To mark World Book Day, Evening Press reviewers give their recommendations from the past year

Malcolm Baylis:

Samuel Pepys - The Unequalled Self by Claire Tomalin (Viking, £20): There have been a number of books written about Pepys, some excellent, some good, and some mediocre. Tomalin takes readers into the inner self of Pepys, using his own Diary as her guide, and provides a fascinating new look at an extraordinary ordinary man of his time.

The Dream Of Scipio by Iain Pears (Cape, £17.99): One of the many good reads to come from the Pears pen, this one explores the links between three men, a Roman artistocrat, a 14th century poet and a 1940s intellectual, all joined by politics, fear and a woman's love.

Simon Ritchie:

There have been many top notch thrillers but my favourite is the stunning Sleep No More (Hodder & Stoughton, £18.99) by Greg Iles. Family man John Waters sees his world turned upside down when he meets beautiful estate agent Eve Sumner and she whispers in his ear the word "soon", as used by his previous love, Mallory Candler. Later, at a party, Eve tells Waters: "You're not imagining anything, John. It's me. Call me". But it can't be. Mallory was raped and murdered ten years ago. Iles takes you on a nerve-jangling ride as Waters tries to fathom out whether Eve is really "possessed" by the soul of Mallory Candler. It's an extraordinary thriller.

Linda Clover:

The Shelters of Stone, Jean M Auel (Hodder & Stoughton) £18.99. This is the fifth book in the series Earth's Children, a magnificent pre-historic saga set in the Ice Age. The central character is Ayla, raised from childhood by the 'clan', a Neanderthal people from whom she is very different. In this book Ayla and her partner, Jondalar, reach his home - a stone age settlement in the region today known as south west France. What lifts these books is the wealth of information and research. They have been adopted for use in schools and colleges and the research, including learning how to make stone tools, has earned the respect of scientists, archaeologists and anthropologists. Enthralling, exciting and impossible to put down.

Also worth mentioning is Staying Alive - Real Poems for Unreal Times edited by Neil Astley (Bloodaxe Books, £10.95) A brilliant anthology of contemporary poetry, rich, varied and powerful, it is divided into sections such as body and soul, growing up and dead or alive.

Stephen Lewis:

A Thousand Pieces of Gold, Adeline Yen Mah, HarperCollins, £14.99. If you thought Machiavelli was the last word in political treachery, think again. Many of the proverbs which provide guidance for the Chinese to this day come from the works of the Chinese historian Sima Qian, who lived 2,000 years ago. He wrote about the unification of China by the First Emperor of Qin, a man so bloody and duplicitous he'd have had Ghengis Khan quaking in his boots. Sima Qian himself, after unwittingly insulting his own emperor, was offered the choice of being executed or castrated. He chose castration, and lived out his life in shame so he could complete his great book, Shiji. Today he's one of the true literary heroes of China. Adeline Yen Mah provides her own take on his work, bringing China's bloody past to vivid life.

Updated: 08:40 Wednesday, March 05, 2003