Libraries Of Leaders: The Books That Influential Film Personalities Read

Actors and filmmakers have the power to entertain and inspire their audiences. So what do they turn to for inspiration? On this week’s edition of Libraries of Leaders, we bring you the books that three iconic film personalities – Morgan Freeman, Dame Judi Dench and Woody Allen – treasure and recommend.

1. Morgan Freeman

Morgan Freeman, who turns 80 next June, is one of Hollywood’s most respected actors. He won an academy award for his role in Million Dollar Baby directed by Clint Eastwood in 2005. Freeman told the New York Post in an interview that “some of the best writers are women writers”, and that they just don’t get their due. Barbara Kingsolver, Joyce Carol Oates and Anna Sewell are some of the actor’s favourites.

Here are a few picks, from a list of favourite reads he shared with New York Post.

1. Black Beauty By Anna Sewell

A touching tale epitomising the virtue of kindness, Black Beauty is a biographical account of a horse, her relationships with several masters and other animals, narrated in simple yet hard-hitting prose. This was the first real book that he ever read, Freeman said.

2) At Play In The Fields Of The Lord By Peter Matthiessen

Set in a remote South American outpost, the book details the lives of two Americans, one of whom is a missionary looking to convert locals to Christianity, and the other a mercenary out to eliminate them.

3) The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

This book chronicles the life of an evangelist and his family over three decades in the Belgian Congo, through the voices of his wife and daughters. Kingsolver is one of his favourite authors, Freeman said.

Judi Dench

The widely respect British actor is probably most recognised for her role as M in the popular James Bond film franchise. She was awarded Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1988. She won her only Oscar, for best supporting actress, for an eight-minute cameo in Shakespeare in Love in 1998.

Her favourite author, according to an interview she did with the Express, is John Fowles.

Not surprisingly, Dench listed two of Fowles’ books as her favourites.

1) The Magus By John Fowles

This is the story of the travails of a young Englishman who leaves home to take up a teaching position on a remote Greek island. The interplay between what is real and what is a mirage is the defining feature of this book.

2) Daniel Martin By John Fowles

This is the story of a dissatisfied Hollywood screenwriter who travels home to England to reconcile with a dying friend and connect to his roots.

Heywood “Woody” Allen

Heywood Allen, popularly known as Woody Allen, is an author, filmmaker, musician, and actor. He has won three academy awards for best original screenplay and one for best director. His screenplay for Annie Hall, for which he also won an Oscar in the best director category, has been rated the funniest screenplay by the Writers Guild of America.

Allen listed out five books that have had the greatest impact on him in The Guardian.

1) The Catcher In The Rye By JD Salinger

This cult classic, published in 1951, tells the story of angst and alienation of a teenage boy, through a tragic-comic narrative. The book resonated with his “fantasies about Manhattan, the Upper East Side, and New York City in general,” Allen said.

2) Epitaph Of A Small Winner By Machado de Assis

Narrated as an autobiographical account from beyond the grave, the book details the life of a wealthy 19th century Brazilian. The book, which also offers a sharp criticism of Brazilian society, was written in Portuguese and first published in 1881.

Allen said he was surprised by how charming and modern the book was, and could not believe that it had been written so long ago.