Selected literary authors in English-speaking countries

Hamlet by William Shakespeare

1613

In this year the Globe, the theatre were Shakespeare debuted most of his plays burned down

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

1813

The Napoleonic Wars took place during Jane Austen's lifetime and in her novel 'Pride and Prejudice' officers are a big part in the plot.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

1818

In this year Britain and the United States set the boundaries between American Missouri and British North America (Canada)

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

1861

In this year the United States was immersed in the Civil War and Britain decided to remain neutral.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

1865

Abraham Lincoln was assassinated this year.

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

1868

The novel is set during the American Civil War, which finished in 1865.

Dubliners by James Joyce

1914

In 1914 the First World War broke out.

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

1938

This novel was published a year before the start of the Second World War, and in 1938 the situation in Germany and Europe was already in crisis.

Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

1949

In this year Germany split into two different nations

Once We Were Warriors by Alan Duff

1980

The UK reaches an agreement with Spain to reopen its border with Gibraltar

The Buddha of Suburbia by Hanif Kureishi

1990

All of the former communist regimes of Eastern Europe were replaced by democratically elected governments. I