h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Without a doubt the book I have re-read most, and coincedentally the quintessential novel...

MacInnes brilliantly captures the atmosphere of the late 50s coffee bar jazz scene in London, and the flowering of the first British 'teenagers' discovering their economic and cultural power. It's about style and music, growing up without selling out, staying true to your roots while embracing multiculturalism and rejecting the blinkered outlook of the Little Englanders.

Oh, and the Absolute Beginner gets the girl in the end. What more could you ask for?

(By the way, ignore the atrocious film adaptation made in 1985 - it's not worth the celluloid it was printed on... although the song by David Bowie's worth a listen)