The Book Club Review

If you've been wondering whether or not to tackle the work of Nobel-prizewinner Annie Ernaux, and in partiular The Years, generally considered to be definitive, listen in and find out what Laura's book club thought (you might be surprised).

We're also generally delighted by how interesting the life of 17th-century poet John Donne is in the hands of Katherine Rundell, and her Baillie-Gifford prizewinner Super-Infinite. But were Kate's book club unanimous in their praise?

Discover more great reads as we delve into our recent reading piles. Find out the hits and misses, plus the books we've got on the go right now.

Booklist

The Years by Annie Ernaux

Super-Infinite by Katherine Rundell

The Banished Immortal by Ha Jin

Grey Bees by Andrei Kurkov

Avid Reader by Robert Gottlieb (and we also mentioned the film Turn Every Page)

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Watch us Dance by Leila Slimani (and we also mentioned her other books Lullaby or The Perfect Nanny, and The Country of Others)

Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton (and we also mentioned her previous book The Luminaries)

Monsters by Claire Dederer

The Great Reclamation by Rachel Heng

Drive Your Plow over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tocarczuk

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

The Late Americans by Brandon Taylor

Leave us a rating

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Notes 

Website: https://www.thebookclubreview.co.uk

Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast

Kate's Threads reading log: @[email protected]

Newsletter sign-up: https://substack.com/@thebookclubreview

Patreon and book club: We're cooking up a pod bookclub, launching September, as part of our Patreon account. You'll be supporting our show, and once a month on Sunday nights (UK time) you'll also be able to join Kate for an online book-club, to be held over zoom. We'll put all the details on our Patreon soon, and hope you'll sign up as we can't wait to talk books in person.

Join Kate in the historic market town of St. Albans, home to a cathedral, some impressive Roman ruins and one of Kate's favourite independent bookshops. Books on the Hill is owned and run by a mother and daughter duo who launched it just before the pandemic. Listen in and find out what makes it so special, their book club recommendations and discover Kate and Antonia's choices as they each pick three books from the shelves, from new releases to classic gems.

Books mentioned:

The Wild Places by Robert McFarlane

The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald

The Sentence by Louise Erdrich

Femina by Gina Ramirez

The Scent of Flowers at Night by Leila Slïmani

Ross Poldark by Winston Graham

Queen Victoria by Lytton Strachey

The Joy of Small Things by Hannah Jane Parkinson

Why Women Grow by Alice Vincent

Find Books on the Hill at https://www.books-on-the-hill.co.uk

Join us as professional book-recommender and Bibliotherapy queen Ella Berthoud helps us figure out how to overcome life’s essential problems (if you’re a reader, that is), namely how to cope with all the books there are in the world, what to do when you feel stuck in a reading rut, and the ultimate question, if you’ve started a book you’re not enjoying, should you finish it?

We’re also diving into Ella’s latest project, Fiction Prescriptions, a pack of cards with reading recommendations to soothe your soul and offer a cure for modern life, from Ageing through to Boredom via Hangovers and Procrastination. 

Booklist

Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne

The Last Passenger by Will Dean

Therese Raquin by Emile Zola

Miss Benson’s Beetle by Rachel Joyce

The Dream Job by Kiersten Modglin

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

The Overstory by Richard Powers

And if you want more from the source do seek out The Novel Cure, co-written with Susan Elderkin, and Ella’s own books The Art of Mindful Reading, and Fiction Prescriptions.

If you want to find out more about Ella’s bibliotherapy sessions or any other aspect of her work the link to her website, Ellaberthoud.com, is in the show notes.

About us

We hope you enjoyed this episode. For our full archive of nearly 150 shows, plus how to sign up to our bi-weekly-ish newsletter and how to support us on Patreon head over to our website, www.thebookclubreview.co.uk, where you'll also find full show notes for this episode and a transcript.

Leave us a rating

If you enjoy our shows and want to do a nice thing in return please do leave us a quick star rating and review. Wondering how to do that? From apple podcasts click the '...' next to the episode title (under the square graphic) and choose 'go to show'. From there scroll down past the episodes till you find 'Ratings & Reviews'. Tap the stars to add a star rating, tap 'write a review' slightly further down to add a comment. Thank you!

Connect with us 

Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast

Newsletter sign-up: https://substack.com/@thebookclubreview

Patreon: Details coming soon…

Six books, four readers and, as always, plenty of opinions. Join Kate, Laura and guests Sarah Oliver and Nina Davies as they dive into the 2023 Women's Prize shortlist. But will they be able to second-guess the judges? As ever, we talk about these books in some detail but we won't spoil the plots for you, so listen in if you want to hear more and find out all the reasons why these are six books you won't want to miss.

UPDATE: Keep listening at the end for our reaction after hearing the winner's announcement.

Booklist

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver (Faber & Faber)

Pod by Laline Paull (Corsair / Little Brown)

Trespasses by Louise Kennedy (Bloomsbury)

Black Butterflies by Priscilla Morris (Duckworth)

Fire Rush by Jacqueline Crooks (Jonathan Cape / Penguin)

The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell (Tinder Press / Hachette)

The Women's Prize website

The prize is announced on 14th June 2023

Leave us a rating

If you enjoy our shows and want to do a nice thing in return please do leave us a quick star rating and review. Wondering how to do that? From apple podcasts click the '...' next to the episode title (under the square graphic) and choose 'go to show'. From there scroll down past the episodes till you find 'Ratings & Reviews'. Tap the stars to add a star rating, tap 'write a review' slightly further down to add a comment. Thank you!

Notes 

Website: https://www.thebookclubreview.co.uk

Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast

Newsletter sign-up: https://substack.com/@thebookclubreview

Patreon: Details coming soon…

Our bookshelf shows are the ones where we get to cut loose and follow our own preferences, so listen in as Kate and Laura swap feel-good early summer reads. Much to their relief after Rodham, the sex in Curtis Sittenfeld's latest novel ROMANTIC COMEDY turns out to be as good as the rest of it. Meanwhile Kate is surprised and entertained by Monica Heisey's REALLY GOOD, ACTUALLY. Via the discerning edit of the books aisle in her upmarket grocery store, Laura discovers PINEAPPLE STREET, and enjoys it hugely. Kate is fascinated and entertained by British actress Miriam Margolyes and her autobiography THIS MUCH IS TRUE, enjoying the social commentary as much as if not more than the showbiz stories (though those are good, too). And finally in a preview of Laura's thoughts on Women's Prize shortlisted DEMON COPPERHEAD, she reports back on what she thought of it. And if you thought you were over re-tellings of Greek myths Kate urges you to think again with STONE BLIND by Natalie Haynes. 

Booklist

Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld

Really Good, Acutally by Monica Heisey

Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson

This Much is True by Miriam Margolyes

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes

and in our current reads section we talked about GREY BEES by Andrey Kurkov, and POD by Laline Paull.

https://www.faber.co.uk/journal/cover-design-demon-copperhead/If you were interested by our discussion of the cover design for Demon Copperhead and want to know more, there's a brilliant behind-the-scenes into the design process on Faber's website, here.

Get in touch with us and tell us what you’re reading or recommend us a book on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Find our full episode archive at thebookclubreview.co.uk and don't forget to like, subscribe, tell a friend, share on social media – it helps us reach new listeners and we really do appreciate it :)

So Many Damn Books is a show that aims to celebrate reading in all its forms, and to do so with a cocktail in hand. For over 200 episodes now Christoper Hermelin has been chatting to authors and crafting them bespoke drinks. From George Saunders and Ruth Ozeki to lesser-known but no less interesting authors, every episode in his archive is a delight. And it was no less of a delight to welcome him onto the Book Club Review podcast. So sit back and enjoy this very special episode, where you'll find out about a Stateside literary cult that's turns out to be an excellent resource should you need a new best friend, a book so good you'll end up dreaming about it, and how to cope when you've gone so deep into the reading world that you can no longer simply buy a book in a bookshop. Luckily, a problem shared is a problem halved, or at least a problem understood!

Booklist

Important Artifacts and Personal Property from the Collection of Lenore Doolan and Harold Morris by Leanne Shapton 

Skippy Dies by Paul Murray

The Boy Detective Fails by Joe Meno

Spangle by Gary Jennings

Hestia Strikes a Match by Christine Grillo

Notes

Enjoyed this episode? In the mood for more? Head over to SMDB and listen to Christopher's episode here. Amongst other things we discuss the amazing KICK THE LATCH by Kathryn Scanlan, and lesser-known gem PARNASSUS ON WHEELS by Christoper Morely.

Want to know more about the Tournament of Books? 2023 is here

Or browse the ToB archive

Keen to fall down a nostalgia rabbit hole? Try the Mac vs. PC commercials, but be aware it's half an hour of your life you won't get back.

Admin

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes do follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or get in touch direct at [email protected]. 

Website: https://www.thebookclubreview.co.uk

Instagram post: [link coming soon]

Newsletter sign-up: https://substack.com/@thebookclubreview

Patreon: Coming soon…

And if you enjoy our shows and want to do a nice thing in return please do leave us a quick star rating and review. Wondering how to do that? From apple podcasts click the '...' next to the episode title (under the square graphic) and choose 'go to show'. From there scroll down past the episodes till you find 'Ratings & Reviews'. Tap the stars to add a star rating, tap 'write a review' slightly further down to add a comment. Thank you!

Salman Rushdie's most recent novel Victory City was published in February 2023 to much critical acclaim but, as ever here at the Book Club Review, we’re interested in what Laura’s book club made of it. Our friend and pod regular, journalist Philip Chaffee is here to report back, along with first-time guest, avid reader and keen book clubber Charlie Chichester. Listen in for our full and frank discussion, plus our recommendations for follow on reads, and the books we've currently got on the go.

Book list

Baudolino by Umberto Eco

Gentlemen of the Road by Michael Chabon

The Princess Bride by William Goldman

How Westminster Works and Why it Doesn’t by Ian Dunt

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

Revolutionary Spring by Christopher Clark

Parnassus on Wheels by Christopher Morley

Enjoyed the show? Want to express your thanks? Here's how:

From apple podcasts click the '...' next to the episode title (under the square graphic) and choose 'go to show'. From there scroll down past the episodes till you find 'Ratings & Reviews'. Tap the stars to add a star rating, tap 'write a review' slightly further down to add a comment. Thank you!

Our Bookshelf episodes are the ones dedicated to the books we’re each reading outside of book club, the ones we tend to love because we chose them for ourselves.

Laura has been reading the latest from ANIMAL LIFE, the latest novel from podcast favourite, Icelandic author Audur Ava Olafsdottir. A short, quiet novel, but one that struck a chord. She's also been happily working through THE MIRROR VISITOR QUARTET by French author Christelle Dabos. What is it about this epic fantasy series that has her so happily hooked?

Kate has been catching up with LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY by Bonnie Garmus, the smash hit that tells of scientist turned tv-cooking show presenter Elizabeth Zott. Also on her stack is I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS FOR YOU, by Rebecca Makkai, the New York Times bestseller that has been described as ‘A twisty, immersive whodunit perfect for fans of Donna Tartt’s The Secret History.’ And for a non-fiction palette cleanser she's been reading Saving Time: Discovering Life Beyond the Clock, by artist and writer Jenny Odell. To read it, fellow time-philosopher Oliver Burkeman comments, ‘'is to experience how freedom might feel'.

Listen in for all this plus the current reads and books we can't wait to get to, including SUPER-INFINITE by Katherine Rundell, STONE BLIND by Natalie Haynes and MISS PETTIGREW LIVES FOR A DAY buy Winifred Watson. And just why are Laura's book club struggling with Salman Rushdie's latest, VICTORY CITY?

NOTES

Whenever you listen to this episode if you have thoughts on it we’d love to hear them. Comment anytime on the episode page on our website thebookclubreview.co.uk, where you’ll also find full shownotes, book recommendations and a transcript. Comments there go straight to our inboxes so drop us a line, we always love to hear from you. You can also sign up for our bi-weekly-ish newsletter for extra reviews and recommendations, and find out about our Patreon stream, and how you can support us there.

To see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or get in touch at [email protected]. And if you enjoy our shows one other way to support us, as ever, is to tell your bookish friends and help us find new listeners.

We're joined by friend and journalist Phil Chaffee to discuss FREE by Lea Ypi, a memoir of her Albanian childhood and of life amid the collapse of Communism. The book won the Royal Society of Literature’s Ondaatje prize and was shortlisted for the Baillie Gifford non-fiction prize and was on many a best-book of 2022 list. Both our book clubs read this one, but what did they make of it? We'll be reporting back.

We’re also discussing THE SNOW BALL by Brigid Brophy, a swirling, sensual feast that takes place over one night at a New Year’s Eve masquerade ball. The novel was published in 1964 and was something of a scandalous sensation at the time. It has recently been re-released to much acclaim, but what did Kate's book club think of it?

We’ll also have some trusty follow-on recommendations to help you find your next great read.

Booklist

BORDER by Kapka Kassabova

SECONDHAND TIME by Svetlana Alexievich

HOMELAND ELEGIES by Ayad Akhtar

MISS PETTIGREW LIVES FOR A DAY by Winifred Watson

50 GREAT WORKS OF ENGLISH LITERATURE WE COULD DO WITHOUT by Brigid Brophy, Michael Levey and Charles Osborne.

Let us know your thoughts, we love to hear from you. Find us on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email us at [email protected]. You can also check out the episode page on our website, thebookclubreview.co.uk, where you'll also find full shownotes and a transcript.

If you enjoy our shows please support us by telling your bookish friends – we love to reach new listeners.

When in Vancouver, run to the coolest bookstore you can find and interview the owner. Such is the busman's holiday I've recently been enjoying on a visit to Laura's hometown. It also fits nicely into a new series we've been cooking up where we get to indulge our love of independent bookshops. First up is The Paperhound, owned by Kim Koch and Rod Clarke, which offers a fine selection of used and rare, new and notable books. Join me as I chat to Kim and learn about the joys of book collecting and the time she found a signed first edition of Borges' Ficciones in a box of books left on the street. We'll be pulling out some treasures from her shelves and chatting about life in the strange and wonderful world of used-books.

Book list

A Little Book of Pussy Cats by Louis Wain

Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein

Aphrodisiacs in your Garden by Charles Connell

Minor Detail by Adania Shibli

Orwell’s Roses by Rebecca Solnit

The Juniper Tree by Barbara Comyns

Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins

The Paperhound

For full shownotes and episode transcript head to our website: The Book Club Review podcast

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or get in touch at [email protected]. And if you enjoy our shows one other way to support us, as ever, is to tell your bookish friends and help us find new listeners.

Our bookshelf episodes are the ones where we kick back and talk about the books we’ve been choosing for ourselves outside of our book club reading. And so join us as we get swept away by the French Revolution and Hilary Mantel’s spellbinding book A PLACE OF GREATER SAFETY, consider myth and storytelling with a surprisingly feminist slant thanks to Salman Rushdie’s latest novel, VICTORY CITY, see another side to New York with our guest Phil Chaffee and Chang Rae Lee’s book NATIVE SPEAKER, plan an architectural tour of Norwegian Stave churches thanks to THE BELL AND THE LAKE by Lars Mytting, which Laura reports is a tale of love and drama set among a remote community in 18th-century Norway. We also catch up with Barack Obama’s summer reading pick THE SCHOOL FOR GOOD MOTHERS by Jessamine Chan – with a brief aside to celebrate Kate’s new-found love for Richard and Judy's book club here in the UK. Phil reports back on the FT’s business book of the year, CHIP WAR by Chris Miller, which turns out to be a thumping page-turner, plus we quick fire through a stack of other books we couldn’t bear not to mention.

Book list

A PLACE OF GREATER SAFETY by Hilary Mantel (Fourth Estate)

VICTORY CITY by Salman Rushdie (Penguin)

NATIVE SPEAKER by Chang Rae Lee (Granta)

THE BELL AND THE LAKE by Lars Mytting (Hachette)

THE SCHOOL FOR GOOD MOTHERS by Jessamine Chan

CHIP WAR by Chris Miller (Simon & Schuster)

Plus

THE PEARL by John Steinbeck

SHADOW AND CLAW by Gene Wolff

CHARLOTTE by David Foenkinos

ROSES IN THE MOUTH OF A LION by Bushra Rehman (published in the UK in January 2023, from St. Martin’s Press)

Notes

Browse the newsletter archive of Three Lives & Company booksellers, New York. 

Our  Emily's Walking Book Club episode # 76

The article Phil mentioned is The 25 Most Significant New York City Novels from the Last 25 Years

It’s always good to have things to look forward to in life, and the books we can see coming up on the horizon are no exception. In this episode we’ll be finding out the books that Chrissy Ryan and her team at Bookbar are excited about. Whether it’s new books from authors we here at the Book Club Review have loved in the past or exciting new debuts from authors we’ve never heard of, we’re primed and ready to get reading as soon as they drop. Plus we have a nerdy dive into what it takes to run a small independent bookshop, and why it’s so important to be reading ahead of the pack. Listen in and be prepared to add to your TBR.

Book list

Chrissy recommended

Rosewater by Liv Little (Dialogue books / Hachette)

Small Worlds by Caleb Azumah Nelson (Penguin)

Wandering Souls by Cecile Pin (Harpercollins)

Nothing Special by Nicole Flattery (Bloomsbury)

The Happy Couple by Naoise Dolan (W&N)

Mrs S by K Patrick (Europa Editions)

Yellowface by R. F. Kuang (Harper Collins)

The Guest, Emma Cline (Penguin)

Fire Rush by Jacqueline Crooks (Penguin)

Lucy recommended

Death of a Bookseller by Alice Slater (Hachette)

In Memoriam by Alice Wynn (Penguin)

Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld

Chandler and Frankie recommended

One Small Voice by Santanu Bhattacharya (Penguin)

Penance by Eliza Clark (Faber)

Collected Works by Lydia Sandgren (Pushkin)

Tomás Nevinson, Javier Marías (Penguin)

The Late Americans by Brandon Taylor (Penguin)

And Frankie also mentioned Nothing Special by Nicole Flattery (Bloomsbury)

In addition to bookselling Frankie is also author Francesca Reece and so you might also be interested to try her book Voyeur: 'Devastatingly witty, compulsively readable . . . like Sally Rooney meeting Martin Amis in Paris' writes Francine Toon, author of Pine.

To sign up to read and review proofs head to Netgalley UK or Netgalley.com 

Notes

Check out the episode page on our website for full shownotes and a transcript, and do comment there anytime if you have thoughts on any of the books discussed in this show. You'll also find our archive of over one-hundred episodes to browse through, from our Booker Prize or Women’s Prize specials to regular book club chats and interviews with authors and other book industry folk. You can also sign up to our free newsletter for more book recommendations between shows, and find out the details for our Patreon account and how to support us there.

A quick free way to support us is to take a moment to rate and review the show wherever you get your podcasts, it really helps us reach new listeners. Tell your friends, share on social media, it means so much to us when you do.

