Here’s another book that I bought numerous copies of to give to friends and family. The Glass Room was published in 2009 and shortlisted for the Man Booker prize (which is why I picked it up in the first place). It’s 1920s Czechoslovakia and a newly-married couple (he’s Jewish, she’s not) commission a German architect to build them a modern house, with a glass room at its heart. But then World war 2 breaks out and they have to flee the country. The book follows their struggles but also the house and its subsequent owners, who one by one fall under the spell of the glass room. It’s skilfully told and fascinating to read.