Much Life Left Over.

The Dust that Falls from Dreams

A return to the epic romance, heroism, history and warm and eccentric cast of characters that made CAPTAIN CORELLI'S MANDOLIN such an extraordinary hit (2.5 million copies sold). 
 
The very first adventure with flying ace and war hero Daniel Pitt. 
 
In the brief golden years before the outbreak of World War I, Rosie McCosh and her three very different sisters are growing up in an eccentric household in Kent, with their neighbours the Pitt boys on one side and the Pendennis boys on the other. But their days of childhood adventure are shadowed by the approach of the conflict that will engulf them on the cusp of adulthood. 
 
When the boys end up scattered along the Western Front, Rosie is left confused by her love for two young men - one an infantry soldier and one the flying ace Daniel Pitt. Can she, and her sisters, build new lives out of the opportunities and devastations that follow the Great War? 
 
For more adventures with flying ace Daniel Pitt, see The Autumn of the Ace and So Much Life Left Over.

So Much Life Left Over

A wonderful… vividly peopled novel… De Bernières is a generous storyteller

This tragicomic romp has a winning glint in its eye, delivering oodles of 
Downton-esque entertainment as it portrays a changing Britain poised uneasily on the brink of modernity

Richly enjoyable…it is written with such vitality….I would guess that many readers, once they have launched themselves into it, will read it straight through

A heartbreaking story of love, loss and survival following the unforgettable Daniel Pitt. From the multi-million copy bestselling author of Captain Corelli's Mandolin. 
 
Returning from life as a fighter pilot in the First World War, Daniel Pitt is struggling to put the trauma of the Western Front behind him. 
 
As the 1920s dawn, he and his wife Rosie move to a tea plantation in Ceylon with their small daughter to make a fresh start. Yet navigating their new world could test their marriage to its limits. 
 
Back in England, Rosie's sisters are dealing with impossible challenges in their searches for family, purpose and happiness. These are precarious times, and taking unconventional means may be the only way to get what they want. Around them the world changes, and events in Germany take a dark and forbidding turn. And soon there is no going back... 
 
For more adventures with flying ace Daniel Pitt, see The Dust That Falls From Dreams and The Autumn of the Ace.

Labels and Other Stories

Louis de Bernieres is one of our most treasured writers and these stories show his imaginative range and unique storytelling power. The collection includes 'Gunter Weber's Confession' which revisits characters from Captain Corelli.

This entertaining collection of 14 short stories showcases all the familiar tropes, stylistic flourishes and trademark deadpan humour that make their author such a pleasure… A delight

These stories often read like fairy tales for adults, and seem intended, above all, to raise a smile… they do this very nicely… Labels is an amusing and clever story, its absurdist tone well fitted to its subject

Louis de Bernieres is a very genial observer of human folly. These stories are warm and witty, peopled with fallible characters at the mercy of their own prejudices and insecurities

De Bernieres is a singular, cherishable voice

Transporting us to all corners of the globe, the tales in Louis de Bernières’ worldly and entertaining collection Labels and Other Stories feature a cast of unlikely and unforgettable heroes who can be found collecting luxury tinned cat-food labels, posting fish to the President, falling in love with dolphin deities and dining with Brazilian street thieves. And in ‘Gunter Weber's Confession’, we return once more to the Greek island of Captain Corelli's Mandolin and its much-loved characters. 
 
Full of wit, charm and warmth, Labels and Other Stories shows the imaginative range and unique storytelling power of one of our msot treasured writers.

A perfect heartwarming Christmas gift for children and adults

Station Jim

A perfect heartwarming gift for children and adults

A heartwarming tale about a mischievous dog who works on the steam trains. Beautifully illustrated, it is the perfect gift.

A charming collection of stories with beautiful illustrations

A heartwarming tale about a very special dog. Beautifully illustrated, it is the perfect Christmas gift. 
 
One day, in the days when all the trains were driven by steam, a railway guard found something abandoned on a train... 
 
