The new Costa Book Awards survey has found children's author Enid Blyton to be top of the list in a poll of the nation's most cherished and best-loved writers.
The Famous Five, Secret Seven, Malory Towers, Noddy... many a childhood was brightened by the company of Enid Blyton's famous characters and fascinating story lines. And now it seems that those memories last well into adulthood...
Children's author Enid Blyton has been named the most best-loved writer in our poll carried out to mark the 2008 Costa Book Awards.
Blyton, who wrote more than 700 stories over a 40-year career, and has sold over 600 million books in total around the world, came out top and continues to be a phenomenally popular author. Despite her death in 1968, around eight million books are still sold worldwide every year, including more than a million Famous Five tales.
Fellow children's author Roald Dahl came second in the poll, thanks to his classic books including James and the Giant Peach, The Witches and Matilda. His books were so popular that many have gone on to become blockbuster films, including the most recent adaptation of Charlie and Chocolate Factory, starring Johnny Depp.
The poll proved that children's classics really are the best with Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling coming in at number 3. She is one of only two modern writers in the top ten.
The top 50 best-loved authors are:
1. Enid Blyton
2. Roald Dahl
3. J.K. Rowling
4. Jane Austen
5. William Shakespeare
6. Charles Dickens
7. J.R.R. Tolkien
8. Agatha Christie
9. Stephen King
10. Beatrix Potter
11. C.S. Lewis
12. Catherine Cookson
13. Martina Cole
14. Bill Bryson
15. Charlotte Bronte
16. Jacqueline Wilson
17. Oscar Wilde
18. Maeve Binchy
19. Dan Brown
20. Emily Bronte
21. Jackie Collins
22. Martin Amis
23. Isaac Asimov
24. Margaret Atwood
25. John Grisham
26. Marian Keyes
27. H.G.Wells
28. Alan Bennett
29. Arthur C. Clarke
30. George Orwell
31. Danielle Steel
32. Iain Banks
33. Judy Blume
34. Jodi Picoult
35. Arthur Conan Doyle
36. Peter Ackroyd
37. Kingsley Amis
38. P.G Wodehouse
39. Dr. Seuss
40. Mark Twain
41. J.G. Ballard
42. Thomas Hardy
43. James Patterson
44. Ian Rankin
45. Leo Tolstoy
46. Irvine Welsh
47. Jilly Cooper
48. Beryl Bainbridge
49. Ray Bradbury
50. Geoffrey Chaucer
*WIN WIN WIN*
Costa is giving away one book by each of the top 50 best-loved authors - that's *50* books in total - to one lucky winner!
For your chance to win, click here.