You can also find us on Instagram @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected].

It’s Bookshelf time here at The Book Club Review podcast, when we talk about the books we’re reading outside of book club, the ones we get to pick and choose for ourselves. And so listen in to find out what Laura thought of The Ginger Tree by Oswald Wynd, a lesser-known backlist gem, A Place of Greater Safety, Booker-winner Hilary Mantel’s immersive doorstop about the French revolution, and The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison’s blend of court intrigue, goblins and steampunk. Meanwhile I’m reporting back on Babel by R.F. Kuang, the bestselling fantasy epic set in 19th-century England, Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield, part bruisingly tender love story, part nerve-clanging submarine thriller, and Either / Or by Elif Batuman, the follow-on from her first novel The Idiot. It’s the continuing adventures of her protagonist, Harvard student Selin, and has been described as ‘a second year of love, sex, and books’.

Whenever you listen to this episode if you have thoughts on it we’d love to hear them. Comment anytime on the episode page on our website thebookclubreview.co.uk, where you’ll also find full shownotes, book recommendations and a transcript. Comments there go straight to our inboxes so drop us a line, we’d love to hear from you. You can also sign up for our bi-weekly-ish newsletter for extra reviews and recommendations.

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or get in touch at [email protected]. And if you’re not already do subscribe to us and take a moment to rate and review the show in your podcatcher of choice – it helps other listeners to find us and is a great way to support us.

When a book sells upwards of five and a half million copies and film rights are snapped up by none other than Steven Spielberg it seems to us a special episode is in order. And so join us as we dive into, and attempt to make sense of, the publishing phenomenon that is The Thursday Murder Club, the cozy crime novel set in a retirement community by TV-producer and presenter-turned-author Richard Osman. 

Join us as Kate and two very special guests give The Thursday Murder Club the book club treatment. Our first guest is author and friend-of-the-pod Colleen Hubbard, whose debut novel Housebreaking was published by Hachette last year and is out in paperback April 2023. She joined Kate over Zoom and brought along her friend Sue, a pilates instructor and keen reader, to help give us more insight into how older readers are responding to this book.

Then it's back to Kate and Laura for a stack of our favourite follow-on crime reads, cozy or otherwise.

If you haven't yet read The Thursday Murder Club don’t worry, we will not spoil the plot for you. What we will do is take a friendly but critical overview to see if we can fathom the secrets behind the book’s appeal

Book recommendations

The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse

The Wych Elm by Tana French

Death in the Stocks by Georgette Heyer

The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne

Mouth to Mouth by Antoine Wilson

Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers

Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith

A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie

Leonard and Hungry Paul by Rónán Hession.

Notes

The Thursday Murder Club is published by Penguin.

Find out more about Colleen and her novel Housebreaking (Hachette) at Colleenhubbard.com

The Thursday Murder Club audiobook is produced by Penguin Audio

Whenever you listen to this episode if you have thoughts on it we’d love to hear them. Comment anytime on the episode page on our website https://thebookclubreview.co.uk, where you’ll also find full shownotes, book recommendations and a transcript. Comments there go straight to our inboxes so drop us a line, we’d love to hear from you. You can also sign up there for our bi-weekly-ish newsletter for extra reviews and recommendations.

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or get in touch at [email protected]. And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts. If you want to support us please do take a moment to rate and review the show, which helps other listeners find us.

It's our best books of 2022, one of our favourite episodes to record as by this point we've done all the hard work of reading, now it's time to sit back and consider which, of all the books we read in 2022, were our very favourites. That might be a new release or it might be a backlist gem. We've also got the books that got us through difficult moments, the books that made us laugh or cry, and the ones we recommended and gave to friends. As we're nothing if not critical we've got some books that didn't quite live up to our expectations before we finally crown our top three books of 2022. 

As snow falls gently around the shed, the fairy lights twinkle, the mulled wine is warm, and we discuss our favourite reads of 2022 with regular special guest, journalist Phil Chaffee. Books mentioned are listed below, but if you want to be surprised look away now.

Favourite new release: Laura loved TRUST by Herman Diaz, Phil’s favourite (with also-rans The Marriage Portraitby Maggie O’Farrell and Love Marriage by Monica Ali) was THE SECRET LIVES OF CHURCH LADIES by Deesha Philyaw, while Kate loved SEVEN STEEPLES by Sara Baume (with honorable mentions Housebreaking by Colleen Hubbard and Briefly: A Delicious Life by Nell Stevens)

Favourite backlist title: Phil picked THE BETROTHED by Alessandro Manzoni (with also-rans The Blackwater Lightship by Colm Toíbín, and Beware of Pity by Stefan Zweig). Kate loved The Homemaker by Dorothy Canfield-Fisher but her favourite was O CALEDONIA by Elspeth Barker. Laura went for WIVES AND DAUGHTERS by Elizabeth Gaskell.

Favourite non-fiction reads: For Kate it was THE PALACE PAPERS, Tina Brown’s engaging examination of the British royal family and our collective fascination with (or indifference) to them. Kate’s also-rans were Fall by John Preston (did Robert Maxwell fall or was he pushed?), 4,000 Weeks by Oliver Burkeman (if we did but have the time to discuss it) and Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake (book everyone says is great turns out to be great). Laura only reads non-fiction when her book club forces her too, but luckily she did end up reading CASTE by Isabel Wilkerson, a book that changed her view of the world within the first fifty pages. Phil loved Putin’s People by Catherine Belton and Not One Inch by M.E. Sarotte, but his overall favourite was THE RED PRINCE by Timothy Snyder.

Favourite Book Club reads. Top of the pile for Laura was MICHEL THE GIANT by Tété-Michel Kpomassie while Phil preferred EIGHT MONTHS ON GHAZZAH STREET by Hilary Mantel. Kate loved The Heart is a Lonely Hunterby Carson McCullers but her ultimate choice was LIGHT PERPETUAL by Francis Spufford

Favourite comfort reads: For Phil it was EITHER/OR by Elif Batuman; he now only wants to read books narrated by her protagonist Selin. Laura escaped to a creepy Swiss hotel with THE SANATORIUM by Sarah Pearse while Kate sank into the arms of old friend E.M. Delafield with THE DIARY OF A PROVINCIAL LADY.

A book that made us laugh or cry: For Kate it was A HEART THAT WORKS by Rob Delaney. Phil enjoyed THREE MEN IN A BOAT by Jerome K. Jerome (in audiobook form read by Hugh Laurie). Laura loved Small by Claire Lynch and The Sentence by Louise Erdrich, but her final choice was THE BREAD THE DEVIL KNEAD by Lisa Allen-Agostini

A book we pressed on a friend: Runner-up for Phil was We Don’t Know Ourselves by Fintan O’Toole but his favourite was THE FREE WORLD by Louis Menand. Laura’s pick was THE SIXTEEN TREES OF THE SOMME by Lars Mytting

Books we read that didn’t quite live up to our expectations: THE ABSOLUTE BOOK by Elizabeth Knox promised much for Laura but ultimately didn’t deliver. Phil really didn’t get on with A LITTLE LIFE by Hanya Yanigahara (and has *really* thought about why) and for Kate LIBERATION DAY by George Saunders didn’t quite meet the soaring heights of his other books.

Overall Book of the Year: Laura’s standout was THE TREES by Percival Everett. Kate loved After Sappho by Selby Wyn Schwartz and The Door by Magda Szabó but her overall favourite read was LONESOME DOVE by Larry McMurtry. Phil meanwhile loved the Elena Ferrante Neopolitan quartet, but his overall book of the year is, as mentioned earlier, THE FREE WORLD by Louis Menand.

A few other books we mention in passing:

Golden Hill by Francis Spufford

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

Babel by R. F. Kuang

A Place of Greater Safety by Hilary Mantel

Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell

The English Understand Wool by Helen DeWitt

The Little Library Parties and The Little Library Christmas by Kate Young

Find full shownotes and links to related podcast episodes at our website thebookclubreview.co.uk, where you'll also find a transcript and our comments forum. No matter when you listen to this episode you can always drop us a line there and let us know what you thought of it. Tell us your favourite reads of 2022, we'd love to hear about them. You can also sign up for our bi-weekly-ish newsletter and find out details of our new Patreon channel.

To keep up with us between episodes follow us on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or email us at [email protected]. If you enjoyed this episode please don't forget an easy way to give something back is to let people know about the show, whether through a quick rating on your podcast app, or letting people know via social media. We really appreciate it.

We catch up with 2022 Booker Prize winner The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka. Kate may have loved it, when she read it for our Booker Prize special episode, but what did the rest of her book club make of it?

And we catch up with two recent reads for Laura's book group. The first is My Phantoms, the most recent novel from critics favourite Gwendoline Riley. What's all the fuss about? And did Laura's book club agree it was worth the read?

Next we consider Eight Months on Ghazzah Street, a lesser-known work from Hilary Mantel. The real question, it seems, when reading Hilary Mantel is 'why would you ever read anyone else?' Listen in to find out just what it was Laura's group loved so much.

We also have a range of recommendations for follow-ons to try, or to read with your book club.

Book recommendations

Women and Power by Mary Beard

Very Cold People by Sarah Manguso

The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy

Cold Enough for Snow by Jessica Au

A Passage North by Anuk Arudpragasam

Notes

The audiobook of The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida is published by Bolinda Digital (P) Bolinda Publishing 2022, My Phantoms is published by Granta Audio and Eight Months on Ghazzah Street is published by W.F. Howes and all three are available via your preferred audiobook retailer or library app.

If you enjoyed this episode catch up with our original take on The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida when we discussed it as part of our Booker Prize special episode.

For reviews and recommendations between episodes come and find us over on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or email us at [email protected], we always love to hear from you. If you'd like to support us, please do take a moment to rate and review the show, which helps us reach new listeners. And tell your book-loving friends, who might not have heard of us.

Today's episode is a celebration of the joy we find in Fitzcarraldo Editions, an independent publishing house that makes no concessions towards mass appeal but instead offers up books that are consistently ambitious, imaginative and innovative. Their hallmark is their plain typographic covers that allow the words inside to speak for themselves. The editorial line maintained by publisher Jacques Testard since the beginning has reaped rewards and he now publishes four Nobel Prizewinning authors as well as Booker international and Pulitzer prize winners and shortlistees. Not bad for a small publishing house that was started in 2014 on a tiny budget with just one employee, Jacques himself. Listen in to hear the story of Fitzcarraldo - named after a film that celebrates a seemingly impossible endeavour - and how in only his second-ever Frankfurt book fair Jacques found himself negotiating a 12-way bidding war for the English-language rights to Secondhand Time by Nobel winner Sveltlana Alexievich. And, because it’s us, you’ll also get to hear about the books. What are our favourites? Which do we recommend? Why are so many of them sad? We’re joined by Sam MacAuslan, keen Fitzcarraldo reader, to uncover some gems from the list. Like all good things, this episode has been a while in the making but with Fitzcarraldo recently celebrating publishing their 100th book it seemed the perfect time to release it out into the world, we hope you enjoy it, and feel inspired to try a Fitzcarraldo or two.

Books mentioned

Things I Don’t Want to Know Deborah Levy

Attention: A Short History by Joshua Cohen

Limonov: The Outrageous Adventures by Emannuel Carrère

Secondhand Time by Svetlana Alexievich (Bela Shayevich)

Minor Detail by Adania Shibley (Elizabeth Jaquette)

Fifty Sounds by Polly Barton

Flights by Olga Tocarczuk (Jennifer Croft)

Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tocarczuk (Jennifer Croft)

The Books of Jacob by Olga Tocarczuk (Jennifer Croft)

Primeval and Other Times by Olga Tocarczuk (Antonia Lloyd Jones)

The Years by Annie Ernaux (Alison L. Strayer)

Exteriors by Annie Ernaux (Tanya Leslie)

Zone, Matthias Enard (Charlotte Mandell)

Cold Enough for Snow by Jessica Au

The Naked Don’t Fear the Water by Matthieu Aikins

Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor (Sophie Hughes)

Paradise by Fernanda Melchor (Sophie Hughes)

The Netanyahus, Joshua Cohen

Septology, Jon Fosse (Damion Searls)

Notes

The film Fitzcarraldo by Werner Herzog

Deborah Levy interview in The White Review

New Directions in the US

Giramondo in Australia

As for us

Follow us on Instagram @BookClubReviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Find shownotes, transcript and comments forum over on our website https://thebookclubreview.co.uk and drop us a line, let us know your thoughts on this episode, or tell us about a Fitzcarraldo book you love. 

And if you’re not already do subscribe in your podcatcher of choice and never miss an episode. If you like what we do please help us out by rating and reviewing the show, which helps other listeners find us. Better yet please do share on your social channels, we're so happy to reach new ears and like with a good book recommendation, word-of-mouth is the best way. 

A special episode this week as we’re joined by comedian, actor and author Rob Delaney to talk about his book A Heart That Works. As so often with books that pack a powerful emotional punch this deals with a difficult subject as Rob tells the story of the death of his young son Henry, and considers his own journey through the grieving process. It’s also a deeply moving, funny, thought-provoking and altogether wonderful read. Listen in as Rob and Kate share their stories, which to forewarn you, touch on the topics of death, still-birth and suicide, as well as joy and love and the importance of books as places of emotional refuge, sources of wisdom and pleasure.

Booklist

A Heart that Works by Rob Delaney

The End of the Affair by Graham Greene

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Lucia Berlin, try A Manual for Cleaning Women

One, Two, Three, Four by Craig Brown

Also mentioned

Thunder Road by Jim Cummings

The Beatles: Get Back

Notes

The Rainbow Trust

Noah’s Ark Hospice

Rob Delaney’s website

Have thoughts on this episode? Whenever you listen you can always leave us a comment over at the episode page on our website, where you’ll also find a transcript and full show notes. You can also sign up to our bi-weekly-ish newsletter for book recommendations and what we’re reading between episodes.

You can also find us on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast and Twitter @bookclubrvwpod

A stack of books for Autumn nights: Laura dives in to the page-turning but ‘questionable’ Run by Anne Patchett, and is riveted by Gwendolyn Riley’s My Phantoms, while all Kate can think about is mushrooms thanks to Merlin Sheldrake’s Entangled Life. She’s also been dipping into Empire of Pain author Patrick Radden Keefe’s essay collection, Rogues. 

Also discussed Amazon reviews vs. Goodreads, how ‘good but flawed’ is often quite a good sign in a book-club read, the marketing history of quorn, how lucky we are not to be Carpenter ants, how surprised to we were to learn that the Dutch have mobsters, the emotional perils of reading too much fiction, and more…

BOOKLIST

Run by Anne Patchett

Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake

My Phantoms by Gwendolyn Riley

Rogues by Patrick Radden-Keefe

WHAT'S NEXT

City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert

My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk

The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell

Keep up with us between episodes on Instagram @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or drop us a line at [email protected]. 

On the episode page on our website you'll find a transcript, full shownotes and a comments forum – let us know your thoughts on any of the books discussed in this episode, comments there go straight to our inboxes and we will reply.

You can also browse our archive of past episodes, everything from Booker Prize specials to book club debates. And you can sign up to our bi-weekly ish newsletter for featured books, our tips for what to read next and our current reads.

Our most demanding, but possibly also our favourite episode of the year as we're joined by Chrissy Ryan of Bookbar and journalist Phil Chaffee to discuss and debate this year’s six shortlisted books.

Although we might rail at this much required reading all in one go, the truth is we love tackling the Booker shortlist, which expands our horizons and stretches us as readers like nothing else. So listen in to find out which books we loved, which ones we wished we could have avoided, and which one we think should win the 2022 Booker Prize.

Booklist

The Trees by Percival Everett 

audiobook read by Bill Andrew Quinn (Tantor Audio)

Oh, William by Elizabeth Strout

Audiobook read by by Kimberly Farr (Penguin Audio)

The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka

Glory by NoViolet Bulawayo 

Audiobook read by Chipo Chung (Penguin Audio)

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

Audiobook read by Aiden Kelly (Faber audio)

Treacle Walker by Alan Garner

Audiobook read by Robert Powell (Fourth Estate)

–– Other books mentioned were

Spoons Carpets: An Appreciation by Kit Caless 

Car Park Life by Gareth F. Rees

Erasure by Percival Everett

Percival Everett by Virgil Russell

Open Water by Caleb Azumah-Nelson

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

Lanny by Max Porter

Follow us on instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast to keep up with us between episodes, or head to the episode page on our website thebookclubreview.co.uk for full show notes, transcript and comments forum - let us know your thoughts on the Booker shortlist and winner.

Since publication in 2019 The Hummingbird, by Italian Sandro Veronesi (translated into English by Elena Pala), has wowed readers and fellow-authors alike. 'A gripping masterpiece', 'a life-affirming triumph' 'unforgettable'... Just what is all the fuss about?

We’re joined by pod regular Phil Chaffee and first-timer Jo Norman, both members of Laura’s book club, to find out. We’ve also got four unmissable novels by international authors we think you should know about. 

Booklist

Marzahn, Mon Amour by Katja Oskamp (trans. Jo Heinrich)

The Martin Beck novels by Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöo (Joan Tate)

Periera Maintains by Antonio Tabucchi (Patrick Creagh)

The Door by Magda Szabó (Len Rix)

Family Lexicon by Natalia Ginsberg (Jenny McPhee)

Have thoughts on this episode? Are you team Kate or team Laura? Whenever you listen to the show you can always let us know via the comments forum on our website. And don't forget to leave us a book recommendation, tell us one of your favourites.

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate and review the show, and help other listeners find us.

Back together again after the summer, Kate and Laura are catching up on all the books they managed to get through. So listen in for their reactions to summer must-read Tomorrrow, Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. They also covered three books from the Booker Longlist, Trust by Hernan Diaz, The Trees by Percival Everett and After Sappho by Selby Wynn Schwartz. And a couple of long reads: for Kate Lonesome Dove, Larry McMurtry's Pulitzer-winning novel about cowboys in the Old West, and a guilty pleasure fantasy read for Laura, Red Seas under Red Skies by Scott Lynch.

Kate is also joined by author Colleen Hubbard to talk about her debut novel Housebreaking. An absorbing page-turner with some powerful themes, it's one we recommend for your TBR pile or book club. Plus we find out more about one of Colleen's all-time favourite reads, The Magician of Lublin.

All that and some pod news: new theme music (composed specially for us), a Patreon account, and we share our projects and plans for where we want to take the show.

Booklist

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

The Night Always Comes by Willy Vlautin

Trust by Hernan Diaz

After Sappho by Selby Wynn Schwartz

The Trees by Percival Everett

Red Seas under Red Skies by Scott Lynch

Housebreaking by Colleen Hubbard

The Magician of Lublin by Isaac Bashevis Singer

Enjoyed the episode? Have thoughts? Whenever you listen to this show don't forget you can drop us a comment at the episode page on our website thebookclubreview.co.uk, where you'll also find full shownotes for all of the books we discussed in the ep. and a transcript. 

