50 English Literature Quiz Questions and Answers

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Do you want to test your literary knowledge? Then this ultimate English literature quiz is for you!

English is one of the most spoken languages in the world and books written by English authors (or other native English speakers) are amongst the most famous in the world.

As an avid reader myself, I wanted to put together a trivia game with the best English literature questions and answers and here it is!

You will find below 5 rounds of English literature questions including trivia, multiple choice and true or false.

This will be ideal to test your knowledge of English literature but you will also find other questions about famous books in the English speaking world.

So, are you ready to get started? Let’s go!

Round 1: Easy English Literature Trivia Questions

1. What is the name of Beatrix Potter’s famous rabbit?
2. Colleen McCullough’s novel ‘The Thorn Birds’ is set in which country?
3. Which Barbara was famous for her contemporary and historical romance novels? 
4. What is the name of Huckleberry Finn’s best friend in the Mark Twain novel?
5. Which of David Walliams’ famous fictitious characters is a Gangsta? 
6. Name the American-British author whose works include ‘Notes From a Small Island’ and ‘A Short History of Nearly Everything’. 
7. DH Lawrence wrote the controversial 1928 novel about whose lover?
8. Which flowers does William Wordsworth describe in his poem ‘I Wandered Lonely As a Cloud’? 
9. Which British author was nicknamed “The Queen Of Crime”?
10. What is the name of the book of the writings of a Dutch girl and how she and her family hid from the Nazis for two years before being caught by the Gestapo? 

Round 1: Easy English Literature Trivia Questions and Answers

1. What is the name of Beatrix Potter’s famous rabbit? Peter
2. Colleen McCullough’s novel ‘The Thorn Birds’ is set in which country? Australia
3. Which Barbara was famous for her contemporary and historical romance novels?  Cartland
4. What is the name of Huckleberry Finn’s best friend in the Mark Twain novel?  Tom Sawyer
5. Which of David Walliams’ famous fictitious characters is a Gangsta?  Granny
6. Name the American-British author whose works include ‘Notes From a Small Island’ and ‘A Short History of Nearly Everything’.  Bill Bryson
7. DH Lawrence wrote the controversial 1928 novel about whose lover?  Lady Chatterley
8. Which flowers does William Wordsworth describe in his poem ‘I Wandered Lonely As a Cloud’?  Daffodils  
9. Which British author was nicknamed “The Queen Of Crime”? Agatha Christie
10. What is the name of the book of the writings of a Dutch girl and how she and her family hid from the Nazis for two years before being caught by the Gestapo?  Ann Frank’s Diary

Round 2: English Literature Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Lewis Carroll’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’, which creature was used as the ball in the game of croquet? 

1. Frog
2. Mouse
3. Tortoise
4. Hedgehog

2. In George Orwell`s Animal Farm, what type of animals were Clover, Mollie and Boxer?

1. Dogs
2. Sheep
3. Horses
4. Pigs

3. Which former US President wrote the memoir ‘Dreams From My Father’?     

1. Jimmy Carter
2. Bill Clinton
3. George W Bush
4. Barack Obama

4. Which of the following is the second book in the Twilight Saga?      

1. Breaking Dawn
2. Midnight Sun
3. New Moon
4. Eclipse

5. In ‘Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason’ Bridget is falsely imprisoned for what?

1. Robbery
2. Possessing a dangerous weapon
3. GBH
4. Drug Smuggling

6. Offred is the main protagonist in which 1985 novel that was made into a TV series in 2017?

1. Normal People
2. The Handmaid’s Tale
3. Big Little Lies
4. The Outside

7. Where is the bookseller from in the international bestseller non-fiction book written by Norwegian journalist Åsne Seierstad?

1. Kabul
2. Beijing
3. Jerusalem
4. Tripoli

8. “Without Richard Parker I wouldn’t be alive to tell you my story” is a quote from which novel? 

1. The Stranger
2. My Sister’s Keeper
3. The Lovely Bones
4. Life of Pi

9. Which Jo is known primarily for his crime novels featuring Inspector Harry Hole?

1. Jo Nesbo
2. Jo Simmons
3. Jo Walton
4. Jo George

10. ‘Fever Pitch: A Fan’s Life’ is a best-selling autobiographical essay by which British author?

1. Ian McEwan
2. Nick Hornby
3. Tony Parsons
4. David Nicholls

Round 2: English Literature Multiple Choice Questions and Answers

1. In Lewis Carroll’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’, which creature was used as the ball in the game of croquet?  Hedgehog

2. In George Orwell`s Animal Farm, what type of animals were Clover, Mollie and Boxer?  Horses

3. Which former US President wrote the memoir ‘Dreams From My Father’?  Barack Obama     

4. Which of the following is the second book in the Twilight Saga?  New Moon     

5. In ‘Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason’ Bridget is falsely imprisoned for what?  Drug Smuggling

6. Offred is the main protagonist in which 1985 novel that was made into a TV series in 2017?  The Handmaid’s Tale

7. Where is the bookseller from in the international bestseller non-fiction book written by Norwegian journalist Åsne Seierstad?   Kabul

8. “Without Richard Parker I wouldn’t be alive to tell you my story” is a quote from which novel?  Life of Pi 

9. Which Jo is known primarily for his crime novels featuring Inspector Harry Hole?  Jo Nesbo

10. ‘Fever Pitch: A Fan’s Life’ is a best-selling autobiographical essay by which British author?  Nick Hornby

Round 3: English Literature Quiz – True or False

1. The author J.K Rowling does not really have a middle name. 
2. ‘The Great Gatsby’ is set in San Francisco. 
3. ‘Jane Eyre’ was written by Anne Bronte.
4. ‘The Pickwick Papers’ was Charles Dickens’ first novel.
5. Tom Oakley is the real name of Mr Tom in the Michelle Magorian novel.
6. Ben Elton is the author of ‘The Hippopotamus’ and ‘Moab is My Washpot’.
7. Ulrich Tolle is the real name of children’s author Dr Seuss.  
8. ‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’ is the second book in the Harry Potter series.
9. Vergil is the composer of the poems ‘The Iliad’ and ‘Odyssey’.
10. The poem ‘Macavity : The Mystery Cat’ was written in 1939 by TS Eliot.

