Beyond the answers - interesting background to this quiz

A novel that defined the Jazz Age

F. Scott Fitzgerald published The Great Gatsby in 1925, and it is now the book most closely tied to his name. Set on Long Island during the 1920s, it follows the mysterious Jay Gatsby and his obsession with Daisy Buchanan. The novel sold modestly in Fitzgerald's lifetime but is now considered a landmark of American literature and a staple of school reading lists. The other two titles in the quiz belong to different authors entirely - Theodore Dreiser wrote An American Tragedy.

The letters on European plates

The 'CH' on a Swiss number plate stands for Confoederatio Helvetica, the Latin name of the Swiss Confederation. Switzerland has four official languages - German, French, Italian and Romansh - so Latin was chosen to avoid favouring any one of them. The same abbreviation appears on Swiss coins, stamps and internet domains, making it one of the more recognisable national codes in Europe.

One river, ten countries

The Danube flows through more countries than any other river in the world, passing through Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova and Ukraine before emptying into the Black Sea. It has served as a trade route, a border and a source of inspiration for composers - most famously Johann Strauss II, whose waltz The Blue Danube remains one of the best-known pieces of classical music.

Caledonia and the edge of the empire

The Romans called the land north of their British frontier Caledonia, a name still used poetically for Scotland today. They never fully conquered it, and the emperor Hadrian built his famous wall to mark the northern limit of Roman Britain. The wild geography of the region, plus persistent resistance from local tribes, kept the empire from pushing further north.

Baku and a city below sea level

Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, sits on the western shore of the Caspian Sea and is the lowest-lying capital city in the world, roughly 28 metres below sea level. It grew wealthy on oil from the surrounding Absheron Peninsula, which was already being extracted in the nineteenth century. Today the city is known for its walled old town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and for the striking modern architecture of the Flame Towers.