Bridget Jones's diary - Helen Fielding (Bridget Jones #1)

It struck me as pretty ridiculous to be called Mr Darcy and to stand on your own looking snooty at a party. It's like being called Heathcliff and insisting on spending the entire evening in the garden, shouting ‘Cathy’ and banging your head against a tree.

Bridget Jones's Diary documents Bridget's struggles through the social minefield of her thirties – the merits of being a singleton versus a smug married, the advantages of wearing a see-through top to work, and how to handle her crazed match-making mother. Through it all she is supported by four indispensable friends: Shazzer, Jude, Tom and a bottle of chardonnay. Is this a dazzling urban satire of modern relationships? An ironic, tragic insight into the demise of the nuclear family? Or the confused ramblings of a pissed thirty-something?

Bridget Jones's Diary was first published in 1996 and applauded by critics from Salman Rushdie to Jilly Cooper. A number-one bestseller, it has sold over fifteen million copies worldwide and has become an indisputable modern classic.