Authors share life-changing books to benefit Oxfam

Several big-name authors are posting about the books that changed their lives — and donating other books to Oxfam so that the charity can change others’ lives.

The #BooksChangeLives campaign was launched today at the Hay Festival by author Eric Ngalle Charles. 

You don’t have to be a bestselling writer to participate, though; everyone is encouraged to post the book that changed their lives, using the #BooksChangeLives hashtag.

Author submissions include:

• Mark Haddon (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime): The Selected Poems of R S Thomas 1946-68. 

• Paula Hawkins (The Girl on the Train): The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood.

• Nick Hornby (About A Boy): Dinner at The Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler. 

• Philippa Gregory (The Other Boleyn Girl): A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf.

(See who else has joined and how their selected books affect them on Oxfam’s website.)

Also donating books are many publishing companies, including Penguin Random House, Harper Collins, Hachette UK, Bloomsbury, Pan Macmillan, Faber & Faber, Pavilion, Profile Books, and Sort of Books.

Oxfam works to serve the world’s poorest people, by providing clean water, food, and shelter to refugees; sending girls to school; fighting for fair wages and working conditions; and empowering farmers to support themselves and work their way out of poverty.