For book recommendations between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, or on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod.

We're working hard on our Patreon offer, and are looking forward to sharing it with in a future episode. Until then, thanks for listening and happy reading x

Step back in time with us as Kate visits Charleston home of Vanessa Bell and important gathering place for the members of the Bloomsbury Group, that collection of writers and artists including Virginia Woolf that coalesced around Gordon Square in London. Undaunted by the ghosts of her relatives Nino Strachey, author of a new book, Young Bloomsbury, joins us to discuss the up-and-coming younger generation, such as writer Julia Strachey, sculptor Stephen Tomlin and photographer Cecil Beaton, who followed in their footsteps. Nino considers the interplay of creative inspiration that flowed between the generations, but also the spirit of tolerance and acceptance of different gender identities and chosen families that allowed these young creatives to flourish.

Leave us a comment on our The Book Club Review website, where you'll also find more information on all the books mentioned, a transcript and our comments forum. Let us know your thoughts on the episode, or a Bloomsbury Group book that you love. 

Follow us between episodes for regular reviews and book recommendations on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast, or on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod.

Find Nino on Twitter or Instagram @NinoStrachey.

Book recommendations

Lytton Strachey by Michael Holroyd (Penguin)

Eminent Victorians by Lytton Strachey

Cheerful Weather for the Wedding by Julia Strachey

Love Letters: Vita and Virginia (Penguin)

Orlando by Virginia Woolf (Penguin)

L.O.T.E. by Sheila von Reinhold (Jaracanda)

All Passion Spent by Vita Sackville West (Penguin), which we talked about on episode 12.

The Waves and To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf (Penguin)

Sissinghurst: The Creation of a Garden by Sarah Raven

A Boy at the Hogarth Press by Richard Kennedy (Slightly Foxed)

Vile Bodies by Evelyn Waugh (Penguin)

A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway (Penguin)

Mrs Hemingway by Naomi Wood (Picador)

The Paris Wife by Paula McLain (Virago)

We love a prize and we love a special episode, and so we’re delighted to have an excuse to get together to discuss the 2022 Women’s Prize shortlist and its winner, The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki. 

The Women’s Prize is the UK's annual book award that celebrates the best books written by women. Key criteria for the Prize are accessibility, originality and excellence in writing. Judges are asked to ignore the reviews, publicity spends, an author’s previous reputation, and any sense of ‘who deserves it’ to choose the novel that inspires them, moves them, makes them think – and that they admire and enjoy.

And so listen in to hear our frank but friendly take on the shortlist, Ozeki’s big win, and whether we agree with the judges. Maybe you don’t have time to read them all and just want to read one? Leave it to us, we’ve got you covered.

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason

The Hand the Devil Knead by Lisa-Allen Agostini

The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak

The Sentence by Louise Erdrich

The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki

Have thoughts on this episode? Join us over on our website where you'll find the page for this episode, a transcript and our comments forum. Which of the shortlist was your favourite? Drop us a line and let us know.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected].

The Inseparables is a novel that was never published in Simone de Beauvoir's lifetime. The story goes she showed it to Jean-Paul Sartre and he held his nose. It tells of the intense childhood friendship between Sylvie and Andrée, who were Beauvoir's fictional models for herself and her real-life friend Zaza Lacoin. The translation is by Lauren Elkin, author of Flâneuse, and the book comes with an introduction by Deborah Levy, and an afterword by Sylvie le bon de Beauvoir, plus a captivating selection of letters and photographs from the Beauvoir archive.

For this episode Kate was joined by Australian books podcaster Anna Baillie-Karas, in town taking short break from her own podcast Books on the Go. The perfect excuse, then, to read and discuss this powerful short book. But what did we make of it? Should you add it to your reading pile? And would it be a good one for book club? Listen in and find out.

Unusually for us this episode does contain spoilers, so if you don't know anything about Simone de Beauvoir and want to read this without any foreknowledge bookmark this show for later and come back to it when you've read the book.

We also have four book recommendations inspired by The Inseparables we think you will love.

BOOKLIST

Petronille by Amélie Northomb, translated by Amelia Anderson

At the Existentialist Café by Sarah Bakewell

Last Summer in the City by Gianfrarnco Calligarich, translated by Howard Curtis

Parisian Lives by Deidre Bair

NOTES

Don't miss the episode page on our website for full shownotes, a transcript and comments forum where you can let us know your thoughts on the episode or recommend us a book. Comments there go straight to our inboxes and we will read and respond so do drop us a line, we love to hear from you.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or email us at [email protected]

Listen to Lauren Elkin and Deborah Levy discuss The Inseparables for the London Review of Books

Listen to the Literary Friction podcast episode Kate mentioned, with Lauren Elkin

Dull account of one woman’s day or rich and resonant masterpiece? Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf has divided readers since it was published and continues to spark debate today.

In London, one day in June, 1923, society hostess Clarissa Dalloway sets out to buy flowers for a party she is giving that evening. Returning home later she is visited by an old friend, Peter Walsh, who rekindles memories and feelings from her youth. Meanwhile making his own path through London traumatised soldier, Septimus Smith, is finding everyday life a torment and his young Italian wife cannot help him. Although they never meet, the two stories interweave as Woolf captures her characters and London on the page.

Join Kate and special guest, prolific reader and Instagram book reviewer  Charles Pignal as they dive into Dalloway and debate the results. Could Woolf have used a few less semi-colons? Can Kate talk about the book without weeping? If you haven’t read it, should you read it? Listen in for the answers to all these questions plus some great follow-on recommendations from Charles and from Kate and Laura picking up on the London theme. Whether you’re wondering what to read next for book club or just want some good additions to your own reading pile we have the book for you.

Book list

The Annotated Mrs Dalloway, with notes by Merve Emre

In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust

Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellman

The Waves by Virginia Woolf

Young Eliot and Eliot After the Waste Land by Robert Crawford

Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel

White Teeth and Intimations by Zadie Smith

Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson

On Golden Hill and Light Perpetual by Francis Spufford

The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street and 84 Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff

A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks

Queenie by Candice Carty Williams.

Notes

For more from Charles including reviews, his weekly books quiz, and author interviews find him on Instagram @charleslangip

Have thoughts on this episode, or a book to recommend? Go to the episode page on our website where you'll find full show notes for all the books discussed, a transcript and a comments forum. Comments go straight to our inboxes so get in touch, we love to hear from you.

You can also keep in touch between episodes on Instagram @BookClubReview podcast, or Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or drop us a line at [email protected].

Whether you're soaking up Nutcrackers on Rockaway beach like Kate's book-reviewing heroine Molly Young, throwing down a picnic rug in your garden or the local park, fighting your way through airport chaos with the promise of a trip abroad or cosying up with a warm blanket in the Southern Hemisphere, we've got the Summer Reading show for you. It's packed full of recommendations including our own favourite beach reads and tips from booksellers, authors and other friends of the pod.

So if you’re curious what show-regular Phil Chaffee is diving into this summer, what Emily Rhodes of Emily’s Walking Book Club is planning on reading, what Nadia Odunayo of book recommendations app The Storygraph thinks you should try, what onetime journalist now bookseller Tom Rowley is planning on reading when he gets a second off setting up his new bookshop, Backstory, and finally what one of our favourite authors, Ed Caesar, thinks might be the perfect page-turner for you, keep listening.

So whether you're inclined towards the hottest new releases or the tried and tested classics (including several our guests love so much they return to them again and again), grab a notepad and listen in.

If you enjoyed the show head over to our website to comment and let us know your favourite summer reads, we love to hear from you. Or follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email us at [email protected] – want to help us out? Subscribe, drop us a review and tell your book-loving friends about the show.

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

The Field by Robert Seethaler

Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

Hot Milk by Deborah Levy

Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny

Lessons in Chamistry by Bonnie Garmus

You Made a Fool of Death with your Beauty by Akwake Emezi

A Lady’s Guide to Fortune Hunting by Sophie Irwin

A Month in the Country by J.L. Carr

Brother of the More Famous Jack by Barbara Trapido

The Whalebone Theatre by Joanna Quinn

News of the Dead by James Robertson

Free by Lea Ypi

Serious Money by Caroline Knowles

The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett

The House of Niccolo sequence by Dorothy Dunnet

We Don't Know Ourselves by Fintan O'Toole

Gallant by V.E. Schwab

Clockers by Richard Price

Virtue by Hermione Hobie

Neon in Daylight by Hermione Hobie

Essex Dogs by Dan Jones (published 15 September 2022)

The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven by Nathaniel Ian Miller (Hachette)

This Cold Heaven by Gretel Erlich (Harper Collins)

Prophets of Eternal Fjord by Kim Leine (and The Colony of Good Hope [Pan Macmillan])

Miss Smilla’s Feeling for Snow by Peter Høeg (Penguin). 

A Woman in the Polar Night by Christiane Ritter.

Keep in touch:

No matter when you listen to this episode you can always comment via the episode page on our website, thebookclubreview.co.uk (where you'll also find the episode transcript). Comments there go straight to our inboxes so let us know your thoughts and we'll reply. 

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This episode is all about finding the extraordinary in the everyday, in the little things that may pass us by if we don't pay attention. And so join us as we talk to Miranda Keeling about her book The Year I Stopped to Notice, a joyful, poignant and familiar portrait of everyday life that Neil Gaiman called 'beautiful' and Philip Pullman 'a delight'. Together with Miranda we also recommend six other books that tap into this spirit of observing and capturing moments.

Booklist 

Nobody Told You by Hollie McNish

The Outrun by Amy Liptrot (and we also mentioned her latest book, The Instant)

No-One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood

Flâneuse by Lauren Elkin

Leonard and Hungry Paul by Rónán Hession 

The Year I Stopped to Notice is published by Icon Books and available to buy now. For more from Miranda you can find at mirandakeeling.com or go to the source and follow her on Twitter @mirandakeeling

Enjoyed the episode? Drop us a line anytime and let us know your thoughts at our website thebookclubreview.co.uk. There you'll find a dedicated episode page, full shownotes for all the books we recommended, a transcript and a comments section where we encourage you to let us know your thoughts. We love to hear from listeners.

You'll also find our archive of episodes to browse through, from Booker winners to little known gems from the backlist. Drop in on a spirited book club discussion or join us as we catch up on our recent reads. It's all there waiting for you.

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. 

And if you’re not already do subscribe, rate and review wherever you get your podcasts, which help other listeners find us and brings us joy. Do share with your bookish friends, we love to reach new listeners.

Join us as we catch up on our recent reads outside of book club, the books we're picking and choosing for ourselves. Laura enjoys The Sixteen Trees of the Somme by Lars Mytting, declaring it 'unputdownable', and a good antidote to the brilliant but rather more serious novel The Sympathiser by Viet Thanh Nguyen (her Vancouver book club's pick). We're joined by journalist Phil Chaffee who shares his recent holiday reading, The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco and My Fourth Time We Drowned by Sally Hayden. Meanwhile Kate has fallen in love with O'Caledonia by Elspeth Barker and sneaks in This Savage Song by V.E. Schwab, a YA fantasy read that proves perfect for those times when you just want to read about things that aren't real.

Book recommendations

The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco

Matrix by Lauren Groff

The Sixteen Trees of the Somme by Lars Mytting

Islands of Abandonment by Cal Flynn

O’Caledonia by Elspeth Barker

A High Wind in Jamaica by Richard Hughes

My Fourth Time We Drowned by Sally Hayden

The Naked Don’t Fear the Water by Matthieu Aikins

The Sympathiser by Viet Than Nuygen

This Savage Song, Our Dark Duet, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and The Shades of Magic trilogy, all by V. E. Schwab

Head over to the episode page on our website for full shownotes and do leave us a comment in the forum, we love to hear from you. If you are the first, don't be shy!

Keep up with what we’re reading between shows on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or send us an email [email protected].

We're joined by regular pod-listener Youssra, who gave us her insight into how the book has been received in her native Morocco.

And we've got our usual round of book recommendations to help you find your next great read.

Book recommendations

Une année chez les français by Foud Laroui

The Moor’s Account by Leila Lalami

This Blinding Absence of Light by Tahar Ben Jelloun

All Men Want to Know by Nina Bouraoui

Year of the Elephant by Leila Abouzeid 

Notes

Have you read the book? Have an opinion on the show? Head to our episode page for full shownotes and episode transcript, and let us know your thoughts in the comments. They go straight to our inbox so we will respond – let's keep the discussion going.

https://www.thebookclubreview.co.uk/portfolio/items/the-country-of-others/

Follow us on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast

On Twitter @bookclubrvwpod

Next episode: Join us as we deep dive into the world of Fitzcarraldo with Jacques Testard, publisher of elegant blue and white books that keep winning awards. If you're looking to find books that will challenge you and broaden your horizons, don't miss it. 

Booklist

4,000 weeks by Oliver Burkeman

No Touching by Ketty Rouf

The Magician by Colm Toíbín

Motherhood by Sheila Heti

The Mothers by Brit Bennett

Laura also mentioned Savage Tongues by Azareen Van der Vliet Oloomi, Little by Edward Carey and Secrets of the Sprakkar by Eliza Reid.

Get in touch with us and tell us what you’re reading or recommend us a book on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Find our full episode archive at thebookclubreview.co.uk and don't forget to like, subscribe, tell a friend, share on social media – it helps us reach new listeners and we really do appreciate it :)

It's Mother's Day here in the UK and as there's nothing Kate loves more than a special episode we've put together a show on the theme of Motherhood. We're joined by Claire Lynch, author of Small: On Motherhoods, her literary memoir of her own unusual journey into motherhood. Elizabeth Morris of Crib Notes book club joins us too – who better to help us pull together our essential reads on the topic. We've got laughter, we might shed a few tears, and brilliant books to cover all eventualities.

BOOKLIST

Small: on motherhoods, by Claire Lynch

Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder

Motherhood by Sheila Heti

A Life’s Work by Rachel Cusk

A Ghost in the Throat by Doireann ní Ghríofa

M(otherhood) by Praya Agarwal

The Best Most Awful Job by Katherine May

The Lost Daughter by Elena Ferrante

The Home-Maker by Dorothy Canfield Fisher

Life Among the Savages by Shirley Jackson

No-One Talks About this Stuff by Kat Brown

NOTES

Follow Claire on Twitter @drclairelynch, and find Elizabeth @Elizabethmoya. You can sign up for her monthly newsletter Crib Notes here.

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Check out our full episode archive on our website www.thebookclubreview.co.uk.

Do subscribe to us to be sure you never miss an episode. And if you like what we do please rate and review the show, it helps other listeners find us. If you want to go one better please spread the word about us on your social media channels. Reaching new listeners makes us so happy, we treasure each and every one, and your support helps us do that.

We also explore the delights of the Persephone publishing list with old favourites and some exciting new titles.

So listen in and share in the joy of giving ourselves permission to say when we don't like something, and turn instead to something we will love. Enjoy.

Booklist

The Pineapple, King of Fruits and Matrimony, Inc., by Francesca Beauman

The Waiting Years by Fumiko Enchi

Ulysses by James Joyce

The Home-Maker by Dorothy Canfield Fisher

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Someone at a Distance by Dorothy Whipple

The Three Body Problem by Cixin Liu 

As It Was by Helen Thomas

A Well Full of Leaves by Elizabeth Myers

The Diary of a Provincial Lady by E. M. Delafield

Normal People by Sally Rooney

Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders

Notes

Find out more about Francesca at her website francescabeauman.com, or head on over to persephonebooks.co.uk for a browse.

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email us [email protected] and let us know what you're reading – we love to hear from you. 

Subscribe to us to be sure you never miss an episode, and if you like what we do please rate and review the show, it helps other listeners find us and we are eternally grateful.

Join us as we discuss Benjamin Labatut's Booker International shortlisted novel When We Cease to Understand the World, 2020 Baillie Gifford prizewinner One, Two, Three, Four: The Beatles in Time by Craig Brown and 2021 Costa biography prizewinner Fall: A Life of Robert Maxwell by John Preston, The Outlander by Gil Adams, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab and The Sanitorium by Sarah Pearse. Did we love them? Did we loathe them? Listen in to find out.

Booklist

When We Cease to Understand the World, Benjamín Labatut

One, Two, Three, Four: The Beatles in Time by Craig Brown

Fall: A Life of Robert Maxwell by John Preston

The Outlander by Gil Adams

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

The Sanitorium by Sarah Pearse

Notes

Get Back film trailer

Carpool Karaoke with Sir Paul McCartney

Join the bookish conversation with us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. You can support us by rating and reviewing the show, and most importantly by telling your friends. Please share on social media and help us reach new listeners.

Full show notes and our complete episode archive at our website thebookclubreview.co.uk. Sign up for our bi-weekly-ish newsletter. Drop us a line and let us know what you are reading. We always love to hear from you.

We're joined by Toby Brothers of the London Literary Salon and pod-regular Phil Chaffee as we discover the pleasures and perils that come with a book that takes weeks, even months, to read.

Books mentioned

A Little Life by Hanya Yanigahara

War & Peace by Leo Tolstoy

all seven volumes of Proust

Ulysses by James Joyce

The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Middlemarch by George Eliot

The Books of Jacob by Olga Tocarczuk

Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellman

Pilgrimage by Dorothy Richardson

The Alex Ross article Phil mentions is here.

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Subscribe to us to be sure you never miss an episode. And if you like what we do please rate and review the show, it helps other listeners find us. If you want to go one better please spread the word about us on your social media channels. Reaching new listeners makes us so happy, we treasure each and every one, and your support helps us do that.

Wondering what books 2022 has in store for you? What will be your next great read? We're joined by industry insiders Chrissy Ryan, of dream bookshop Bookbar, and Elizabeth Morris of the Crib Notes newsletter to talk what's hot and what to look forward to. We've got your #tbr future-proofed.

Book list: 

Beautiful World Where Are You by Sally Rooney

Brown Girls by Daphne Palasi Andreades

The Heavens and The Men by Sandra Newman

A Little Life and To Paradise by Hanya Yanigahara

Violets by Alex Hyde

Love, Marriage by Monica Ali

House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J. Maas

Lapvona by Otessa Moshfegh

Free Love by Tessa Hadley

Salt Slow and Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield

Wahala by Nikki May

Check out the episode page on our The Book Club Review website for more.

If you like this show please take a moment to rate and review, it really helps us reach new listeners. Tell your friends, share on social media, it means so much to us when you do.

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected].

Charmingly eccentric tale with a sharply feminist point of view or a 'hot mess' – what did Laura's book club make of Lolly Willowes by Silvia Townsend Warner? Meanwhile The Heart is a Lonely Hunter Carson McCullers explores loneliness, the human need for understanding and the search for love. What did Kate's book club think. Should you pick it up? Listen in to find out. We also discuss Furious Hours by Casey Cep and A Start in Life by Anita Brookner.

Robert McCrumb's 100 Best Novels Written in English 

1 in 5 does not represent over 300 years of women in literature: Rachel Cooke's response.

