FunTrivia Literature Mix: Vol 18 Quiz

Answer: Great Expectations

"Great Expectations" is by English author Charles Dickens. In China, every school child knows the Four Great Classics: "Water Margin", "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", "Dream of the Red Chamber" and "Journey to the West".

Question by player tomleetang

Answer: Howard Hughes

Howard Hughes (1905 - 1976) was an aerospace engineer, business magnate, film producer, and pilot who was one of the world's richest people in the mid 20th century. Once an affable, if somewhat difficult, persona, by the late 1950s Hughes had become an obsessive germaphobe and was almost totally reclusive, exclusively conducting his business from a succession of hotels around the world.

In 1970, journalist Clifford Irving met his friend Richard Suskind in Spain; the two concocted a plan whereby Irving would write a fake "autobiography" of Hughes, believing that Hughes' by now legendary reclusiveness would ensure that he wouldn't denounce their book or sue for libel. Using forged correspondence between himself and Hughes, Irving convinced his publisher, McGraw-Hill, that Hughes had authorised him to ghostwrite his autobiography, and McGraw-Hill paid over $750,000 to Irving for his efforts.

The proposed book quickly attracted the attention of representatives of Hughes' companies, who publicly denounced its veracity. On January 7, 1972, Howard Hughes himself arranged a telephone conference where he explicitly denied ever meeting or corresponding with Irving, or authorising him to write anything. With the jig up, Irving admitted to the hoax a few weeks later; Irving and his wife Edith, as well as Suskind, were indicted for the fraud. All three served prison sentences for their part in the fraud; however Irving did voluntarily return the money he had paid by McGraw-Hill.

Question by player matthewpokemon

Answer: Zombie

Written after "The Zombie Survival Guide", Max Brooks created the "Oral History of the Zombie War" in releasing "World War Z" in 2006, chronicling the rise of a zombie outbreak through its stages and following the international efforts to abate it as told through first-hand accounts.

The novel was a major success, becoming a bestseller and continuing a rising trend in zombie media at the time. The book was adapted into a Brad Pitt film in 2013 and a video game in 2019. Max Brooks, interestingly, is the son of famous comedic filmmaker Mel Brooks.

Question by player kyleisalive

Answer: George Orwell

George Orwell also wrote a dystopian novel named "1984", which was actually published in 1949.

Question by player SiegeTank55

Answer: The Lorax

It was the wonderful mustached Lorax, of course, who came out of a tree trunk to save the Truffula tree forest. A fantastic book to teach children about ecology!

Question by player StaysUpLate

Answer: Twilight

Stephenie Meyer wrote the book series "Twilight". The books in the series are "Twilight", "New Moon", "Eclipse" and "Breaking Dawn". The series is about a family of vampires. One of them falls in love with a human. The human is constantly in danger.

Question by player 123laura123

Answer: The Count of Monte Cristo

Edmond Dantes is the real name of the Count of Monte Cristo. Mercedes is his fiancée when he was a young man. Baron Danglars, Gerard de Villefort and Fernand Morcerf are his enemies, responsible for his imprisonment. Maximilian Morrel is his old employer's son and his friend.

Question by player Babilonia

Answer: Raymond Chandler

Many of Chandler's novels were made into movies. His hard-boiled detective Philip Marlowe was most notably played by actors Humphrey Bogart, Dick Powell, James Garner, Robert Mitchum, and Elliott Gould.

Raymond Chandler died in 1959.


Question by player Tigerlily2kx

Answer: The Great Gatsby

Initial reviews and sales of F. Scott Fitzgerald's self-described masterpiece were mediocre. He was frustrated by its poor reception for the rest of his life but what was an almost forgotten book with a scant cult following found new popularity among soldiers in the Second World War and grew to be considered a literary classic. If the line didn't sound familiar, hopefully the origin hint helped. Out of the other choices, only "The Scarlet Letter" is American.

Question by player namrewsna

Answer: David Gessner

His non-fiction books tend to blend a love of nature with environmentalism and humour. He is also a political cartoonist, writes essays for magazines and journals, edits the "Ecotone" journal, hosted the "Call of the Wild" show on the National Geographic Explorer channel as well as online work and blogging.

Question by player suomy