It's a hundred years since the birth of William Golding (19 September 1911 - 19 June 1993). Golding, probably best known for his novel Lord of the Flies, was also a poet, playwright and Nobel Prize for Literature laureate. He was also awarded the Booker Prize for literature in 1980 for his novel Rites of Passage and knighted in 1988.
Sir William Golding's titles available from the National Library Service:
Rites of passage (braille 5v; TB 4022 )
In the cabin of an ancient, stinking warship bound for Australia, Edmund Talbot writes a journal to entertain his godfather back in England. With wit and disdain he records mounting tensions on board, as an obsequious clergyman attracts the animosity of the tyrannical captain and surly crew. There is a strange assortment of people aboard the wooden ship making her way early in the last century from the South of England to Australia.
Close quarters (braille 3v; TB 7799)
In this second book of the trilogy, Edmund Talbot, continues his journal. He describes the eventful journey aboard an eighteenth century fighting ship, converted to carry passengers and cargo from England to Australia. The forced proximity of passengers and crew intensifies all emotions to breaking point and Edmund, himself, falls in love - a totally new and wholly disorienting experience.
Fire down below (braille 5v; TB 7941 )
In this final part of the Edward Talbot trilogy, the old warship lumbers and lurches on towards Sydney Cove. Narrator, Edmund Talbot, completes his own inner journey to maturity
Darkness visible (braile 4v)
Hideously scarred and orphaned during the bombing of London, Matty sees himself as set apart from others, and his wanderings bring him into contact with Mr. Pedigree, a respected teacher and obsessed pederast, and Sophy and Toni, angelic-looking terrorist twins.
The double tongue (braille 3v; TB 10761)
An aged prophetess at Delphi in ancient Greece looks back over her life as the voice of the god Apollo. She has spent sixty years at the mercy of god and priest, and has watched the decay of Delphi's fortunes. Her reflections on the mysteries of the oracle are matched by her feminine insight into the human frailties of the High Priest himself, whose intriguing against the Romans brings about humiliation and disaster.
An Egyptian journal (braille 4v)
This account covers his journey down the Nile. He recalls his trip honestly and humorously, and shares his feelings about Egypt past and present.
Lord of the flies (braille 4v; giant print 2v; TB 4721)
A plane crashes on a desert island and the only survivors, a group of schoolboys, assemble on the beach and wait to be rescued. By day they inhabit a land of bright fantastic birds and dark blue seas, but at night their dreams are haunted by the image of a terrifying beast. As the boys' delicate sense of order fades, so their childish fears are transformed into something more primitive, and their behaviour starts to take on a murderous, savage significance.
The paper men (TB 5150)
Novelist Wilfred Barclay has all the symptoms of a middle- class crisis, including a dead marriage and a drink problem which is slipping into acoholism. The final irritation is Professor Rick L. Tucker. Locked in a lethal relationship, the two men stumble across Europe, shedding illusions and self-respect, confronting both physical and spiritual abysses.
Pincher Martin (braille 2v; TB 7838 )
The author tells the story of a naval lieutenant who comes to face the truth when cast away on a rock in the North Atlantic Ocean.
The pyramid (braille 4v; TB 241 )
Oliver is 18 and wants to enjoy himself before going up to university. This novel probes the painful awkwardness of the late teens, and the tragedy and farce of life in a small community.
The Spire (braille 3v )
Dean Jocelin has a vision that God has chosen him to erect a great spire on his cathedral. The masons advise against it, and things have happened around the cathedral which it is better not to question men too closely about.