Mr Ginger Leghorn is used to collecting up umbrellas and other lost property but he's never found a puppy on his train before. He has no intention of keeping it but his five children - Alfie, Arthur, Beryl, Sissy and Albert - have other ideas and Jim is soon a much-loved, but often disruptive, member of the family. 
 
Whether it's his feud with the cat, getting stuck in rabbit-holes, accidentally going to sea, accompanying the children to school or carol singing at Christmas, Jim has a knack of making himself the centre of attention. This little black and tan puppy with his small bright eyes and very waggy rump becomes something of a hero in his town, and even catches the eye of the King himself. 
 
Station Jim is full of Christmas cheer for children and adults alike, and especially dog-lovers. It includes delightful pictures by celebrated illustrator Emma Chichester Clark, the creator of Plumdog.

AS SEEN ON BBC BETWEEN THE COVERS

Captain Corelli's Mandolin

25th anniversary edition of this cherished story of love, loss, war and heroism - from one of our bestselling authors

**AS SEEN ON BBC BETWEEN THE COVERS** 
 
25TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION - WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY THE AUTHOR 
 
'A true diamond of a novel, glinting with comedy and tragedy' Daily Mail 
 
It is 1941 and Captain Antonio Corelli, a young Italian officer, is posted to the Greek island of Cephallonia as part of the occupying forces. At first he is ostracised by the locals but over time he proves himself to be civilised, humorous &ndash; and a consummate musician. 
 
When Pelagia, the local doctor's daughter, finds her letters to her fiancé go unanswered, Antonio and Pelagia draw close and the working of the eternal triangle seems inevitable. But can this fragile love survive as a war of bestial savagery gets closer and the lines are drawn between invader and defender? 
 
'Louis de Bernières is in the direct line that runs through Dickens and Evelyn Waugh...he has only to look into his world, one senses, for it to rush into reality, colours and touch and taste' Evening Standard

A true diamond of a novel, glinting with comedy and tragedy

A tall tale and a serious work of literature…its reputation suggests that one “should” read it, and so far I would have to agree

Stunning... A high-spirited historical romance...remarkable.

An emotional, funny, stunning novel which swings with wide smoothnes s between joy and bleakness, personal lives and history...it's lyrical and angry, satirical and earnest

A wonderful epic novel...it has made him a name to conjure with. Both on the large and the small scale it is an absorbing and memorable book...the sweep, invention and warmth of the novel carries one effortlessly along

Hypnotic...a vast tapestry woven in tiny, colourful, intricate detail...a graphic and moving commentary on the futility of war. This magical book stayed in my head long after I had finished it

Captain Corelli's Mandolin achieves that rare feat of saying something new about war...fusing with remarkable felicity the cosmic and the tragic, the lyrical and the epic... And without offering easy answers, it poses difficult questions about love and suspicion, trust and betrayal, faith and despair, creativity and destruction

Louis de Bernières is in the direct line that runs through Dickens and Evelyn Waugh...he has only to look into his world, one senses, for it to rush into reality, colours and touch and taste

A master of haunted realism. His best novel yet. He deals with death and love and tragedy... This is a novel to be prized

Captain Corelli's Mandolin is a wonderful, hypnotic novel of fabulous scope and tremendous, iridescent charm - and you can quote me

An enthralling tale of endurance and passion, full of emotional intelligence

25TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION - WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY THE AUTHOR 
 
'A true diamond of a novel, glinting with comedy and tragedy' Daily Mail 
 
It is 1941 and Captain Antonio Corelli, a young Italian officer, is posted to the Greek island of Cephallonia as part of the occupying forces. At first he is ostracised by the locals but over time he proves himself to be civilised, humorous &ndash; and a consummate musician. 
 
When Pelagia, the local doctor's daughter, finds her letters to her fiancé go unanswered, Antonio and Pelagia draw close and the working of the eternal triangle seems inevitable. But can this fragile love survive as a war of bestial savagery gets closer and the lines are drawn between invader and defender? 
 
