Mariella Frostrup’s New Year books

2011's essential reading list

As the presenter of The Book Show (every Thursday, 9pm Sky Arts 1 HD), Mariella Frostrup has the insider knowledge on the books set to be bestsellers in the upcoming year. From favourite writers to former Booker Prize winners, here she shares with Stylist the top tomes to add to your bookshelf in 2011...

1. The Strangest Child – Alan Hollinghurst (Picador – July)

I’m particularly looking forward to The Strangest Child, the first new novel from Alan Hollinghurst in seven years, and the word on the street is that it’s every bit as compelling as The Line of Beauty.

2. Wish You Were Here – Graham Swift (Picador – June)

A new novel from Booker Prize winner Graham Swift is guaranteed to enthral; Wish You Were Here will pull at our emotions with a very contemporary story surrounding the return of a dead soldier from Iraq.

3. The Cat’s Table – Michael Ondaatje (Cape – September)

Author of The English Patient, Michael Oondatje never fails to move and his latest novel, The Cat’s Table, promises to be full of his usual breathtaking imagery and vivid characterisation.

4. The Girl in the Polka Dot Dress – Beryl Bainbridge (Littlebrown – June)

Sadly the wonderful Beryl Bainbridge passed away last year, but not without leaving us one final novel to savour – The Girl in the Polka Dot Dress, which comes out in June.

5. There But For The – Ali Smith (Hamish Hamilton– June)

June also sees the publication of a dazzling new novel by Ali Smith, There But For The, about finding time to hear ourselves think… never easy!

6. By Nightfall – Michael Cunningham (Fourth Estate – January)

The many of fans of The Hours will be thrilled to hear that Michael Cunningham’s latest, By Nightfall, is out in January.

7. At Last – Edward St Aubyn (Picador - May)

Edward St Aubyn’s At Last sees the conclusion of his acclaimed Patrick Melrose series that included Booker nominated Mother’s Milk - I'm a huge fan of his dark imagination and satirical humour.

8. We Had It So Good – Linda Grant (Littlebrown – February)

Orange prize winner Linda Grant never fails to touch a chord with her insights into contemporary family relationships – her latest We Had It So Good, out in February, is no exception.

9. Mister Fox - Helen Oyeyemi (Picador – June)

Nigerian novelist Helen Oyeyemi looks set to delight once again with Mr Fox, a witty, charming and unusual take on love and marriage.

10. Daughters-in-law – Joanna Trollope (Transworld – March)

Who can resist a further foray into the fraught world of modern relationships from mistress of the genre Joanna Trollope who turns her beady eye to Daughters-In-Law.

11. Bird Cloud – Annie Proulx (Fourth Estate – February)

The inimitable Annie Proulx returns with her first non-fiction in more than twenty years, Bird Cloud, a tantalising memoir that invites us to share the experience of building her new home on the wild, unspoilt Wyoming prairie.

12. The Troubled Man – Henning Mankell (Harvill Secker – March)

And last but by no means least, a Nordic highlight well worth investigating is The Troubled Man in which Henning Mankell provides Kurt Wallander with his final case.

Tags: books