Join the conversation between episodes: follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. If you like what we do, please pass it on, share the episode link on social media, and help us spread the word.

It's part 2 of our end-of-year special, in which we look back over the books we read outside of book club, the ones we chose for ourselves, and pick out our favourites. And so listen in for more book recommendations than you can shake a stick a, plus recommendations from our book clubs and friends of the pod. We also look ahead to some new releases coming out in 2022.

Booklist

Kate's top three favourites from 2021

Don't Touch My Hair, Emma Dabiri

A Ghost in the Throat, Doireann ní Ghrí­ofa

Lean, Fall, Stand, Jon McGregor

Laura's top three favourites from 2021

A Life's Work, Rachel Cusk

Miss Iceland, Audur Ava Olafsdottir

Indian Horse, Richard Wagamese

Kate's longlist of favourite reads in 2021

The Moth and the Mountain, Ed Caesar

Writers and Lovers and Euphoria Lily King

Real Estate, Deborah Levy

The Library Book and The Orchid Thief, Susan Orlean

All My Friends are Superheroes, Andrew Kaufman

Owls of the Eastern Ice, Jonathan C. Slaght

Nightbitch, Rachel Yoder

Don't Touch My Hair, Emma Dabiri

Fun Home, Alison Bechdel

Parisan Lives, Deidre Bair

Nightbitch, Rachel Yoder

Early Morning Riser, Katherine Heiny

Love Letters, Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West (Alison Bechdel, ed.)

A Ghost in the Throat, Doireann ni Ghriofa

Re-Educated, Lucy Kellaway

Pew, Catherine Lacey

Happy All the Time, Laurie Colwin

Whereabouts, Jhumpa Lahiri

Sorrow and Bliss, Meg Mason

Lean, Fall, Stand, Jon McGregor

Assembly, Natasha Brown

The Stranding, Kate Sawyer

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, Carson McCullers

Empire of Pain, Patrick Radden-Keefe

Matrix, Lauren Groff

The See-Through House, Shelley Klein

Laura's longlist of favourite reads in 2021

His Only Wife, Peace Adzo Medie

Miss Iceland, Hotel Silence and Butterflies in November, Audur Ava Olafsdottir

Indian Horse, Richard Wagamese

On Earth We Are Briefly Gorgeous, Ocean Vuong

Homeland Elegies, Ayad Akhtar

No-One is Talking About This, Patricia Lockwood

Great Circle, Maggie Shipstead

D: A Tale of Two Worlds, Michael Faber

Graceling, Kristin Cashore

A Deadly Education and The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik

The Annals of the Western Shore, Ursula Le Guin

The Book of Hidden Things, Francesco Dimitri

Frederica, Georgette Heyer

Conundrum, Jan Morris

A High Wind in Jamaica, Richard Hughes

The Rules of Civility, Amor Towles

Chrissy Ryan's recommendations

Open Water, Caleb Azumah Nelson

Assembly, Natasha Brown

Detransition Baby, Torrey Peters

Elizabeth Morris' recommendations

Nightbitch, Rachel Yoder

Book club recommendations

The Summer Book, Tove Jansson

The Mermaid of Black Conch, Monique Roffey

Whereabouts, Jhumpa Lahiri

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, Anne Brontë

A Dance to the Music of Time, Anthony Powell

The Siege of Krishnapur, J. G. Farrell

The Line of Beauty, Alan Hollinghurst

Isaac Steele and the Forever Man, Daniel Rigby

Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer

Albert and the Whale, Philip Hoare

Trieste or the Meaning of Nowhere, Jan Morris

The Bass Rock, Evie Wyld

Autumn, Ali Smith

The Underground Railroad, Colson Whitehead

Small Things Like These, Claire Keegan

The Offing, Benjamin Myers

Circe, Madeleine Miller

Three Women, Lisa Taddeo

My Dark Vanessa, Kate Elizabeth Russell

Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Upcoming books in 2022

We also discussed our inordinate desire for The Doors of Stone by Patrick Rothfuss to finally be published, and Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

Notes

Full details of all the titles discussed in this episode can be found in the shownotes on our website thebookclubreview.co.uk. 

Do keep up with us between episodes on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. We always love to hear from you.

In part one of our 2021 end-of-year special episode we look back over the books we’ve covered for book club. Which ones have stayed with us? Which were our stand outs? And which are we going to crown our book club book of the year. Whether you're looking for your next book club read or just a great book for your personal reading pile, don't miss it. We also look forward to new book club plans and projects for the coming year.

For our best books of 2021 (from our own personal reading piles) go to Part 2, available in your podcast feed now.

Booklist

Writers and Lovers, Lily King

Early Work, Andrew Martin

Euphoria, Lily King

Shuggie Bain, Douglas Stuart

The Mermaid of Black Conch, Monique Roffey

Mrs Death Misses Death by Salena Godden

A Lonely Man, Chris Power (recommended by Gary)

The Remains of the Day, Kazuo Ishiguro

Like a Sword Wound by Ahmet Altan

I Will Never See the World Again by Ahmet Altan

How Beautiful We Were by Imbolo Mbue, As Meat Loves Salt by Maria McCann and The Barsetshire Chronicles by Anthony Trollope (Phil's recommendations)

Second Place by Rachel Cusk

Matrix by Lauren Groff

Full shownotes are on our website thebookclubreview.co.uk, where you can browse our full episode archive and sign up for our bi-weekly-ish newsletter, full of recommendations and bookish links. Keep up with us between episodes on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. We always love to hear from you.

Join us as we talk all things books, apocalypses, whales and the Costa Prize shortlist with Kate Sawyer, author of The Stranding. It's a novel about a woman who survives the end-of-the-world by hiding inside the belly of a whale. Find out why we loved it, as we consider its place in the canon of apocalypse novels from Z for Zachariah to The Road. We've also got a ton of book club recommendations, find out what Kate's been reading recently and have some follow-on read suggestions for when you've finished The Stranding.

Book list

Moby Dick by Herman Melville

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

Children of the Dust by Louise Lawrence

Z for Zachariah by Robert C. O'Brien

Nights at the Circus and Wise Children by Angela Carter

Matrix and Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff

Larry’s Party and Unless by Carol Shields

Assembly by Natasha Brown

Still Life by Sarah Winman

Wahala by Nikki May (out Spring 2022)

Burntcoat by Sarah Hall

The Smallest Man by Frances Quinn

Weather by Jenny Offill

Humankind by Rutger Bregman

The Life of the Mind by Christine Smallwood

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Don't miss our website where you can find our archive of over 100 shows to browse through. Don’t miss our recent Booker Prize special, or our discussion of Lauren Groff’s latest book Matrix and find out why we just can’t stop thinking about nuns. You can also find our library of articles including our recent one on our favourite book podcasts. And you can sign up to our bi-weekly newsletter for book reviews, recommendations and more.

Join us as we dive, in spoiler-free fashion, into Lauren Groff's latest novel, Matrix. It tells of Marie de France, a cast-off from Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine's court, exiled to be a prioress at a run-down Abbey inhabited by starving nuns. Devastated and grieving the young Marie thinks only of regaining the queen's favour and returning to court. Gradually, though, she comes to see that if she is to stay, she must change, and the Abbey with her. The book has been a New York Times bestseller and National Book Award finalist but what did Laura's book club think? We're joined by pod-regulars Phillip Chaffee and Sarah Oliver to discuss it.

Join us as we discuss the 2021 Booker shortlist in typical book club style, with journalist Phil Chaffee and Chrissy Ryan, owner of Bookbar. We livestream the Booker ceremony so you can catch our immediate reactions to the winner. Did we agree? Was there a book we loved more? Was there one we loathed? Whether we loved them or loathed them, as ever, you can be assured of good debate. We thoroughly recommend any and all of these books for a good read and good discussion.

Notes

The Paris Review article on Anuk Arudpragasam Phil mentions is here

Click here if you're wondering what a nudibranch looks like?

Check out our website for our episode archive and more. Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Tell us what you’re reading for book club right now – we love to hear from you.

If you've enjoyed this episode please leave us a quick online review, it helps other listeners find us :)

It's our latest Book Club episode, and we're discussing Rachel Cusk's latest novel, Second Place. It was longlisted for the 2021 Booker Prize, but didn’t make the cut for the shortlist. Sally Rooney calls it ‘masterful’, saying it ‘achieves a kind of formal perfection’ while the Observer newspaper lauds it as ‘A landmark in twenty-first-century English literature.' But what did Laura’s book club make of it? And who would we rather have to dinner, Rachel Cusk or Deborah Levy? Listen in to find out.

Book recommendations

To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

The Outline trilogy, by Rachel Cusk, read on audio by Kristen Scott Thomas

Things I Don’t Want to Know by Deborah Levy

The Sorrows of Young Werther by Goethe

The audiobook of Second Place by Rachel Cusk is published by Faber & Faber and narrated by Kate Fleetwood. It’s available for download now.

Listen to the Rachel Cusk interview Phil mentioned at the Edinburgh Literary Festival

Find our full episode archive and sign-up link for our newsletter at our The Book Club Review website. Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. If you like what we do please help spread the word and tell a book-loving friend about our show. 

We've shaken the sand from our flip-flops and put our suitcases away. Now it's back to business as Kate and Laura catch up on their recent reads, everything from this year's Booker International Prize winner to a fantasy romp about teenage wizards.

Booklist

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

At Night All Blood is Black by David Diop

Mud and Stars by travel writer Sara Wheeler

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

Re-Educated by Lucy Kellaway

We also discuss the property website themodernhouse.com

if you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes check out the website at www.thebookclubreview.co.uk, find us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Drop us a line and tell us what you’re reading, we always love to hear from you.

Next episode: Book club on Second Place by Rachel Cusk

"Ashto" and "Jonesy" are two Australians who devour books on everything from self-improvement to business and marketing for their weekly podcast, What You Will Learn. They’ve recently launched their own book, The Sh*t They Never Taught You. They joined Kate to discuss what books have taught them, and provide her with some personal bibliotherapy to kick her out of her counter-productive ways. Listen in to find out what you can learn.

It's our 2021 Summer Reading episode!

What are we looking for in our summer reading? We want books that are going to carry us away, books that are immersive and compelling, books that take us places and teach us things. Sometimes we want short reads to suit our mood, others we want long immersive books that will last us through the summer. And as ever, we want books we can discuss and debate. Embracing our usual tendency to veer away from the obvious we've compiled an eclectic list. We’ve got summer buzz books The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris and Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead, but we’re also delving into mental health with Meg Mason’s hilarious and moving novel Sorrow & Bliss, considering the joys of the untethered life with Jhumpa Lahiri and learning about the Sackler family – architects, it turns out, of America’s opioid crisis – with Patrick Radden-Keefe’s Empire of Pain. Plus Laura throws in Michael Faber’s beguiling fantasy novel D: A Tale of Two Worlds, a novel by First Nations author Richard Wagamese she wants everyone to read, and we briefly consider Erik Larson’s gripping history of World War 2, The Splendid and the Vile and why really it’s the perfect thing to have beside your deckchair. Wherever you are we wish you a brilliant summer and lots of happy reading.

Booklist

Sorrow & Bliss by Meg Mason

Hotel Silence by Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir

Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri

Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden-Keefe

D (a Tale of Two Worlds) by Michael Faber

The Book of Hidden Things by Francesco Dimitri

Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese

The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalia Harris

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead

You can also find full details plus a few extras on our website, thebookclubreview.co.uk. And if you’re so inclined you can also sign up for our bi-weekly newsletter there. It has reviews and recommendations and is full of reading inspiration to tide you over until our next episode.

Follow us between episodes on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast, on twitter and facebook @bookclubrvwpod or email us at [email protected] – do drop us a line and tell us what you’re reading, we always love to hear from you.

Special thanks to Mason Dietrich, our new Production assistant.

Looking for something a little off the beaten path for your reading pile? Join us as we discuss Like A Sword Wound by renowned Turkish writer Ahmet Altan. It's the first volume in a quartet and traces not only the social currents of the final years of the Ottoman Empire but also the erotic and emotional lives of its characters. Like A Sword Wound has been described as the Turkish War & Peace. Did Laura's book club agree? We're joined by journalist Philippe Chaffee to discuss it.

Like A Sword Wound is translated by Brendan Freely and Yelda Türedi

Book recommendations

The Passenger magazine on Turkey

Beyond the Walls by Nazim Hikmet

My Name is Red and The Museum of Innocence by Orhan Pamuk

Laurence in Arabia by Scott Anderson

Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

We also mentioned authors Elif Batuman and Elif Shafak.

For full show notes go to www.thebookclubreview.co.uk where you can also sign up to our bi-weekly newsletter, which has reviews, links and plenty of bookish inspiration to keep you going between episodes.

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or drop us a line at [email protected].

Subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate and review the show, it helps other listeners find us.

In celebration of our 100th episode we turn the spotlight on ourselves a little more than usual to answer listeners' questions. From our favourite childhood reads to the books that shaped us as adults, from books which kept us up all night to books we disagree on (with a shocking mid-show revelation from Laura that threatens to derail the whole discussion), listen in to learn more about us as readers and how we came to make the podcast. 

Find our full show notes for this episode plus archive of all our past shows on our website, follow us on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast or Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or drop us an email at [email protected] and tell us about a book you love.

Booklist

Childhood reads

The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling

The Chalet School books by Elinor M. Brent Dyer

The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Miss Happiness and Miss Flower and Little Plum by Rumer Godden

Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Nimh by Robert C. O’Brien

Dark Canyon by Louis L’Amour

A Devil to Ride by Patricia Leitch

Cobbler’s Dream by Monica Dickens

Howl’s Moving Castle and other books by Diana Wynne Jones

The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper

White Boots, Ballet Shoes, Theatre Shoes, Hollywood Shoes by Noel Streatfield

Transition books

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien

General books

Night Flight by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

The Prophets of Eternal Fjord by Kim Leine

Mrs Death Misses Death by Salena Godden

Normal People by Sally Rooney

The Moth and the Mountain by Ed Caesar

The Time-Travellers Wife by Audrey Niffenneger

Watership Down by Douglas Adams

Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart

The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

The Idiot by Elif Batuman

Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason

The Ascent of Rum Doodle by W. E. Bowman

Happy All the Time by Laurie Colwin

The Neapolitan Quartet by Elena Ferrante

The Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

Miss Iceland by Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir

Parisian Lives by Deidre Bair

The Rest is Noise by Alex Ross

West With the Night by Beryl Markham

Travels by Michael Crichton

It’s here. After weeks of reading, tons of post-it notes and a WhatsApp group busy with thoughts flying back and forth we proudly present our 2021 Women’s Prize episode. We’re joined by returning podcast guests Elizabeth Morris and Sarah Oliver to review all six shortlisted titles. This is book club so expect the full range of opinions, find out what we loved, and what we didn’t, but we’ve also worked hard to keep the spoilers away so you can enjoy the show and still enjoy the books. Which are your favourites? Listen in and see if you agree with us as we attempt to pick a winner.

Booklist

Unsettled Ground by Claire Fuller

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi

How the One Armed Sister Sweeps Her House by Cherie Jones

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

No-One is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood

Don’t miss Crib Notes, the newsletter by Elizabeth Morris for new and busy mothers – an essential monthly run-down of the very best books from the practical to the poetic. She includes just the right information about each, and offers different suggestions according to whether you want something to sink into, or you only have time to scroll.

Follow us between episodes on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Were you jumping up and down with thoughts on any of the books we discussed today? Drop us a line and let us know, we always love to hear from you. And don’t miss our website, thebookclubreview.co.uk for our full archive of shows and to sign up to our weekly newsletter. It comes out on Sundays and is full of reading inspiration for the week ahead.

A magazine that has always been dear to our hearts is Penguin's Happy Reader, an occasional publication that takes inspiration from the idea of a book club. In the early days of the podcast we were delighted to interview its editor Seb Emina. To celebrate the launch of The Happy Reader's latest edition we're releasing that interview again. From the thinking that goes into every issue, from treasure hunts to the perfect way to drink your tea, from book recommendations to unusual ideas for book club meet ups, this episode has it all. 

Booklist

So many books are mentioned in passing in this episode, but in particular Seb talks about 

The Book of Tea by Kakuzo Okakura

We by Yevgeny Zamyatin (and listen in to episode 9 of the pod for our full book club discussion on that one)

Teaching a Stone to Talk by Annie Dillard

You can find out more about The Happy Reader, buy the latest issue or subscribe at their website thehappyreader.com. You can also sign up to their newsletter, Happy Readings, where once a month you’ll get a little dose of Happy Readerness in your inbox. Seb is on Instagram and Twitter @sebemina

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Don’t miss our website, thebookclubreview.co.uk, where you can find our archive of almost 100 shows to browse through and sign up for our weekly newsletter. It comes out on Sundays, and it full of reading inspiration for your week ahead.

Join us as we discuss The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. It's a modern classic, 1989 Booker Prize winner and the author is also the winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature but none of this led Laura to hold back, calling it 'dull' and incredibly slow reading. But, of course, hers is not the only voice, so listen in to find out what Kate thought, and what Laura's book club thought. We've also got some book recommendations for your next book club read.

Booklist

Mrs Dalloway and To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

Amsterdam and On Chesil Beach by Ian McKewan

Staying On by Paul Scott.

If you enjoyed this show check out our website, www.thebookclubreview.co.uk where you can find our archive of shows to browse through. You can also explore our library of book reviews and articles. If you’d like to hear more from us sign up for our weekly newsletter which comes out on Sundays and is full of reviews and recommendations to top you up with bookish inspiration for the week ahead. Sign up via the shownotes, our website or at the link in our Instagram bio.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, and on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or why not get in touch with us at [email protected] – we always love to hear from you.

And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts and never miss an episode. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate and review the show. It helps other listeners find us, so we really appreciate it.

We chat with Chrissy Ryan, founder of Bookbar, a new bookshop and bar in Kate's North London neighbourhood. Chrissy's vision is for Bookbar to be a social space where people can discover their next read and meet other readers in a place where conversation is encouraged. We loved hearing about everything from her in-house book club featuring authors like Ingrid Persaud, Brit Bennett and Curtis Sittenfeld to her shelf-medicate book subscription service – as Chrissy says, like having a literary matchmaker on speed-dial. We come up with an idea for the perfect book club party and talk favourite books. Listen in for Chrissy's must-reads out now or coming soon.

Booklist

Love After Love by Ingrid Persaud

Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers

Leonard and Hungry Paul by Rónán Hession

Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe

Bad Blood by John Carreyrou

Dopesick by Beth Macy

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

Faultlines Emily Atami

Detransition Baby by Torrey Peters

The Female Persuasion by Meg Wollizer

China Room by Sunjeev Suhota

Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason

Red Comet by Heather Clark

Conversations on Love by Natasha Lunn

For more about Bookbar check out their website.

For more from us follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Drop us a line and let us know what you’re reading – we always love to hear from you. For more listening browse our episode archive where you can also sign up for our weekly newsletter.

