A former student who was told to read classic literature after being convicted of a terrorism offence has told the sentencing judge he “enjoyed Shakespeare more than Jane Austen”. Ben John, who downloaded almost 70,000 white supremacist documents and bomb-making instructions, was given a two-year suspended prison sentence at Leicester crown court in August last year. John was told to read famous works of literature including Pride and Prejudice, Twelfth Night and A Tale of Two Cities as part of a five-year serious crime prevention order. At a review hearing on Thursday, the judge Timothy Spencer QC asked for an update on which books John had read and what he thought of them. “I want you to write down now what literature you have read since we last met,” he said. John said: “I enjoyed Shakespeare more than I did Jane Austen but I still enjoyed Jane Austen by a degree.” “Well I find that encouraging,” the judge replied. Spencer told John he acknowledged “publicity of this case” had affected his rehabilitation. John, 21, from Lincoln was found guilty by a jury of possessing a record of information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism. The charge under section 58 of the Terrorism Act, which has a maximum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment, was brought after the discovery on a computer of a publication containing diagrams and instructions on how to construct explosive devices. Police said John had also amassed 67,788 documents in bulk downloads on to hard drives, containing a wealth of white supremacist and antisemitic material. They said he had become part of the extreme right wing (XRW) online, and was studying criminology with psychology in Leicester when he was arrested. During sentencing, the judge said John had avoided imprisonment by “the skin of his teeth”. The attorney general has asked the court of appeal to review the “unduly lenient” sentence handed to the defendant. The decision by Suella Braverman QC to refer the sentence to the court of appeal came after anti-fascist group Hope Not Hate sent an open letter asking for the it to be reconsidered. Hope Not Hate’s chief executive, Nick Lowles, said: “These sorts of lenient sentences risk encouraging other young people to access and share terrorist and extremist content because they will not fear the repercussions of their actions.” John was told to attend court again in six months’ time when the judge would check his progress. “It is clear that you have tried to sort your life out. I am encouraged about what you have written out for me and I am encouraged by your efforts to seek employment and I wish you well with that,” Spencer said.