CATHERINE COOKSON is still a favourite among North readers.

Latest figures on library borrowing show that more readers borrowed the South Tyneside author's books than any other.

That is despite the fact that in the UK overall, Cookson came fifth, with JK Rowling's Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets being the most popular book.

The figures, released by the Stockton Public Lending Right (PLR) agency, show a marked difference in taste from northern library users compared to others in Britain.

Readers between the Humber and Scotland borrowed Catherine Cookson's The Silent Lady ahead of any other book. Second was Josephine Cox's Tomorrow the World, followed by three more Cookson titles. Remarkably, all of the top ten books were written by Cookson and Cox.

The overall UK figures showed Josephine Cox's Looking Back in second place, Maeve Binchy's Scarlet Feather in third, and JK Rowling's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban in fourth. Cookson then claims the next three places.

Dr James Parker is in charge of the PLR agency, which organises payments for authors for the loan of their work at libraries.

He said: "Our research shows that a majority of library-goers in the North are women aged between about 45 and 60, and it may be that these books, both of which depict life in the industrial centres in times past, reflect their taste."

A total of 4.5 million books were borrowed in 2001, although that figure is thought to be falling.