Our next book club read is The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. That episode is coming soon.

Listen in for Laura’s take on Matt Haig's bestselling The Midnight Library, which Kate hasn’t yet read. Should she? Meanwhile Kate gets swept into literary Paris with Samuel Beckett and Simone de Beauvoir. Laura takes us to Iceland with an immersive novel that she now wants everyone to drop everything and read, and we catch up with Deborah Levy with the third volume of her living autobiography, Real Estate. Also, we consider what it’s like to live in Iceland for two years with writer Sarah Moss, and remember Boomerang, Michael Lewis’s enjoyable (though also alarming) economic world tour, and how Iceland’s fishermen took to currency speculation like ducks to water.

Booklist

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

Parisian Lives by Deirdre Bair

Miss Iceland by Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir

Real Estate by Deborah Levy

Names for the Sea by Sarah Moss

Boomerang by Michael Lewis

Sign up to our weekly newsletter which comes out on Sundays and is full of reading inspiration for the week ahead. You can subscribe via the link in our Instagram bio or on our website, thebookclubreview.co.uk.

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Drop us a line and let us know what you’re reading – we always love to hear from you.

Join us as we tackle this unusual book that mixes prose with poetry and a play script, in which Death is embodied in the form of an old black woman. Mrs Death befriends a young writer, Wolf, who agrees to ghost-write her memoirs. Laura and her book club had strong reactions against this book. It’s up to Kate and our special guest author Gary Wigglesworth to see if they can make the others see it in a different light. But are they persuasive? Listen in and see what you think.

Book list

Watership Down by Richard Adams

Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders

I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O’Farrell

Unsettled Ground by Claire Fuller

A Lonely Man by Chris Power

Grief is a Thing With Feathers by Max Porter.

Want to keep up with us between episodes? Sign up for our newsletter, or follow us for daily book reviews and recommendations on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Don't miss our website thebookclubreview.co.uk for our episode archive and library of book reviews and articles. Do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts, and never miss an episode. If you like what we do please take a moment to rate and review the show, which help other listeners find us.

Join us for this 'bookshelf' episode as we discuss the books we've been reading outside of book club. In this episode Kate gets tied up in existential knots over House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas and we consider the parallels between this 800-page fantasy bonkbuster and War and Peace. We explore the idea of ‘reading offsetting’ whereby we balance our guilty pleasures with books more worthy of our time. We rediscover the Queen of Fantasy Ursula Le Guin and remember why we think her books are so amazing. Kate pronounces ‘Don’t Touch My Hair’ by Emma Dabiri her new favourite book of the year. And we end with an excursion into Arctic landscapes and consider moving to Svaallbad where apparently you don’t need a visa! 

Books mentioned:

House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas

A Fall from Grace and Philippa Holds Court by Jennie Goutet

The Western Shore trilogy by Ursula L. Guin

Don’t Touch My Hair by Emma Dabiri

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngoze Adichie

A Woman in the Polar Night by Christiane Ritter

Terra Incognita by Sara Wheeler

Want to keep up with us between episodes? Sign up for our newsletter, or follow us for daily book reviews and recommendations on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Don't miss our website thebookclubreview.co.uk for our episode archive and library of book reviews and articles. Do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts, and never miss an episode. If you like what we do please take a moment to rate and review the show, which help other listeners find us.

Bibliotherapist and author (with Susan Elderkin) of classic books about books The Novel Cure and The Story Cure, Ella Berthoud's most recent work is The Art of Mindful Reading, a practical guide that promises to help people to read more mindfully, bringing their lives to books and books into their lives equally. As you might expect we have a lot of book recommendations in this show, plus advice on everything from how to keep a successful book journal to what to do when you’re not enjoying your book club book – we've all been there. Listen in and learn how to make the very most of your precious reading time, and even find out how to carve out more of it.

Book recommendations

What I Loved by Siri Hustvedt, The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion, Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy, The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey, The Pisces by Melissa Broder, Elijah’s Mermaid by Essie Fox, The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock by Imogen Hermes Gowar, Miss Benson’s Beetle by Rachel Joyce, A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towes and There But For The by Ali Smith

You can keep up with Ella via her website, ellaberthoud.com and don’t miss her themed sessions on Damian Barr’s Literary Salon facebook page and her Instagram and YouTube channels. And if you’re in need of a literary makeover or have something you want to work through in your life you can sign up for a bibliotherapy session at the School of Life website.

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Join us as we discuss the 2020 Costa Book of the Year, The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey. ‘A fishy tale of doomed womanhood’, even Margaret Atwood got excited about it, tweeting ‘Not your standard mermaid. No comb and glass, no Lorelei hair. No catch and release…’ This unusual novel weaves together sex, misogny and race with love, music, magic and myth, plus it throws in a few spliffs, a virginal mermaid, a crooked cop, and a chorus of vindictive women. All that in one book? Yes, indeed. Did it make for a good book club book? Listen in to find out.

Our book recommendations were Indigo by Marina Warner, Blonde Roots by Bernadine Evaristo, The Left-Hand of Darkness by Ursula Le Guin, Kitsch by Anthony Joseph, The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway and The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock by Imogen Hermes Gowar.

Want to keep up with us between episodes? Sign up for our newsletter, or follow us for daily book reviews and recommendations on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Don't miss our website thebookclubreview.co.uk for our episode archive and library of book reviews and articles. Do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts, and never miss an episode. If you like what we do please take a moment to rate and review the show, which help other listeners find us.

What is a reader's dream cookbook? One that has delicious recipes but also a wealth of literary references to inspire your next read? It turns out these books exist! With her Little Library series of cookbooks Kate Young has carved out a particular niche intertwining her love of food with the books that have inspired her and shaped her life. And so you might find a recipe for French Toast inspired by Maria Semple’s comic novel Where d’You Go Bernadette? or lemon verbena lemonade to accompany the perfect picnic inspired by Charles Ryder and Sebastian Flyte lounging on the lawn together in Brideshead Revisited. These are cookbooks with two indexes, one of things to eat, the other of things to read. We talk about lockdown cuisine, book recommendations and the difficulties of finding the right book club – and of course a ton of book recommendations.

Books mentioned were: Midnight Chicken by Ella Risbriger, A Half-Baked Idea by Olivia Potts, Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, The Stranding by Kate Sawyer, The Road by Cormac McCarthy, The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge, Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, The Song of Achilles by Madeleine Miller, Real Life by Brandon Taylor, Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, Babette’s Feast by Isak Dinesen and Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid.

And you can find all the details about Kate, her books and her recipes at her website thelittlelibrarycafe.com

Enjoyed this episode? Looking for more? Check out thebookclubreview.co.uk where you can find our archive of over 80 shows to browse through, including our most recent episode on Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart, we’ve also covered everything mega-hits like Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens and Normal People by Sally Rooney to hidden gems from the backlist like All Passion Spent by Vita Sackville-West. You can also explore our ‘library’ of book reviews and articles, and find our weekly round-ups of reading inspiration under ‘what to read’.

We’re also launching a newsletter – check the website for details of how to sign up.

Follow us for daily book reviews and recommendations on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate and review the show, and help other listeners find us.

On the one hand 'bleak, meandering and depressing' on the other a beautifully written book that has touched the hearts of its readers – but what did Kate's book club make of Douglas Stuart's 2020 Booker winner Shuggie Bain? We're joined by friend and journalist Phil Chaffee to discuss it. Has Laura managed to make it through more than the first sixty pages? Listen in to find out, plus our usual recommendations for follow-on reads.

Books recommended

Poverty Safari by Darren McGarvey

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijnveld

Follow us for daily recommendations and reviews on Instagram or Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or check out our website thebookclubreview.co.uk for our archive of over 80 episodes plus reviews, articles and reading guides. Drop us a line and let us know what you're reading for book club or any thoughts you have about the show. We love to hear from you.

Catch up on what we've been reading outside of book club, the books we choose for ourselves. If you're looking for lockdown recommendations we've got a couple of brilliant suggestions here we think you'll love, plus one book we can save you the time of having to read. We also talk upcoming reads and our newly launched Bookshop on Bookshop.org.uk

Booklist: 

Intimations by Zadie Smith

A Start in Life by Anita Brookner

Trio by William Boyd

Memorial by Bryan Washington

The Moth and the Mountain by Ed Caesar

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

We also mentioned Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner, Any Human Heart and Restless by William Boyd, Two Hours: The Quest to Run The Impossible Marathon by Ed Caesar and His Only Wife by Peace Adzo Medie

Enjoyed the show? Looking for more? Browse our complete archive of episodes at thebookclubreview.co.uk, from blockbusting bestseller Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens to life-changing non-fiction like Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker. You can also follow us for daily book reviews and recommendations on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]

We’re welcoming in a new year of reading with not one but two books, Writers & Lovers by Lily King, and Early Work by Andrew Martin. Two aspiring writers, two messy love lives, two very different books that each take the craft of writing as their main theme, one from the female perspective and one from the male. How did they compare? What did Laura’s book club make of them? Should they be on your TBR? Listen in to find out. Plus a maximalist recommendations session at the end partly because we love ‘em, and partly because we had so many great books on the subject to share.

BOOKLIST: The Wonder Boys by Michael Chabon, The Possessed and The Idiot by Elif Batuman, Bleaker House by Nell Stevens, Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney, Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan and Rainbow Milk by Paul Mendez

Browse our complete archive of episodes at thebookclubreview.co.uk, from blockbusting bestseller Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens to life-changing non-fiction like Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker. You can also follow us for daily book reviews and recommendations on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected].

A book sent from friend to friend around the world, with a notebook full of comments. Have we found the perfect Covid lockdown bookclub? We're joined by podcaster and books blogger Simon Thomas who explains how it works. We also get some wonderful book recommendations from authors you may not have read or even heard of, and catch up about his Book of the Year club (in which all the books read come from a single year). 

Books mentioned in this episode:

Once a Week by A. A. Milne, A House and its Head by Ivy Compton Burnet, We Have Always Lived in the Castle, The Haunting of Hill House, Life Among The Savages and Raising Demons by Shirley Jackson, The British Library Woman Writers series – including Chatterton Square by E.H. Young and Dangerous Ages by Rose Macaulay, The Diary of a Provincial Lady by E.M. Delafield, Tea at Four O’Clock by Janet McNeill and The Stone of Chastity by Margery Sharp

Don't miss our website, thebookclubreview.co.uk, for our archive of over 80 episodes from book club books to interviews with bookish folk. Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected].

If you want to hear more from Simon listen to his Tea or Books? Podcast, available on your podcast player of choice, or find him online at stuckinabook.com.

It's our biggest recommendations show yet, with over 50 books loved by us, our book clubs, and our three special guests.

But what were our most loved reads of 2020? Listen in for our top threes and our absolute favourites. There were some obvious contenders such as Maggie O'Farrell's Hamlet and Douglas Stuart's Shuggie Bain, but we've tried to steer clear of the main current to pick out some slightly more eclectic choices that we think will delight you as much as us.

We also hear from three special guests, Seb Emina, editor of Penguin's Happy Reader magazine, Simon Thomas of the Tea or Books podcast, and Claire Handscombe of the Brit Lit podcast. They let us know their favourite reads of 2020, and books they're looking forward to in 2021.

And last but by no means least we hear from our book clubs, who told us the books that stood out for them in 2020.

And so start off your New Year's reading resolutions in style, with a stack of books that have been tried and tested, so we know they will be good.

Check our website thebookclubreview.co.uk for full show notes including a booklist for this episode and links to buy on Bookshop.org.

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate and review the show, and help other listeners find us.

Feeling quizzical? Missing your favourite festive pub quiz? Compete along with us as Gary Wigglesworth, author of 'The Book Lover’s Quiz Book', puts us through our literary paces in another seasonal special. Will you beat us? 

For detailed show notes and links to all the podcasts we’ve mentioned today, visit our website thebookclubreview.co.uk. In the UK and Australia, you can order a copy of The Book Lover’s Quiz Book online from your favourite local bookshop, or on bookshop.org. And it’s currently available in Canada and the US as an e-book.

You can find out more about Gary and his quizzes at gpwigglesworth.co.uk, including his ready-made answer sheet to print out and use. And you can follow him on Twitter and Instagram @gpwigglesworth.

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate and review the show, we hugely appreciate it and it helps other listeners find us.

We look back over the ten books we read for bookclub in 2020. From Taffy Brodesser-Akner's snappy take on contemporary relationships with Fleishman is in Trouble, to The Memory Police, Yoko Ogawa's carefully considered look at memory and the objects that bring meaning to our lives, we read and discussed a wide range of books that we're delighted to go back and revisit – like seeing old friends. But which will be our book club book of the year?

On the shortlist:

Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner

Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang 

That Glimpse of Truth, 100 of the Finest Short Stories Ever Written

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa

Lanny by Max Porter

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri

Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld 

Bonjour Tristesse by Françoise Sagan

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected].

Do share the show link with your bookish friends, we love to find new listeners. And if you’re not already, do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts, and never miss an episode. 

What's it like to set up your own publishing business? What does it take to succeed? And how do you find the right books? We talk to Kate Macdonald of Handheld Press, who gives us some behind-the-scenes insights into running a small, independent publishers, and her mission to seek out forgotten fiction and authors who need to be rediscovered.

Business as Usual by Jane Oliver and Anne Stafford

Save Me The Waltz by Zelda Fitzgerald

The Exile Waiting by Vonda N. McIntyre

Women's Weird, Melissa Edmundson (ed.)

British Weird, James Machin (ed.)

Kingdoms of Elfin by Silvia Townsend Warner

After the Death Of Ellen Keldberg by Eddie Thomas Petersen

The Caravaners, by Elizabeth von Arnim

www.handheldpress.co.uk

For more detailed show notes and our archive of over 80 episodes go to thebookclubreview.co.uk. If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate and review the show, it helps other listeners find us.

We discuss The Memory Police, a haunting dystopian novel that explores questions of power, trauma and state surveillance written by Yoko Ogawa, one of Japan's leading contemporary novelists.

Set on an unnamed island, the narrator of The Memory Police describes how every so often something in the inhabitants' lives will disappear. Birds, roses, books, one by one these things vanish overnight and the next day people wake up to find they have lost the memory of them. The Memory Police then arrive to enforce the disappearance, rounding up and destroying all evidence of the disappeared thing. They are also on the hunt for those few members of the population who have the ability to retain their memories, something hard to disguise. These people too must disappear, but what happens to them? The narrator tries to save her friend, R, by hiding him in a concealed room. But as more and more things disappear it starts to become unclear what she is saving him for.

An uncomfortable read that provoked mixed feelings among Laura's book group, but which, on reflection, we think could have been one of the best book club books we have ever done. Listen in to hear more, why Yoko Ogawa is the Georgette Heyer of Japan, and how Laura is about to become a disappeared thing herself. Plus our recommendations for your next book club read.

Books mentioned on the show: Piranesi by Susanna Clarke, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, Never Let Me Go and The Unconsoled by Kazuo Ishiguro, We by Yevgeny Zamyatin and The Happy Reader magazine.

Find full show notes, plus our archive of over 80 episodes, book reviews and articles on our new website:  thebookclubreview.co.uk

Wondering which of the Booker shortlisted novels to read? Look no further, we've got the rundown of all of them in our Booker Prize special. We're joined by previous podcast guests Phil Chaffee and Sarah Oliver to discuss the six titles. Due to Covid we weren't able to be in the same room, but that didn't hold us back. It's book club, so whether we loved them or loathed them, you'll get to hear what we really thought. Plus we play a game of 'Snog, Marry, Avoid' with Booker books, and offer up our favourite reads from past years.

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Find full show notes including extra links on our website www.thebookclubreview.co.uk

The perfect solution when your book club wants to read a classic, but no-one quite has the energy for the 19th-century greats, Bonjour Tristesse clocks in at just over 100 pages and was written by Françoise Sagan when she was only a teenager. It became an instant bestseller in France, and subsequently around the world, and has remained a hugely popular read ever since. What did Kate's book club make of it? Did they find it fabulous or frivolous? Listen in to find out. We also have some book recommendations for your next read or book club discussion. Check out our new website for extended show notes including some extra links: www.thebookclubreview.co.uk

Book recommendations

Cheri and Claudine at School by Colette

Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Au Revoir, Tristesse by Viv Groskop

Our bookshelf episodes are the ones where we get to let our hair down and talk about the things we're reading outside of our book clubs, the books that we get to pick and choose. So listen in as Kate is bewitched by the new Susanna Clarke novel Piranesi, charmed by Shirley Jackson's memoir of raising her children in Life Among the Savages, and has a guilty confession to make about To Calais in Ordinary Time by James Meek. In Laura's stack are supernatural thriller Himself by Jess Kidd, Midnight in Sicily by Peter Robb and The Observations by Jane Harris. Not to mention some guilty pleasure reading of Georgette Heyer and Alison Croggon's fantasy series of Pellinor novels. It's a packed episode, we hope you enjoy it as much as we did making it.

For detailed notes on this episode, and over 70 other episodes of book club discussions, interviews and features you can find us at our new website: www.thebookclubreview.co.uk. Drop us a line there and say hello, we'd love to hear from you. Tell us what books are keeping you turning the pages right now?

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to us on iTunes, it helps other listeners find us and means you’ll never miss an episode.

More than ever as we gradually emerge from lockdown we find ourselves appreciating the natural world and the joys of walking. The perfect time then to revisit our interview with Emily’s Walking Book Club to hear about the inherent pleasures of walking and talking about books. And picking up on the theme we have some handpicked recommendations for you, perfect for topping up your TBR pile.

From past-podcast favourites such as Peter Matthiessen’s Snow Leopard to new release The Well Gardened Mind by Sue Stuart-Smith, we found walking and the natural world an easy fit when it came to recommendations. Laura has a theory that all readers like walking, and walkers like reading. But is she right? Or maybe like Kate you try to do both at the same time. Listen in to hear all about it.

For more information about Emily’s walking book club including what’s coming up and how to book tickets, check out Emily’s website emilyrhodeswriter.com

Books mentioned by Emily: The True Deceiver by Tove Jansson, West with the Night by Beryl Markham, Westwood by Stella Gibbons, All Passion Spent by Vita Sackville-West, The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd, As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning by Laurie Lee, Someone at a Distance by Dorothy Whipple, Beware of Pity by Stefan Zweig, and Brodeck’s Report by Philippe Claudel. 

Kate and Laura's recommendations: The Salt Path by Raynor Wynn, The Gift by Alison Croggon, The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen, The Old Ways by Robert Macfarlane, Flâneuse: Women Walk the City by Lauren Elkin, and The Well-Gardened Mind by Sue Stuart-Smith.

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or drop us a line at [email protected]. And if you’re not already, do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.

In real life, Bill Clinton asked Hillary Rodham to marry him three times before she finally said yes. The rest is history. But in Sittenfeld’s alternative world, Hillary says no, and their lives diverge from there. Hillary is alone and heartbroken, but she’s also free to pursue her own political ambitions – and free from the humiliating sexual scandals that will plague Bill’s political career. 