'Louis de Bernières is in the direct line that runs through Dickens and Evelyn Waugh...he has only to look into his world, one senses, for it to rush into reality, colours and touch and taste' Evening Standard

Louis de Bernières

Beguiling...Set in a jollier dystopia than the norm, it tells the tale of “Q”, a cryptographer who takes refuge from the madding crowd in Cornwall

Marked by de Bernieres’ customary light touch and wry humour...This quirky novel is timely... a feelgood story about friendship and love – vintage de Bernieres.

A knockabout satire with twists aplenty

A wonder worthy of Wyndham...wry, wise

The future might look bleak, but Bernière’s dystopia is replete with obscure charm, endearing personalities and flights of fantasy

de Bernières has an undeniable talent for creating an achingly romantic affair from what may appear to be a mundane midlife crisis

In a career that began with a magic realism-inspired Latin American trilogy, took off with the historical romance Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, and has gone down such byways as Red Dog, a rather heartwarming tale of an Australian sheepdog, and Notwithstanding, a collection of determinedly eccentric stories of English village life, De Bernières has shown himself to be full of surprises, conjuring narratives of considerable charm and impressive sweep.

Funny, clever, and optimistic, Light Over Liskeard asks us to consider what really matters in life

[A] heartwarming but also funny novel [that] makes us consider what we should hold precious in our short lives

Sometimes we must look to the past to survive the future. A novel about what really matters in life from the bestselling author of Captain Corelli's Mandolin 
 
Q wants a simpler and safer life. His work as a quantum cryptographer for the government has led him to believe a crisis is imminent for civilisation and he's looking for somewhere to ride out what's ahead. 
 
He buys a ruined farmhouse in Cornwall and begins to build his own self-sufficient haven. Over the course of this quest he meets the eccentric characters who already live on the moors nearby - including the park ranger in charge of the reintroduced lynxes and aurochs that roam the area; a holy man waiting for the second coming on top of a nearby hill; an Arthurian knight on horseback and the amorous ghost of an Edwardian woman who haunts the farmhouse. 
 
As life in the cities gets more complicated, and our systems of electronic control begin to fall apart, Q flourishes in the wild Cornish countryside. His new way of life brings him back in tune with his teenage children, his ex-wife, and his own sense of who he is. He also grows close to Eva, energetic and enchanting, who is committed to her own quest for love and meaning. 
 
In this entertaining and heart-warming novel Louis de Bernières pokes fun at modern mores, and makes us reconsider what is really precious in our short and precarious lives. 
 
*SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2024 WILBUR SMITH ADVENTURE WRITING PRIZE*

Louis de Bernières

Praise for Light Over Liskeard

Beguiling...Set in a jollier dystopia than the norm, it tells the tale of “Q”, a cryptographer who takes refuge from the madding crowd in Cornwall

Marked by de Bernieres’ customary light touch and wry humour...This quirky novel is timely... a feelgood story about friendship and love – vintage de Bernieres.

A knockabout satire with twists aplenty

Beguiling...Set in a jollier dystopia than the norm, it tells the tale of “Q”, a cryptographer who takes refuge from the madding crowd in Cornwall

Marked by de Bernieres’ customary light touch and wry humour...This quirky novel is timely... a feelgood story about friendship and love – vintage de Bernieres.

A knockabout satire with twists aplenty

Beguiling...Set in a jollier dystopia than the norm, it tells the tale of “Q”, a cryptographer who takes refuge from the madding crowd in Cornwall

Marked by de Bernieres’ customary light touch and wry humour...This quirky novel is timely... a feelgood story about friendship and love – vintage de Bernieres.

A knockabout satire with twists aplenty

Books by Louis de Bernières

Series by Louis de Bernières

Latin American Trilogy

Articles featuring Louis de Bernières

20 books everyone should read in their forties

Where to start reading Louis de Bernières’ books

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