In the UK, The Hay Festival commences this week. This is a literary Woodstock (well not quite...) where authors and publishers trade words of wisdom, the occasional insult and clever hints about how to stop the pouring rain leaking into temporary marquees.

I have recently been reading some Transgender Fiction. There, I admit it. I am confident that this writing is not in the same league as that on offer at Hay and probably is best not to be read out load to a middle-class gathering in a Welsh Field. But neverthless it's got me thinking. Primarily, what a lot of tosh is it.

So, I'd welcome any recommendations of good (very broad definition I know) Transgender Fiction. But more importantly, I'd welcome even more, your recommendations of the best of women's writing. No Mills & Boon or Barbara Cartland romantic novels please, unless they are essential for your bookcase.

Rachel

Hi Rachel,

Never quite made it to Hay, but always wanted to!

I have a real love for the cheap 'n' easy thriller. A quick scan of my bookcase for women writers with good protaganists yields the following couple:

Running Scared by Ann Granger
The Shakespeare Secret by Jennifer Lee Carroll

Also some Val McDermid, depending on your taste - her Kate Brannigan novels are good for me. Also - not female, but a damned good author - anything by Jeffrey Deaver, his novels are always great and I've not found an author who can write short stories like he does. As he says himself, in a novel you have a sort of contract with the reader to supply certain things, with a short story all bets are off!

I enjoyed them but I do admit I view my reading as the literary version of daytime telly - I want to relax, switch off and get lost in the pages without necessarily engaging my brain too much...!

Much love

Rae xx

ps I was going to comment that I thought more people would have given their suggestions, that led me to think about a Bill Hicks commentary where he touches on books - well worth looking up on YouTube, I think under the heading 'waffle house' or very similar - and absolutely nothing to do with this thread, just a random thought connection! R x

Try any of Agatha Christie's books. They are all very good. Enjoy!