Round 3: English Literature Quiz Answers – True or False

1. The author J.K Rowling does not really have a middle name.  True
2. ‘The Great Gatsby’ is set in San Francisco.  False, it’s set in Long Island, near New York
3. ‘Jane Eyre’ was written by Anne Bronte. False’ it’s Charlotte Bronte
4. ‘The Pickwick Papers’ was Charles Dickens’ first novel. True
5. Tom Oakley is the real name of Mr Tom in the Michelle Magorian novel. True
6. Ben Elton is the author of ‘The Hippopotamus’ and ‘Moab is My Washpot’. False, it’s Stephen Fry
7. Ulrich Tolle is the real name of children’s author Dr Seuss. False, it’s Theodor Geisel  
8. ‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’ is the second book in the Harry Potter series. False, it’s Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
9. Vergil is the composer of the poems ‘The Iliad’ and ‘Odyssey’. False, it’s Homer
10. The poem ‘Macavity : The Mystery Cat’ was written in 1939 by TS Eliot. True

Round 4: Medium English Literature Trivia Questions

1. Which writer created the characters Charlie Bucket and Miss Trunchbull? 
2. Which character has a pet cat named Crookshanks in the Harry Potter books?
3. Which novel starts with the line “Robert Langdon awoke slowly”?  
4. Stieg Larsson penned which crime novel trilogy?
5. Which author introduced us to the exploits of female detective Precious Ramotswe?
6. How many lines make up a limerick?
7. What is the surname of the sisters in ‘Little Women’? 
8. Which novel is split into two parts: ‘Book one: The Coming of the Martians’ and ‘Book  
   two: The Earth Under the Martians’?
9. What is the name of the ‘Wimpy Kid’ in the diaries penned by Jeff Kinney? 
10. Which book is the third in the original ‘Hunger Games’ series? 

Round 4: Medium English Literature Trivia Questions and Answers

1. Which writer created the characters Charlie Bucket and Miss Trunchbull?  Roald Dahl 
2. Which character has a pet cat named Crookshanks in the Harry Potter books?  Hermione Granger
3. Which novel starts with the line “Robert Langdon awoke slowly”?  The Da Vinci Code  
4. Stieg Larsson penned which crime novel trilogy?   Millennium
5. Which author introduced us to the exploits of female detective Precious Ramotswe? Alexander McCall Smith
6. How many lines make up a limerick?  Five
7. What is the surname of the sisters in ‘Little Women’?  March
8. Which novel is split into two parts: ‘Book one: The Coming of the Martians’ and ‘Book  
   two: The Earth Under the Martians’? War of the Worlds
9. What is the name of the ‘Wimpy Kid’ in the diaries penned by Jeff Kinney?  Greg Heffley
10. Which book is the third in the original ‘Hunger Games’ series?  Mockingjay

Round 5: Hard English Literature Trivia Questions

1. Which former British PM wrote ‘A History of English-Speaking Peoples’?
2. ‘The Kite Runner’ is set in which central Asian country?
3. Who wrote the poem ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas’?
4. Petruchio the fortune seeker is the male protagonist in which Shakespeare play?
5. In Paula Hawkins’ novel ‘The Girl on the Train’ the three leading women are Rachel, Anna and whom? 
6. What is the name of Richard Osman’s sequel to ‘The Thursday Murder Club’? 
7. ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ is the longest poem written by whom?   
8. What is the surname of the children who feature in ‘The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe’? 
9. Which Elizabeth wrote the poem ‘How Do I Love Thee?’?   
10. In the Stephen King novel ‘Christine’ who or what is Christine? 
11. Which library located in Manchester (UK) is the oldest free public library in the English-speaking world?

Round 5: Hard English Literature Trivia Questions and Answers

1. Which former British PM wrote ‘A History of English-Speaking Peoples’? Winston Churchill
2. ‘The Kite Runner’ is set in which central Asian country? Afghanistan  
3. Who wrote the poem ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas’? Clement Moore
4. Petruchio the fortune seeker is the male protagonist in which Shakespeare play?   The Taming Of The Shrew
5. In Paula Hawkins’ novel ‘The Girl on the Train’ the three leading women are Rachel, Anna and whom?  Megan
6. What is the name of Richard Osman’s sequel to ‘The Thursday Murder Club’?  The Man Who Died Twice    
7. ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ is the longest poem written by whom?  Samuel Coleridge  
8. What is the surname of the children who feature in ‘The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe’?  Pevensie
9. Which Elizabeth wrote the poem ‘How Do I Love Thee?’?   Barrett Browning  
10. In the Stephen King novel ‘Christine’ who or what is Christine?  A Car
11. Which library located in Manchester (UK) is the oldest free public library in the English-speaking world? Cheetham’s Library

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