Recently @slobberchops did a challenge to write about the albums you would take to get you through a year on a desert island. It's just for fun and so is this one that is basically the same except it's books like time. I'll keep the rules simple:

• Write about 5 (or more or less) books that you would take if you were going to be stuck alone on a desert island for a year. They could be some you have been wanting to read or just some that justify re-reading.
• Use the #desertislandbooks tag.
• Nominate some others to do the same if you like.

There's no prizes, but I'll be looking out for posts and will vote on them.

Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson

This is one of several books listed here that I have already read more than once. I think this is my favourite of his books, but then the theme of cryptography was bound to appeal to me. It's set in the current day (of the 1990s) as well as in the second world war with links between the characters of those two periods. Some famous people such as Alan Turing crop up. There are some very geeky sections, but it's a pretty good story too. It's a hefty book. If cryptocurrency had come along when he wrote it I think he would have made that part of the story as he's interested in the concept of money.

The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks

This was his first published book and it's an odd one. It's about a teenager who lives on a Scottish island with his father and has created his own strange set of beliefs and rituals. He's also killed some young relatives in unusual ways. It's both disturbing and funny. The link above has spoilers. @katharsisdrill mentioned this book in a recent post and that's partly what prompted this one.

Small Gods by Terry Pratchett

I had to have some Pratchett in this list, but it can be hard to choose which one. This one is largely about religions and how they can lose track of what they were originally about as their high priests get to enjoy the power they wield. It centres around a monk called Brutha who may be the last real believer in the god Om who finds himself reincarnated as a humble tortoise.

Shikasta by Doris Lessing

This is a bit of an odd one. A friend was a little obsessed with it and so I decided to give it a go. It's a mix of science fiction and mysticism based on various religions. I think I found it a little confusing. I've only read it once, but maybe a couple more reads would make it clearer.

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams

This is what Adams came up with after Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. It's a very clever tale of a very unorthodox detective and some very strange events. Lots of apparently unconnected events gradually get tied together as the story progresses. He was writing the third in the series when he died. There have been a couple of TV shows based around the character, but they didn't quite capture him as I imagine him. The books have also been adapted for radio. I pick on various details when I re-read it.

Those are my selections. I'm interested to hear about yours. Books, like music, are a very personal thing. I have limited time for reading, so I have to be quite choosy. I have a big stack of books I want to work through. You can see what I'm currently reading on Goodreads.

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