None! We shouldn’t shame people for not having read “the greats”. There are always new greats emerging that may feel more relevant to our life experience, particularly female writers.
Which book are you ashamed not to have read?
Question
What would you like to leave your children?
Death & what remains
Question
Which living person do you most admire, and why?
Values & belief
Question
Which trait do you most dislike in yourself?
Identity & self
Question
What most recently made you cry?
Identity & self
Question
What has been your biggest disappointment?
Failure & regret
Question
What is your greatest fear?
Identity & self
Originally asked
The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A
A fixed Guardian Q&A prompt asked directly across respondents and years.
You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.
I’m going to confess I haven’t finished The Climate Book by Greta Thunberg.
The Q&A, The Guardian, 6 December 2025 source ↗
Others on this question
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Margaret Atwood
Novelist, poet and critic
What is this guilt of which you prate, Earthling?
None. I’m not ashamed. I’m dyslexic so I don’t read a lot of books.
My own biography! Being serious, there’s an Australian novel by Gregory Roberts called Shantaram that I didn’t read through.
More from Zack Polanski
View profile →I’ve got no kids, but I’d like us to leave a planet for everyone’s children.
Chlöe Swarbrick who is co-leader of the New Zealand Greens. She’s demonstrating the bold leadership that I look to do every single day.
Doomscrolling on my phone.
Deputy leader Mothin Ali gave a speech at conference talking about growing up in poverty and the effect it had on his family. It was incredibly powerful and I had tears streaming from my eyes.
Forest Green Rovers, my football team, getting relegated.
A Reform government.
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Neil Gaiman, Indira Varma, Marcus Brigstocke, Kerry Godliman, Matthew Kelly, Jason Donovan
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