LILY JAMES
The actress reveals the books that have shaped her life
MY FAVOURITE BOOK AS A CHILD WAS…
I had my mum’s old copies of The Twins At St Clare’s by Enid Blyton. They smelled old, the pages were browning and I tore through them imagining I lived my life at school with the characters. It made me feel close to my mum, too.
MY FAVOURITE LINE FROM A BOOK IS…
‘The god of loss. The god of small things. The god of goosebumps and sudden smiles,’ from Arundhati Roy’s The God Of Small Things. It just seems to capture the simple beauty in all things and how love and loss are so intrinsically linked. I wrote it down when I read it.
THE BOOK I MOST RELATE TO IS…
The Lesser Bohemians by Eimear Mcbride. I went to drama school and could relate to that world and falling in love for the first time in all its madness. It was like being punched in the gut, and I cried at the end. As I read it, I felt like I was experiencing it with her.
MY FAVOURITE LITERARY CHARACTER IS…
I played Natasha in War and Peace and she will always be my favourite character. I became obsessed and read every word about her. I was intoxicated by the extremes of passion and darkness within her.
She is so unapologetic, which I love. As a reader, you grow up with her and I felt she became someone I loved.
MY BEST-EVER BOOK IS…
The Old Man And The Sea by Ernest Hemingway. I could read it over and over again. It’s got such hope.
THE LAST BOOK THAT MADE ME CRY IS…
Birdsong. I was moved by the soldiers’ stories, their camaraderie, longing and hope. The waste of life was vivid and hard to read; I kept skipping pages to see if characters had survived.
THE BOOKS THAT GOT ME THROUGH A DIFFICULT TIME ARE…
Jean Rhys’ Good
Morning, Midnight and A
Voyage In The Dark. I find solace in her words.
THE ONE BOOK EVERYONE SHOULD READ IS…
East Of Eden by John Steinbeck. Every time I put it down I miss the characters. Especially Samuel Hamilton, possibly my second favourite character ever written. The humanity he captures is breathtaking and beautiful.