Sittenfeld deftly mines the ‘What if?” possibilities of her premise, but does the novel live up to the hype? Or is it just literary fan fiction? An exercise in wishful thinking? 

Journalist Phil Chaffee joins us to give Rodham the full book club treatment. It’s a no holds barred discussion as we try to figure out whether the novel is an ingenious yet plausible glimpse of an alternative reality, or just a writer capitalising on a famous name. 

What is your book club reading next?

At the end of the show, keep listening for our follow-on recommendations, all inspired by Rodham. In this episode, that includes:

• American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld
• Becoming by Michelle Obama
• What Happened by Hillary Rodham Clinton
• ‘Up, Simba’ from Consider the Lobster and Other Essays by David Foster Wallace 
• Political Fictions by Joan Didion
• Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin

Other books mentioned in this episode:

• Prep, Sisterland and You Think It, I’ll Say It by Curtis Sittenfeld

Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace

'Beach read', 'holiday read', 'summer read'. This year there’s another term in the mix: the ‘stay-cation read’. But whatever you call it, for us summer reading is all about choice. Reading what you want. Not reading what you should. 

So, what do YOU feel like reading? Well, we’re here to help you decide. Speed read. Comforting classic. Wish fulfillment romance. Genre-bending Whodunnit. Rollicking historical epic. Forgotten 1930s gem. We’ve got you covered. 

Listen in to find your perfect ‘beach read’ – even if you’re nowhere near a beach. 

We’re joined by Emily of the Walking Book Group of Hampstead Heath, Elizabeth Morris of the Crib Notes newsletter, friend and journalist Phil Chaffee – who joins us on upcoming episode devoted to Rodham – and Simon of the Tea and Books podcast.

This show is all about recommendations. Here’s a list of everything we cover:

• Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
• Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner
• Sea of Poppies by Amitav Gosh
• Highland Fling by Nancy Mitford
• Middlemarch by George Eliot
• Humankind: A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman
• Business As Usual by Jane Oliver and Ann Stafford
• The Bookshop on the Shore by Jenny Colgan
• The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
• Blonde Roots by Bernadine Evaristo

Also mentioned:

• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
• Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of Empire by Akala 
• The Meaning of Rice by Michael Booth
• Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld
• Beloved by Toni Morrison
• War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
• Love in a Cold Climate, The Pursuit of Love and Wigs on the Green by Nancy Mitford
• In an Antique Land by Amitav Ghosh
• Effi Briest by Theodor Fontane
• H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald
• The Road by Cormac McCarthy
• Lord of the Flies by William Golding
• Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo

You can find out more about Emily’s Walking Book Club, including how to join, here. We’d also encourage you to watch Emily sing the praises of Middlemarch, part of her brilliant lockdown series.

Have a listen to Tea or Books with Simon (Stuck in a Book) and Rachel (Book Snob) as they debate ideas around books. Warning: have your notepad at the ready, as this show will leave you with a ton of recommendations.

For more recommendations, from the back list to the hottest new new releases, sign up for Crib Notes, Elizabeth Morris’s monthly newsletter. Follow her on Instagram @cribnotesbookclub and Twitter @elizabethmoya for more tips and reviews.

It’s a summer sizzler of a Bookshelf with rave reviews from both Laura and Kate for their eclectic books of choice. For Kate, it’s all about hot contemporary reads, including Carmen Maria Machado's In the Dream House, an eye-opening memoir about an abusive lesbian relationship. Whereas Laura’s enchanted by the African adventures of 1930s aviatrix Beryl Markham, and dazzled by William Melvin Kelley’s portrait of a black musician in Jazz Age America.

Listen in to hear what we made of…

In The Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

Uncanny Valley by Anna Wiener

Morning by Allan Jenkins

West with the Night by Beryl Markham

A Drop of Patience by William Melvin Kelley

The Mirror & the Light by Hilary Mantel

Also mentioned on this episode:

A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen

Out of Africa by Karen Blixen

Mrs Hemingway by Naomi Wood

Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou – listen in to episode 55 for a full discussion

Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris

Plot 29 by Allan Jenkins

Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker – listen in to episode 38 for a full discussion

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. 

If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts – we love to hear from you, and you’ll never miss an episode.

The short story. Sad sister to the novel? Or pinnacle of the literary form? In this episode, Laura sets out to persuade Kate, self-professed short story sceptic, she’s got it all wrong. 

Since the Covid Crisis went global, Laura’s book club has been working their way through That Glimpse of Truth: 100 of the Finest Short Stories Ever Written selected by the late literary agent David Miller. One short story, once a week, with a Zoom chat every Monday to discuss it. 

Listen in to hear the standout stories – and if Kate is convinced.

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Books mentioned on this episode:

Too Much Happiness by Alice Munroe

The Tenth of December by George Saunders

Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang, which we discussed in detail on episode 63.

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Laura’s book club read:

That Glimpse of Truth: 100 of the Finest Short Stories Ever Written, selected by David Miller

Stories from the collection mentioned on the show:

‘Mr Know-All’ by W. Somerset Maugham

‘The Tell-Tale Heart’ by Edgar Allan Poe

‘The Children Stay’ by Alice Munro

‘D’Accord Baby’ by Hanif Kureishi

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Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReviewPodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or email [email protected]. 

Subscribe to us and never miss an episode. And if you like what we do please take a moment to rate and review us! It helps other listeners find us.

In honour of National Reading Group Day and World Refugee Day, we discuss The Beekeeper of Aleppo, the bestselling novel by Christy Lefteri. 

It’s a heartrending and important novel. The story of Nuri and Afra, a devastated couple forced to flee their home in Aleppo in the hopes of reaching safety in the UK.

Harrowing and haunting, it’s a must read. But did it make for a good discussion book? Is there any hope amid the heartbreak? Listen in to find out.

We sat down to discuss it with special guest and fellow podcast host Anna Baillie Karas of Books on the Go.

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If you’d like to be more involved, Christy Lefteri suggests at the end of her book that you seek out the following organisations:

Open Cultural Centre, an NGO and education project in northern Greece

Faros (The Lighthouse), a Christian non-profit providing humanitarian care in Athens

Salusbury World, a charity supporting refugees in the UK.

The Buzz Project, a Yorkshire charity founded by the Syrian apiarist Professor Ryad Alsous.

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Books mentioned in this episode:

The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri

No Friend but the Mountains by Behrouz Boochani

The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan

Disoriental by Negar Djavadi

I Will Never See the World Again by Ahmet Altan

What Is The What by Dave Eggers

Cleanness by Garth Greenwell

How Much of These Hills Is Gold by C Pam Zhang

The Nickel Boys and Zone One by Colson Whitehead

Simon the Fiddler and The News of the World by Paulette Jiles

Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke

Au Revoir, Tristesse by Viv Groskop

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Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReviewPodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or email [email protected]. 

Subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts to never miss an episode. And if you like what we do please take a moment to rate and review us. It helps other listeners find us.

We cross the Atlantic to catch up with Claire Handscombe, presenter and producer of BritLit, a fortnightly podcast that tracks what's going on in the British publishing world.

We talk about Claire's novel Unscripted, which she highly recommends as a beach read, whether you're able to go to an actual beach or just have to make do with a deckchair in your garden.

Claire also gives us a shelf's worth of great book recommendations, plus some top tips for anyone thinking of making a books podcast of their own. 

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Books mentioned in this episode: 

Unscripted by Claire Handscombe

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

Little Fires Everywhere by Celest Ng

The Roxy Letters by Mary Pauline Lowry

The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole by Sue Townsend

Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Rules for Being a Girl by Candice Bushnell and Katy Cotugno

What You Wish For by Katherine Center

Head over Heels by Hannah Orenstein

The Book of Hidden Wonders by Polly Crosby

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For more details on Claire, check out her website Britlitblog.com. We also love her Twitter feed @britlitpodcast, which is regularly updated with great links from the book world.

For any Wingnuts out there who might be listening, you can also check out Claire's book Walk With Us: How the West Wing Changed Our Lives.

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If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. Do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts and take a moment to rate and  review us, it helps other listeners find us and means you’ll never miss an episode. Plus we love to hear from you.

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens is a publishing phenomenon: a debut novel that has sold more print copies in 2019 than any other adult title, fiction or non-fiction. 

Appropriately, given our current Corona lockdown situation, it’s a book about a girl who lives isolated in the wilderness, wrestling with loneliness. The plot draws together romance, crime and a courtroom drama building to a suspenseful conclusion.

A page-turner, then, but what did Kate's book club make of it? Listen in to find out. 

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Books mentioned on this episode:

Don't Lets Go to the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller, The Five by Hallie Rubenhold, Furious Hours by Casey Cep, In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald and The Outrun by Amy Liptrot.

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For more book reviews and recommendations between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected].

Do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts and if you like what we do please help other listeners to find us by taking a moment to rate and review us on iTunes, we always appreciate it.

We love our book clubs, but what do we read when we get to choose for ourselves? In this episode we have an eclectic mix, encompassing everything from hot new releases to out-of-print old childhood favourites, with some musing on just what it is we’re looking for in a good Lockdown read. 

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Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

Weather by Jenny Offill

The Hottest Dishes of the Tartar Cuisine by Alina Bronsky

Early Riser by Jasper Fforde

Home by Abu Bakr Al Rabeeah

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Keep up with us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected], and if you enjoyed this episode please rate us on iTunes and subscribe, we hugely appreciate it.

The London Metropolitan Archives was established to collect, preserve, celebrate and share the stories of London and Londoners. They also have a book club. We sit down with Claire Titley and Charlie Turpie to learn more about it in an episode chock-full of great reading suggestions.

If you’re interested in joining the London Metropolitan Archives book club you can stay up to date with all their events by following them on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter @ldnmetarchives. And you can find Claire on Instagram @clairelouisetitley and Charlie @charliebooksandcoffee

Books mentioned in this episode were:

Penelope Lively’s City of the Mind

This is London by Ben Judah, and do check out our episode 9 for my book club’s spirited discussion of that book

Margery Allingham’s Campion Novels, including The Tiger in the Smoke

Mrs Dalloway and The Years by Virginia Woolf,

Mr Loverman and Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo

James Boswell's London Journal,

Hangover Square by Patrick Hamilton

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

Ben Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London series

Next episode: Bookshelf, in which we discuss Exciting Times by Naoise Doolan, Early Riser by Jasper Fforde, Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid, The Hottest Dishes of the Tatar Cuisine by Alina Bronsky, Weather by Jenny Offill and Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell. That episode is coming soon.

Next up for book club is Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, a haunting tale of love and murder set in the marshland of South Carolina that has found millions of readers, topping bestseller lists around the world, but what did my book club think? Were they as ravished as Reese Witherspoon, who didn’t read the last ten pages because she didn’t want the book to end. Coming soon.

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. If you like what we do please take a moment to rate and review us on iTunes, we really appreciate it.

Part novel, part poem, Lanny evokes a typical English village whose residents are observed by an ancient spirit of nature – with a particular interest in one child.

The Guardian called it ‘...a fable, a collage, a dramatic chorus, a joyously stirred cauldron of words’, but what did Kate's book club make of it?

We discuss, and share some recommendations for your next book club read, including Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss and The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry.

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Books mentioned on this episode:

Grief is the Thing With Feathers by Max Porter

Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss

Gwelio, Memories of a Hong Kong Childhood by Martin Booth

The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry

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If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to us, it helps other listeners find us and means you’ll never miss an episode. 

Comfort reads to curl up with? Or books that provoke, stimulate and challenge? In this episode, we share our latest lockdown reads.

We stay close to home with period drama Belgravia by Julian Fellowes, and London-based fantasy Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. We escape to Provence with unreconstructed male-wish-fulfillment novel Hotel Pastis by Peter Mayle, and escape altogether with the Farseer Trilogy by Robin Cobb. We're delighted by heartwarming romance Hunting and Gathering by Anna Gavalda, and intrigued by Lost at Sea by Jon Ronson. We walk in the footsteps of Raynor Winn on The Salt Path and finally consider the practicalities of sheep farming with The Shepherd's Life by James Rebanks.

For many parents home-schooling their children over the coming weeks, the idea of reading in snatches of borrowed time will strike a strong chord.

After the birth of her son, Elizabeth Morris decided to put her career in the book world to good use and set up Crib Notes, a book club in newsletter form. Every month, she curates the perfect book recommendations for new and busy mothers. ‘Sometimes you just need a little spark of mental stimulation to remind you of who you are beyond being a mother’, Elizabeth explains.

Listen in for some fantastic book recommendations – for all readers, not just mums! – and some great practical tips for how to fit in reading when all you have are stolen moments.

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Sign up for Crib Notes at tinyletter.com/CribNotes

Find Elizabeth on Twitter @elizabethmoya and on Instagram @cribnotesbookclub

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Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo

My Wild and Furious Nights by Clover Stroud

Constellations, Sinead Gleeson

I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O’Farrell

Weather by Jenny Offill

The Panic Years, Nell Frizzell

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

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Keep up with what we're doing between episodes on Instagram and facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, and email us anytime at [email protected], we'd love to hear from you. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to us, it helps other listeners find us and means you'll never miss an episode.

Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang clocked in at number 80 on The Guardian's list of the 100 Best Books of the 21st Century. Barack Obama's a fan too. But what about Laura's book club? What did they make of this mesmerising collection of eight stories, one of which formed the basis of the film Arrival starring Amy Adams?

Real-life rocket scientists Kristy and Ed join the discussion and weigh in on the big questions. Like, will reading Chiang make you more intelligent? Do you have to be a sci-fi devotee to enjoy these stories? And finally, did the book make for a good book club discussion? All this, plus some great book recommendations for your next read.

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Find us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast

on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod

email [email protected]

Please do take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to us on iTunes, it helps other listeners find us and means you’ll never miss an episode.

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Books mentioned

This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal el-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Wally Funk's Race for Space: The Extraordinary Story of a Female Aviation Pioneer by Sue Nelson

Pavane by Keith Roberts

Ed's author recommendations: John Brunner, James Blish ('Cities in Flight' and 'The Seedling Stars' [with the puddle story 'Surface Tension'] among others), and Algis Budrys

Laura reports in on The Wych Elm by Tana French, The Heart's Invisible Furies by John Boyne and The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman. Kate's stack consists of Love by Hanne Ostavik, The Anna Karenina Effect by Viv Groskop and Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons. Join us as we review them and figure out if there are any book club gems in there.

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Drop us a line at [email protected], follow us on facebook or instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast or on twitter @bookclubrvwpod. And if you enjoy the show do take a moment to rate and review us on iTunes, it helps other listeners find us and brings us joy.

Fleishman is in Trouble tells the story of Toby, a successful NYC doctor whose almost ex-wife Rachel has vanished, leaving him alone with their two children. But is she the selfish, self-absorbed, neglectful mother he portrays? 

It’s been described as a Trojan Horse of a novel, a sharp, dry portrait of the blind spots that come with male privilege and entitlement. But what did Laura’s book club make of it? Listen in to find out.

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This Tom Hanks Story Will Help You Feel Less Bad (New York Times)

How Taffy Brodesser-Akner Thrives on Stress (Real Simple magazine)

Reading the right books is key to making your book club a success. But how to choose?

Listen in to hear the top 10 books we think make for perfect book club reads. They vary from fiction to non-fiction, and cut across every genre and subject. But they're all highly readable, packed full of ideas and will divide opinion – always good for a sparky debate.

Want more? See below for links to the episodes where we've discussed these books in more detail.

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1. Educated by Tara Westover. Episode 22

2. Putney by Sofka Zinovieff

3. Bad Blood by John Carreyrou. Episode 55

4. Supper Club by Lara Williams

5. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson. Episode 33

6. Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari. 

7. East West Street by Philippe Sands. Episode 18

8. The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

9. Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders. Episode 8

10. This is London by Ben Judah. Episode 9

Ready to start your own book club? 

This special episode tells you how, from who to invite and what books (or genre) to read, to the pitfalls you’ll want to avoid.

It's packed full of inspiration and advice from book clubs we’ve interviewed over the years, including the Proust Book Group in Paris, London's own Jilly Cooper book club, a Horror Book Club and the Walking Book Club of Hampstead Heath.

We've even come up with the top 10 recommended book club books guaranteed to get the discussing going. So, listen in for everything you need to know to start and run a flourishing book group. 

How to find the right book club books? Here are some of our recommended places to look: newspapers summer reading guides and end of year lists, in particular The Times and Sunday Times, The Guardian, The Observer and The Financial Times, The Washington Post and the New York Times; prizes The Booker Prize, The Booker International Prize (for books in translation), The Women's Prize, The Wainwright Prize (for nature writing), The Costa Book Awards, The Goldsmiths Prize (for books that open up new possibilities in the novel form), The Baillie Gifford Prize (for non-fiction), The Walter Scott Prize (for historical-fiction), in the US The National Book Award, the Pulitzer, Barack Obama's annual reading list, in Australia the Miles Franklin and the Stella Prize, and back in Europe Kate's favourite, The Dublin Literary Award (for books nominated by libraries around the world)

Book clubs mentioned in the show:

Emily's Walking Book Club of Hampstead Heath

Simon Thomas's Book of the Year Club

The Horror Book Club

The Lesbian Book Club

The London Literary Salon (Toby Brothers)

Ink84 Bookshop book club

In our stacks this episode: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah, Becoming by Michelle Obama, Seven Days in the Artworld by Sarah Thornton, 84 Charing Cross Road and The Duchess of Bloomsbury by Helene Hanff and Help Me! by Marianne Power. Listen in to find out what we thought of them, and whether there are any gems in there for your next book club read.

Pat Barker's retelling of the Iliad from the female perspective proves a surprisingly marmite read. It was shortlisted for the Women's Prize and received widespread critical praise but Kate's book club was less convinced.  Listen in to find out whether we loved or loathed it, plus some recommendations for your next book club read.

Laura's off for this episode, back for our next Bookshelf show, coming soon. THIS SHOW CONTAINS PLOT SPOILERS.

A book club for people who don't like the idea of all having to read the same book. At Bee's Bookshare everyone brings a book they’ve loved, loathed, can’t put down or can’t get into and shares them – best of all everyone gets to take away a new read at the end. We met up with Bryony Bishop, founder of Bee’s Bookshare, to find out more.

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Books mentioned:

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

Norwegian Wood by Lars Mytting

Stoner by John Williams

God Help the Child by Toni Morrison

Having a Wonderful Crime by Craig Rice

Salt on your Tongue by Charlotte Runcie.

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Bees Bookshare meets every other month, visit beesbookshare.co.uk for the latest event details and news.

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Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to us on iTunes, it helps other listeners find us and means you’ll never miss an episode. Thanks :)

We delve into the whirlwind story of Elizabeth Holmes and her biotech company Theranos. At its height, valued at 9 billion dollars. At its heart, a product that didn't work.

