Another Birthday Article

I don't think I did one of these last year and well, I was kind of estranged from doing it this year until I had a really good idea. I'd like to see whether my requests for literature and film have changed from when I was younger (when I look back, they have not really changed all that much). I got out some notebooks from around a decade ago and saw what kind of notes I had made about my favourite books and movies and well, there's a worrying trend that means I may have remained more similar than I thought. Oh well, it's my birthday so lets carry on.

Another Birthday Article

My 10 Favourite Books of All Time

I think everyone and their pet dog knows what my favourite book is. If you know me in real life you will know I talk about my favourite book endlessly and re-read it every month or few months. It's one of those books I simply cannot pull myself away from; charming and brilliant, it is absolute gold.

10. Invitation to a Beheading by Vladimir Nabokov

9. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

8. Absalom, Absalom! by William Faulkner

7. Kafka was the Rage by Anatole Broyard

6. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell*

*I met the author at the Manchester Literature Festival held at the St Peter's Library and got my copy and a brand new anniversary copy of the book signed. I even got to talk to him and ask him questions. It was quite possibly one of the greatest moments of my life. And if you still aren't sure whether this is one of the greatest books of the 21st century then I wager you read it and find out for yourself.

5. The Romantic by William Boyd*

*This is a new one. I read this in 2024 and became absolutely obsessed with it. It's just sublime. I wish I could experience reading that for the first time again and again.

4. Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh

3. The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

2. Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice

1. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Well, I'm glad we still understand each other and if you're new here then please don't hate me for how much I will constantly try to push these books into absolutely anything I talk about. For those of you who are already in the know, you'll notice how Brideshead Revisited and The Brothers Karamazov have changed places and that's mainly because I recently found I'd read Karamazov more times and so, it's only fitting to say that I enjoy that book more.

On to the films... Again, if you've stuck around long enough I don't think there will be any surprises here.

My 10 Favourite Movies of All Time

10. The Third Man (1949)*

*I'm embarrassed to say how many times I've seen this film. No, seriously...

9. Gaslight (1944)*

*The speech that Ingrid Bergman does in this film whilst Charles Boyer is tied to the chair has got to be one of the greatest speech deliveries in film history. It literally gives you shivers.

8. There Will be Blood (2007)

7. Breakfast on Pluto (2005)

6. Cloud Atlas (2012)*

*Yes, the book is better but the film's score and atmosphere are mind-blowing. Also, I think Ben Whishaw was the perfect choice for the character of Robert Frobisher.

5. Capote (2005)*

*After much thinking, this is a new entry but it also comes to replace Synecdoche, New York. Both films I have seen many times across many years and I've come to the conclusion that this is, in fact, my favourite Philip Seymour Hoffman film.

4. Interview with the Vampire (1994)*

*Same rules apply. The book is almost always better than the film, but I do have to say that whoever made the decisions on how the script should be written and what to include - they are a genius. You're not going to get everything exactly how you want it, but this film is absolutely fantastic.

3. Amadeus (1984)

2. The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)

1. I'm Not There (2007)*

*And so, after another year, my favourite movie in fact, has stayed the same. I'm Not There is a movie I initially watched shortly after it came out and slowly but surely, by around 2012-2013, it had made its way to the status of 'greatest film' for me. I urge you to watch it.

Honourable Mentions - Those that just missed out

Some of the films that were considered for the position of number 11 when this was once a list of 20 films and not 10 were the following:

• Phantom Thread (2017)
• The Maltese Falcon (1942)
• No Direction Home (2005)
• The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920)
• Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)

BONUS!

Yes, we have a bonus section in which we will go through a list never before committed to paper: my ten favourite literary characters of all time.

My 10 Favourite Literary Characters of All Time

10. Arthur from Just Above My Head by James Baldwin

9. Levin from Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

8. John Unger from The Diamond as Big as the Ritz by F. Scott Fitzgerald

7. Alyosha from The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

6. Cashel Ross from The Romantic by William Boyd

5. Lord Sebastian Flyte from Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh

4. Lestat de Lioncourt from The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice

3. Robert Frobisher from Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

2. Marya from War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

1. Lord Henry from The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Thanks for celebrating my birthday with me.

- Annie