In this compelling book, Wall Street Journal writer John Carreyrou sets out his dogged efforts to penetrate the wall of fear and intimidation that hid the truth. Gripping stuff, but did it make for a good book club read? What did Kate's book club think?

Listen in to find out. 

Listen in as we discuss the books we've reading outside of book club. In Laura's stack: Washington Black by Esi Edugyan, The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch and Queenie, by Candice Carty Williams, while Kate has The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead, The Friend by Sigrid Nunez and The Easternmost House by Juliet Blaxland. We also discuss the Wainwright Prize shortlist, how to dip into your TBR and whether there are any gems in all of these for your next book club read.

Annie and Dave tell us about their family book club that has kept their family engaging with books and debating their merits for seven years now. They give us their tips for making it work and we follow up with some recommendations for books we might try out on our own families.

A sweeping and evocative portrait of an Egyptian family at a time of great social change, from Nobel Prizewinning author Naguib Mahfouz. 'Writing worthy of a Tolstoy, a Flaubert or a Proust' said The Independent newspaper but what did Laura's book club make of it? Listen in to find out, plus lots of great recommendations to help you find your next book club read.

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Recommendations were Women of Sand and Myrrh by Hanan Al-Shaykh, The Yacoubian Building by Alaa Al Aswany, A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth and Sally recommended The Map of Love by Ahdef Soueif and The Balkan Trilogy by Olivia Manning.

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If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you like what we do please do take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to us on iTunes, it helps other listeners find us and means you’ll never miss an episode.

Our latest interview is with Tyona Campbell, owner of Barnabees, a very special secondhand bookshop tucked away in the small Suffolk village of Westleton.

Tyona tells us about how her shop is in a small way a protest against the data-gathering online giants, why in her shop you don’t so much find the books as they find you, and why books benefit from being coddled and canoodled. She also has a couple of great recommendations for your next book club read.

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Follow Barnabees on Instagram @barnabeesbooks, and if you want to visit in person the shop is located on the Yoxford Road in Westleton, IP17 2AF. It's open Thursday–Sunday 11am–5pm.

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If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow BCRP on Instagram or Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you like what we do please do take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to us on iTunes, it helps other listeners find us and means you’ll never miss an episode.

The Happy Reader is a magazine that takes the idea of a book club as its inspiration. To celebrate the launch of their latest issue we're revisiting one of our favourite interviews, with editor Seb Emina. He told us about the careful thinking and attention to detail that goes into putting the magazine together plus has some great book recommendations and a radical suggestion for a book club where no-one is allowed to mention the book club book. Intrigued? Then listen on.

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Find out more about The Happy Reader magazine and read along with their next book of the season at www.thehappyreader.com

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Books recommended were Teaching a Stone to Talk by Annie Dillard, The Book of Tea by Kakuzo Okakura and We by Yevgeny Zamyatin, which we also covered in episode 13 of the podcast.

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If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or why not drop us a line at [email protected] and tell us about your book club. And if you’re not already, do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.

My Sister the Serial Killer, Oyinkan Braithwaite's superbly titled debut novel, has been one of the literary sensations of 2019 –nominated for the Women's Prize for Fiction and long listed for the Booker.

But what did both our book clubs make of it? Does it merit all the acclaim? Listen in to find out. 

Heads up: it's SPOILER-full, so don't listen unless you've read the book, or have no intention of reading it.

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Books mentioned on this episode:

Ponti by Sharlene Teo, Half of a Yellow Sun, Why We Should All be Feminists, and Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngoze Adiche and Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata. 

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On our next book club show, we’ll be discussing Palace Walk, the first novel in Nobel Prize-winner Naguib Mahfouz's Cairo Trilogy.

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To keep up with us between shows follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected].

And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. If you have time to rate and review us we will love you forever, it helps other listeners find our pod.

Tucked away in London's Soho is a hidden gem of a bookshop. The Second Shelf sells rare and antiquarian books, modern first editions, ephemera, manuscripts, and rediscovered works – all by women.

We sit down with proprietor A. N. Devers to learn how she went from rare-book dealing to shopkeeping. We also hear about the bookshelves that regularly make customers gasp, and why all women should think about collecting books by women writers.

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For more information check out The Second Shelf's website www.thesecondshelf.com, find them on Twitter @secondshelfbks or Instagram @secondshelfbooks

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If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.

It’s a slight volume, but packs a powerful punch. Each of its short essays was smuggled out of the prison where Altan serves – and continues to serve – a life sentence.

The book has been championed by author, international human rights lawyer and general real-life Mark Darcy figure Philippe Sands, while writer A. L. Kennedy said ‘Read this – it will explain why you ever read anything, why anyone ever writes.’ But what did Kate’s book club make of it?

Listen in to find out. Plus our usual range of recommendations for your next book club read.

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Books mentioned on this episode:

• A Strangeness in my Mind by Orhan Pamuk
• A Day in the Life of Yvan Denisovich by Alexander Solyenitzhn
• The Myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camus
• Birds Without Wings by Louis de Bernières

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If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.

Ever dreamed of owning a bookstore? How about one a stone's throw from the beach? When she realised the British seaside town of Margate didn't have a bookshop for new titles, Francesca Wilkins realised it would be the perfect place to realise her lifelong ambition and launch her own store. Listen in for the behind-the-scenes story, some great book recommendations and the secret, in a nutshell, to running a successful bookshop. 

In our Bookshelf shows we discuss the books we're reading outside of book club, the ones we get to pick and choose! Join us as we successfully identify a book perfect for beach reading this summer, get to the bottom of Kate's problem with audio books (and the cure, The Shepherd's Hut by Tim Winton), muse on what it’s like reading a book when there’s no cover image (the joys of the elegant but inscrutable Fitzcarraldo edition), discuss Laura’s intentions to set aside lightweight fluff and get back into some serious reading and hear Kate’s true-life encounter with Philippa Perry, author of ‘The Book You Wish Your Parents had Read’.

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Books mentioned in this episode: Becoming by Michelle Obama, A Brief History of Seven Killings and Black Leopard Red Wolf by Marlon James, The Shepherd's Hut by Tim Winton, Transcription by Kate Atkinson, Drive Your Plow over the Bones of the Dead, Flights and The Books of Jacob by Olga Tokarczuk, Mr Salary by Sally Rooney, The Book You Wish Your Parents had Read by Philippa Perry and The Age of Light by Whitney Scharer

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If you'd like to see what we're up to between episodes follow us on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Facebook and Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email us at [email protected]

Subscribe, like us, leave a comment, we love all that, and never miss an episode. Thanks for listening and happy reading.

If you've ever dreamed of switching everything off and being able to read for hours, then this is the show for you. Reading Retreats run holidays where people can rediscover their love of uninterrupted reading but what is the experience really like? Your intrepid reporter from The Book Club Review went along to Matlock in Derbyshire with a stack from the TBR pile to find out.

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To find out more about Reading Retreats check out their website www.readingretreat.co.uk, or find them on facebook and twitter @retreatandread.

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Books mentioned on this show were: The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton, The Western Wind by Samantha Harvey; in Annie's stack were A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles, A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab, Sofia Khan is Not Obliged by Aisha Malik, Rosewater by Tade Thompson, Belonging by Umi Sinha and Among Others by Jo Walton; in Sheila's stack were The Only Story by Julian Barnes, Revenge on the Rye by Alice Castle, Washington Black by Esi Edugyan and Broken Ground by Val McDermid and A Boy in Winter by Rachel Seiffert; Sarah Ward recommended The Silence of the Sea by Yrsa Sigurdardottir and The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters; and in my stack were Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner, There There by Tommy Orange, Bad Blood by Jon Carreyrou and Asymmetry by Lisa Halliday.

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If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.

One book club in south London have found a way to get even more out of their book club meetings, and that's to invite the authors along. Listen in to hear more about the 'Wilde Imagination' book club, plus tips on how to manage your group so that everyone, from the loudest to the quietest, gets to have a say.

Books mentioned on this show: A Girl In Traffick by Mamta Valderrama, Eleanor Oliphant is Perfectly Fine by Gail Honeyman, Victoria & Abdul: The True Story of the Queen's Closest Confidant by Shrabani Basu, The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North, A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles and Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod or leave us a comment on iTunes, we'd love to hear from you. Subscribe and never miss an episode.

We're joined by author Phyllis Richardson to discuss Golden Hill, Francis Spufford's rollicking historical novel. It has plot full of more twists and turns than a slide at Centerparcs so we've split the episode into two; the first half is the safety zone where we won't spoil the plot for you, but if you have read it and want to dive deeper listen on for part two. Come back to us at the end for our recommendations and to hear more about Phyllis's wonderful book about authors and their houses, House of Fiction. 

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Books mentioned: The Prophets of Eternal Fjord by Kim Leine (discussed in full detail in episode 6 of the pod), The Sealwoman's Gift by Sally Magnusson, The Western Wind by Samantha Harvey, Tristram Shandy by Laurence Sterne.

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House of Fiction by Phyllis Richardson is published by Unbound.

Masterpiece from the contemporary heir to Samuel Beckett or demanding endurance read with not nearly enough paragraph breaks? We debate Anna Burns' Booker-Prize winning novel – a tale of suffocating gossip, ever-present violence and one young woman’s struggle to retain her sense of self during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. For this show we were joined by @jenny.mccullough who brought a fascinating perspective to it from her Northern Irish background.

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Books mentioned: The People's Act of Love by James Meek, A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing by Eimear Macbride, Days Without End by Sebastian Barry, Troubles by J. G. Farrell, The Trial by Franz Kafka, The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry.

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The twitter feed Jenny mentions is from Dr. Caroline Magennis, @DrMagennis, for Northern Irish literature recommendations.

For a ton of great recommendations most of which were new to us we turned to Anna Bailie Karas from Australian podcast Books on the Go. Listen in to hear about some books that might be new to you, or ones that you might have overlooked when they came out. And finally a book that has all of Australia buzzing that's not yet been published in the UK...

Find Books on the Go on iTunes, and on all other major podcast platforms, or check out their website . Find Anna on Instagram @abailliekaras

Books mentioned on the show:

The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai

My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite

The Trauma Cleaner by Sarah Krasnostein

The Erratics by Vicki Laveau-Harvie

No Friend But the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison by Behrouz Boochani

The Dry, Force of Nature and The Lost Man by Jane Harper, outback crime novels

We That Are Young by Preti Taneja

Asymmetry by Lisa Halliday

The Museum of Modern Love by Heather Rose

Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton

An American Marriage by Tayari Jones

The Shepherd’s Hut by Tim Winton

What happens when all the black people in a Southern town decide to pack their things and leave? First published in 1962 A Different Drummer by William Melvin Kelly had been largely forgotten until rediscovered by journalist Kathryn Schulz. Her New Yorker article put it back on the map. Laura's book club were intrigued by the story, but did it live up to the cultural hype? Meanwhile Kate's book club tackled If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin, a moving story of love in the face of injustice set in Harlem, New York. The Hollywood film adaptation was nominated for several awards but what did we think of the book? Listen in to find out.

What are we reading outside of book club? In Kate's stack this episode: Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss, Born to Run by Christopher McDougall, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami and Today Will Be Different by Maria Semple. In Laura's: Heartburn by Nora Ephron, You Think it I’ll Say It by Curtis Sittenfeld, The Western Wind by Samantha Harvey and The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock by Imogen Hermes Gowar. Listen in to hear what we thought of them, the hits and misses and whether there are any book club gems in there.

So often in the reading world we are chasing the latest new release, so it was a great pleasure to interview Simon Thomas who specialises in seeking out books from the past. We explore his unusual take on a book club where he and like-minded book bloggers read and review books from a particular year in the last century. This interview is full of gems and some great book club suggestions, so have a pen ready at the end!

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Next up for the Book of the Year Club is 1965 and it starts in April. Check out Simon's website www.stuckinabook.com for more info. You can also find him on Instagram @Simonedwardthomas and on Twitter @stuck_inabook. And finally we recommend curling up for a listen to Simon's own podcast, Tea or Books, available on iTunes, in which he and his friend Rachel (Book Snob) debate the difficult decisions of reading and books.

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Books mentioned on this show: The Provincial Lady by E. M. Delafield, Merry Hall by Beverly Nichols, Quartet in Autumn by Barbara Pym, Miss Hargreaves by Frank Baker, The Museum of Cheats by Silvia Townsend Warner, Little and Alva and Irva, both by Edward Carey and Simon’s top book club suggestion Another Part of the Woods by Beryl Bainbridge.

We discuss Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker, a professor of neuroscience and psychology, whose compelling book offers us the chance to be more attractive, slimmer, happier and healthier, all thanks to a good night’s sleep. Critics have called this international bestseller 'accessible', 'compelling' and 'enlightening', but what did Kate's book club make of it? For us was it electrifying or soporific? Listen in to find out.

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If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected]. And if you're not already, subscribe to us and never miss an episode.

What do we read when not busy reading our book club books? Listen in to find out. This episode it’s a wide-ranging list as we report in on Lily Allen’s My Thoughts Exactly, The Fifth Risk by Michael Lewis, the provocative Poverty Safari by Darren McGarvey, short stories from the Orkney Islands, French classic Bonjour Tristesse, and the indulgent, laugh-out-loud Why Mummy Drinks by Gill Sims. Oh yes, and The Female Persuasion by Meg Wollitzer too.

Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod or leave us a comment on iTunes, we'd love to hear from you. Subscribe and never miss an episode.

From Game of Thrones to Watership Down via Haruki Marukami, Margaret Atwood, Frank Herbert and everything in-between, Mostly Harmless are a thriving book club devoted to sci-fi, fantasy, horror and comics. We interviewed founders Derek and Barbara about the hits and misses over the years, and get a great set of expert recommendations for die-hard enthusiasts, and also those thinking about trying a genre novel. 

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The Mostly Harmless Book Club meet monthly, find details here.

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Books mentioned in this episode were: The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, Dune by Frank Herbert, the novels of George R. R. Martin, Ten Billion Days and One Hundred Billion Nights by Ryu Mitsuse, Annihilator by Grant Morrison, Ronin by Frank Miller, The Female Man by Joanna Russ, The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie, The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson, The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N. K. Jemison, Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson, The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood and Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke.

Normal People was named Waterstones book of the year, was longlisted for the 2018 Booker Prize and most recently won the Costa Novel Award. Sally Rooney’s editor at Faber & Faber dubbed her a ‘Salinger for the Snapchat generation’, while praise has been heaped on the book by the critics. But did it make for a good book club read? Is the hype justified? Listen in to find out.

A special episode with historian, academic, documentary maker, journalist, cultural polymath and keen fiction reader Simon Schama. Listen in to find out what sends him to sleep happy, how his reading informs his writing, his favourite bookstores, his views on the pleasure of imperfect books, and best of all a ton of book suggestions and a brilliant book club recommendation just for us.

Books by Simon Schama include:

• Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution
• Rough Crossings: Britain, the Slaves and the American Revolution
• The Embarrassment Of Riches: An Interpretation Of Dutch Culture In The Golden Age
• Belonging: The Story of the Jews 1492–1900

Books mentioned on this episode:

• War and Peace, Anna Karenina by Tolstoy
• A Sentimental Education Flaubert
• In the First Circle by  Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
• Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak
• The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi Di Lampedusa
• Sacred Hunger by Barry Unsworth
• Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
• The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni
• The General and His Labyrinth by Gabriel García Márquez
• Memoirs of Hadrian and That Mighty Sculptor, Time by Marguerite Yourcenar
• 'Don't Look Now' and  'The Birds' Daphne du Maurier
• Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
• The Catalogue of Shipwrecked Books by Edward Wilson-Lee

One of our favourite interviews, duly resurrected for any who heard Andy on our recent Haunting of Hill House show and wanted to know more about his book club. For scaredy cats like Laura and me, listen in to find out why the horror genre might be more rewarding than you realised. Horror aficionados listen in for a recommendation so frightening it freaked even Andy out.

Find the Horror Book Club online at www.thehorrorbookclub.com, on twitter @horrorbookclub or see details on meetup.com

Hill House, 'not sane, stood by itself against its hills, holding darkness within; it had stood so for eighty years and might stand for eighty more.' Andy Russell of London's Horror Book Club joins us to discuss Shirley Jackson's classic. A total terror? Or just the right side of thrilling? Listen in to hear what Laura's book club made of it.

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London's Horror Book Club read one weird, wonderful and (crucially) terror-inducing book a month. If you're interested in joining you can find them on meetup.com

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Books mentioned on this episode:

• The Shining and On Writing by Stephen King
• Hell House and I Am Legend by Richard Matheson
• Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin
• 'The Yellow Wallpaper' by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
• Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

What we've been reading outside of book club – the books we get to pick and choose. On the list: Things I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton, Mrs Gaskell and Me by Nell Stevens, I Am I Am, I Am by Maggie O'Farrell, Billie by Anna Gavalda, A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan, The Last Samurai by Helen De Witt, and Moneyball by Michael Lewis.

Whether for book club or your TBR shelf, 2019 may be the year for a challenge. But what is it about classics such as Proust’s In Search of Lost Time, or Homer’s Iliad, James Joyce's Ulysses or Thomas Mann's Magic Mountain that makes them seem more daunting than pleasurable? Fear not, we have just the interview for you (and in a sneak preview I can tell you that you're not supposed to like those books at first!). In a quiet north London street, Toby Brothers runs the London Literary Salon in which she seeks to help people unlock the secrets of books both classic and contemporary. She also gives us some book club doctor tips for getting the most out of your group, and a great list of book suggestions for sparky debates and rich discussions.

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Find out more about the London Literary Salon at www.litsalon.co.uk

'The baby is dead. It took only a few seconds.' So begins this bestselling thriller by French author Leïla Slimani, and the winner of the prestigious Prix Goncourt. Unmissable? Unreadable? 

Listen in to hear Laura report back on what her book club made of Lullaby – and whether she made it out intact. With much, much to debate and discuss, Lullaby may well be our most divisive book club book yet.

Books mentioned on this episode:

• The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante
• Somewhere Someone is Waiting for Me and Hunting and Gathering by Anna Gavalda
• A Life's Work by Rachel Cusk
• My Thoughts Exactly by Lily Allen
• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Laura also mentioned the play Girls and Boys by Dennis Kelly.

We take stock of another year of book club books and square off to choose an official Book Club Book of the Year. On the list: Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aciman, Two Serious Ladies by Jane Bowles, Educated by Tara Westover, Swing Time by Zadie Smith, Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeleine Thien, The House of Impossible Beauties by Joseph Cassara, Lullaby by Leila Slemani, A Horse Walks Into A Bar by David Grossman, Dr Fischer of Geneva by Graham Greene, East West Street by Philippe Sands, A Far Cry From Kensington by Muriel Spark, The Faraway Nearby by Rebecca Solnit, Less by Andrew Sean Greer and The Unfinished Palazzo by Judith Mackrell.

From hockey team to all-male book club with 50+ members, Jim West tells us how founding The Paperbacks revealed 'the great undiscovered demographic': men who read.

Books mentioned on this episode:

• Madness, Betrayal and the Lash: The Epic Voyage of Captain George Vancouver by Stephen R. Bown
• The Lonely End of the Rink: Confessions of a Reluctant Goalie by Grant Lawrence
• Iron Coffins: A U-boat Commander's War, 1939-45 by Herbert Werner 

The story of three extraordinary women – Luisa Casati, Doris Castleross, Peggy Guggenheim – and the Venetian Palazzo that captivated them. Judith Mackrell's biography is a fascinating read but does it make for a good book club book? Listen in to find out.

Books mentioned on this episode:

• The Unfinished Palazzo: Life, Love and Art in Venice by Judith Mackrell
• Wings of the Dove, The Golden Bowl, Portrait of a Lady and The Ambassadors by Henry James
• Vile Bodies by Evelyn Waugh

Wondering what to buy the book clubber in your life for Christmas? Here's Claire Griffiths of Highbury bookshop Ink84 with a brilliant rundown of new titles to catch your interest and inspire some great book club debates.

Ink84 bookshop

Books mentioned on this episode:

• Ghost Wall and The Tidal Zone by Sarah Moss
• Fresh Water by Akwaeke Emezi
• Fox 8 by George Saunders
• French Exit by Patrick DeWitt
• Conversations with Friends and Normal People by Sally Rooney
• Bedsit Disco Queen and Another Planet by Tracey Thorn
• My Thoughts Exactly Lily Allen
• Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen
• Cold Black Mornings by Brett Anderson
• A Different Drummer by William Melvin Kelley

If you’d like to see what we’re up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email [email protected].

And if you’re not already, why not subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. Drop us a line and let us know your best book club reads, or your worst. We'd love to hear from you.

What do we read when not reading book club books? Listen in to find out. This episode, we report in on non-fiction sleeper-hit A Shepherd's Life by James Rebanks, Otessa Moshfegh's My Year of Rest and Relaxation, A General Theory of Oblivion by José Eduardo Agalusa (winner of Kate's favourite prize, the Dublin International Literary Award), and read-of-the-moment Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata. 

What do you do when your small start-up book club is so popular that you quickly become overwhelmed with new members? For Eléonore Pratoussy of the Lesbian Book Club East London, it signalled a need for more lesbian book groups. Happily she has a plan to expand. Eléonore and fellow bookclubbers Caroline and Carina joined Kate in the studio to talk Angela Carter, Reni Eddo-Lodge, and a ton of great book recommendations in-between.

The Lesbian Book Club on meetup.com

Books mentioned on this episode:

• Orlando by Virginia Woolf
• Gender Trouble by Judith Butler
• The Passion of New Eve by Angela Carter
• Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown
• Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
• Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Edo-Lodge
• Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
• What Is Yours Is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi

Welcome to our new, shorter-format episode in which we discuss Pulitzer-prize winning comic novel Less by Andrew Sean Greer, and Joseph Cassara's novel of drag queens and drag balls in 1980s New York, The House of Impossible Beauties. Both received rave reviews from the critics, but did they make for good book club books? Listen in to find out.

We end with some great recommendations from Jim McSweeney of Gay's The Word bookshop in London's Bloomsbury, the only dedicated LBGTQ bookstore in the UK and a literary delight.

Books mentioned on this episode:

• Fair Play by Tove Jansson
• White Houses by Amy Bloom

From no formal education before the age of seventeen to a PhD from Cambridge ten years later, Tara Westover’s transformation is the stuff of Hollywood. And that’s before you learn about the violence and brainwashing that tainted her upbringing within her Mormon survivalist family. Westover's 'remarkable memoir' made Barack Obama's summer reading list. But what did Laura's book club make of it? Listen in to find out. Plus we interview a book club who meet in the convivial surroundings of a seaside bakery. And we finish with some great recommendations for your next book club read.

Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or leave us a comment on iTunes. Get in touch – we’d love to hear from you. Subscribe and never miss an episode.

Books mentioned in this episode: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance, When I Lived in Modern Times by Linda Grant, A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh, Lady Chatterly's Lover by D. H. Lawrence, Crudo by Olivia Laing and The President is Missing by Bill Clinton and James Patterson.

For our next book club we will be reading and discussing The Faraway Nearby by Rebecca Solnit.

A Far Cry From Kensington has many fans amongst the critics but what did Kate's book club make of it. Did they fall in love with Muriel Spark's genteel farce set in the postwar London publishing industry? Or did they need more convincing of Spark's genius. For an informed opinion we interview Hannah Griffin of the Spark Challenge Book Group, and find out what it's like being part of a book group who only read a single author's work. We finish with the usual round of recommendations to help you find your perfect book club read.

Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or leave us a comment on iTunes. Get in touch – we’d love to hear from you. Subscribe and never miss an episode.

Books mentioned in this episode: The Driver’s Seat; The Girls of Slender Means and Robinson, all by Muriel Spark, Amsterdam by Ian McEwan, The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Terson,  Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney, Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adoyemi, The Possessed by Elif Batuman, The Unseen by Roy Jacobson and Frankenstein in Baghdad by Ahmed Saadawi.

The New York Times called it a 'powerfully expansive novel' and it was shortlisted for the Booker, but what did Laura's book club make of 'Do Not Say We Have Nothing' by Madeleine Thien? For our regular book club interview we get radical with London's Radical Reading Group and we finish as always with some fresh recommendations for your next book club read.

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Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or leave us a comment on iTunes. Drop us a line – we’d love to hear from you. Subscribe and never miss an episode. •

Books mentioned on this episode were 'The Concubine’s Children' by Denise Cheong, 'The Noise of Time' by Julian Barnes, 'The Rest is Noise' by Alex Ross, 'Ru' by Kim Thuy and 'Brother' by David Chariandy. Terri Jane of the Radical Reading Group talked about 'Close to the Knives' by David Wojnarowicz, 'Your Silence Will Not Protect You' by Audre Lorde and 'Too Much and Not in the Mood' by Durga Chew-Bose. To find out more about the Radical Reading group find them on facebook under Radical Reading London. And if you keep listening to our extra bit at the end we discuss 'Children of Blood and Bone' by Tomi Adeyemi, 'Bleaker House' by Nell Stevens and 'Cartes Postales' by Victoria Hislop. • 
Next up on The Book Club Review is A Far Cry from Kensington by Muriel Spark

We love books, we love book clubs, and so we created a show dedicated to both. We review the books read most recently by our own book clubs. We interview people about their book clubs to get tips and tricks. And finally we pull together great recommendations to make your next book club book your best yet.

It has been called her finest novel, but what did Laura's book club make of Zadie Smith's Swing Time? In our regular interview we talk to The Divas, a close-knit group of women based in north-west London, about books, friendship and travel. And we finish as always with some fresh recommendations for your next book club read. •

Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or leave us a comment on iTunes. Drop us a line – we’d love to hear from you. Subscribe and never miss an episode. • Our bookseller recommendation comes from Carrie and Becca of The Bookstore Podcast. If you want to hear more check out their show on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts: we love it. •


Books mentioned in this episode were Hot Milk by Deborah Levy, My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney, Feel Free by Zadie Smith, You are Free by Danzy Senna and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. Plus if you stay listening for our extra bit at the end we discuss The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss (we've come up with an ending – be the first to hear it!), Sing Unburied Sing by Jesmyn Ward, Exit West by Mosin Hamid, Educated by Tara Westover and the collected works of Gerald Durrell. • 
Next up on The Book Club Review is Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeleine Thien.

East West Street is a memoir by prominent British barrister Philippe Sands. It’s a history of atrocity combined with a relentless search for the truth, with Sands digging deep, into both his own family history and the legal framework that eventually brought Nazi war criminals to justice. Powerful stuff, but what did Kate's book club make of it? Did it make for a good book club read? Plus we talk to an all-male book club on the value of friendship and shared conversations about books, and lightly delve into the mystery of what makes a book 'manly'. We end with some recommendations for your next book club read.

Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or leave us a comment on iTunes. We’d love to hear from you. Subscribe and never miss an episode.

Books mentioned on this episode were: The Hare with Amber Eyes by Edmund de Waal, In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson, The Tobacconist and A Whole Life by Robert Seethaler, Under the Glacier by Halldor Laxness, Blindness by José Saramago, A House for Mr Biswas by V.S. Naipaul and Life, A User's Manual by Georges Perec. Henry from The Book Hive in Norwich recommended Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates and Heather, A Totality, by Matthew Weiner.

For our next book we will be reading and discussing Swing Time by Zadie Smith.

Keep listening for our extra bit at the end in which we discuss My Family and Other Animals by Lawrence Durrell, A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility by Amor Towles and Solar Bones by Mike McCormack. We also take a quick look at Bailie Gifford (Samuel Johnson) prizewinners.

We find out what Kate's book club made of Dr Fischer of Geneva, or The Bomb Party, by Graham Greene. Published in 1980, at the end of Greene’s life, this novella explores ideas of love, morality, good and evil, but did it strike any chords with our book club? Listen in to find out. In our regular interview we talked to Phil Chaffee about his intellectually hard-hitting book club, and the conversations that change you. And we finish with some recommendations for your next book club read.

Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or leave us a comment on iTunes. Get in touch – we’d love to hear from you. Subscribe and never miss an episode.

Books mentioned in this episode: Compass by Mathias Enard (trans. Charlotte Mandel), A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway, Brighton Rock and The Quiet American by Graham Greene, Babette’s Feast by Isak Dinesen, The Earthsea Quartet by Ursula Le Guin, Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi and Lullaby by Leïla Slimani (trans. Sam Taylor).

For our next book club we will be reading and discussing Swing Time by Zadie Smith.

Proustian mediatation on love and desire? Atmospheric beach read? What did Laura’s book club make of André Aciman’s Call Me By Your Name? First published in 2007 and recently made into an Oscar-nominated film, the story follows 17-year-old Elio’s obsession with charismatic houseguest Oliver. But were we carried away by Aciman’s evocation of one long passionate summer? Or did it leave us only with a feeling we should start planning our July getaways now? Our interview is with Kay Dunbar, founder of the Ways With Words literary festivals, who lets us in on the secret to running a successful bookclub for over twenty years. And we finish with some great recommendations for your next book club read.

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Find out more about Kay Dunbar’s Ways With Words festivals at www.wayswithwords.co.uk

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Episode booklist: The Sorrows of Young Werther by Goethe, Barracuda by Christos Tsioklas, Olivia by Dorothy Strachey and At Swim, Two Boys by Jamie O’Neill. Kay Dunbar mentions Patrick Gale, whose most recent novel is A Place Called Winter. And if you keep listening you’ll hear our extra bit at the end where we get into Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff, This Is Going To Hurt by Adam Kay, Hot Milk by Deborah Levy and Ursula Le Guin’s Earthsea novels.

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Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast. Email us at [email protected], find us on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or leave us a comment on iTunes. If you like the show then click subscribe and never miss an episode. 

In which journalist Kat Brown tells us all about her Jilly Cooper book club, and we decide Jilly Cooper is essentially the same as Proust.

Find out more about the Jilly Cooper bookclub using #jillybookclub on twitter or seek them out on facebook. Kat Brown can be contacted using @katbrown.

Books mentioned on this episode:

• Rivals, Polo, Harriet and Octavia by Jilly Cooper
• War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast. Email us at [email protected], find us on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or leave us a comment on iTunes. If you like the show then click subscribe and never miss an episode. 

We debate Two Serious Ladies, a neglected 1940s 'cult' classic by Jane Bowles, and David Grossman's A Horse Walks Into A Bar, which won the 2017 Man Booker International Prize. They both come highly recommended and are purportedly funny. But did our book clubs agree? For our regular interview, we talk to Kat Brown about how she started the Jilly Cooper Book Club.

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Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast. Email us at [email protected], or leave us a comment on iTunes. If you like the show then click subscribe and never miss an episode. 

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Find out more about the Jilly Cooper bookclub using #jillybookclub on twitter or seek them out on facebook. Kat Brown can be contacted using @katbrown.

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Books mentioned in this episode: To The End Of The Land by David Grossman, The Driver's Seat by Muriel Spark, Peyton Place by Grace Metalious, Rivals and Harriet by Jilly Cooper, La Belle Sauvage (The Book of Dust) by Philip Pullman, The Vanity Fair Diaries by Tina Brown and Swing Time by Zadie Smith.

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For our next book club we will be reading and discussing Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman.

The Happy Reader special: a celebration of Penguin's magazine that thinks it's a book club, and a live book club discussion of their Winter Book of the Season, We by Yevgeny Zamyatin. We interview editor Seb Emina who tells us the secrets of how the magazine is put together, and has some great ideas for how to get through the TBR pile including 'speed-dating for books', the perfect suggestion for the enthusiastic but time-poor reader. And we finish with our usual round of recommendations you might like to try for your next book club read.

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Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod or Twitter @BookClubRvwpod, or leave us a comment on iTunes, we'd love to hear from you, and do subscribe if you like the show and be among the first to hear a new episode.

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The Happy Reader magazine is produced biannually and can be found in good bookshops worldwide, or seek them out online at thehappyreader.com. Burley Fisher books are at 400 Kingsland Road, London E8, or online at burleyfisherbooks.com

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Books mentioned in this episode: Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, 1984 by George Orwell, Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury and The Blazing World by Margaret Cavendish, plus in our extra bit at the end we discuss Birds, Art, Life, Death by Kyo Maclear and Swing Time by Zadie Smith.

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For our next book club we will be reading and discussing Two Serious Ladies by Jane Bowles and A Horse Walks Into A Bar by David Grossman.

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And if you're still reading then you might be the kind of person who will want to stay tuned for our extra bit at the end where we discuss what we've been reading and find out how Happy Reader editor Seb Emina gets through the piles of books he fears he won't have time to read in his lifetime.

It came highly recommended, and so with anticipation Kate's book club read All Passion Spent by Vita Sackville-West. We knew she was good at gardening, but what did we make of Sackville-West as a writer? Listen in to find out. In our regular interview we explore just how heated book discussions can get when you have a pair of knitting needles to hand, with London's Kniterati book club member Maeve O'Sullivan. And we have some new recommendations for your next book club read including some from friend-of-the-pod Emily of the Walking Book club who returns with some great choices to follow on from Vita Sackvlle-West. 

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Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast. Email us at [email protected], or leave us a comment on iTunes. If you like the show then click subscribe and never miss an episode. 

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Find out more about the Kniterati at their Facebook page: https://en-gb.facebook.com/Kniterati/

Details of Emily's Walking Book Club can be found at her website: https://emilybooks.wordpress.com/the-walking-book-club/

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Books mentioned in this episode: Diary of a Provincial Lady by E.M. Delafield, Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout, A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh, Orlando by Virginia Woolf and The Longest Journey by E.M. Forster. Emily recommended A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf, Lolly Willows by Dorothy Whipple and Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown. We also discuss The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, the Famous Five books by Enid Blyton and The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides.

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For our next book club we will be reading and discussing Two Serious Ladies by Jane Bowles.

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If you have read this far then you're probably the sort of person who might want to keep listening for our extra bit at the end, where we talk about what we've been reading outside of book club. In this episode Laura confesses she's moved on from Georgette Heyer and is now hooked on Enid Blyton.

For Laura’s book club we delve into The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy. Longlisted for the Booker Prize (2017), it didn’t make the shortlist, but did it make for a good book club read? Meanwhile for fans of horror and Halloween enthusiasts alike we met up with Andy Russell of London’s Horror Book Club to find out about the joys of being frightened by your book at bedtime. And we have recommendations for your next book club read including our bookseller recommendation from James Elliott at Daunt’s in Belsize Park. 

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Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast. Email us at [email protected], or leave us a comment on iTunes. If you like the show then click subscribe and never miss an episode. 

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Find out more about the Horror Book Club at www.thehorrorbookclub.com. Daunt Books are at www.dauntbooks.co.uk

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Books mentioned in this episode: Anil's Ghost by Michael Ondaatje, The Year of the Runaways by Sunjeev Sahota, When I Hit You by Meena Kandasami, Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, The Troop by Nick Cutter, House of Leaves by Danielewski, Elmet by Fiona Mozley, The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer, The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides and The Cormoran Strike novels by Robert Galbraith. 

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For our next book club we will be reading and discussing All Passion Spent by Vita Sackville-West.

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If you have read this far then you're probably the sort of person who might want to keep listening for our extra bit at the end, where we talk about what we've been reading outside of book club. 

For Kate's most recent book club we set off for the high Himalayas in search of snow leopards and spiritual enlightenment with Peter Matthiessen's cult classic. But what did we make of it? Is it a 'man's book'? And did it make for good debate? Meanwhile our regular interview feature sees us in Paris interviewing Morgan Thomas of The American Library about his Proust book club. We end with the usual round of recommendations for your next book club read. Our bookseller recommendation for this episode comes from Joe Hedinger of The Book Hive in Norwich.

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Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast. Email us at [email protected], or leave us a comment on iTunes. If you like the show then do subscribe. You'll never miss an episode and it really helps with our iTunes rankings.

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The Book Hive can be found at www.thebookhive.co.uk. The American Library in Paris is www.theamericanlibraryinparis.org

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Books mentioned in this episode: Tracks by Robyn Davidson, Barbarian Days by William Finnegan, A Sentimental Journey by Laurence Sterne, Birds, Art, Life, Death: A Year of Observation by Kyo Maclear, Dogear magazine, www.dogear.co.uk, Mountains of the Mind by Robert Macfarlane plus a few more in our extras at the end.

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For our next book club we will be reading and discussing The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy.

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If you have read this far then you're probably the sort of person who might want to keep listening for our extra bit at the end, where we talk about what we've been reading outside of book club. Catch up on the tail end of our summer reading and back-to-school good intentions.

Laura's latest book club read was This Is London by Ben Judah (2016), a spare and unflinching investigation into what life in London can be like for the migrants who make up over 40% of the city's population. Not a gentle read, but a revealing one that frustrated and impressed in equal measure – a good formula for debate. For our regular interview, we spoke with Claire Griffiths who runs the book club at Islington's Ink84. We end with recommendations for your next book club read, including some from Word on the Water, a London institution and bookshop on a canal barge moored at Kings Cross.

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Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast. Email us at [email protected], or leave us a comment on iTunes.

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Ink84 bookshop can be found at www.ink84.co.uk, and the London Book Barge can be found on Facebook under Word on the Water.

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Books mentioned in this episode: Second-Hand Time by Svetlana Alexievich Days Without End by Sebastian Barry The Power by Naomi Alderman The Return by Hisham Matar Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf Swimming With Sharks by Joris Luyendijk A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks NW by Zadie Smith The Mandibles by Lionel Shriver The Last London by Ian Sinclair And more if you keep listening to the end...

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For our next book club we will be reading and discussing The Snow Leopard (1978) by Peter Matthiessen.

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If you have read this far then you're probably the sort of person who might want to keep listening for our 'extra' bit at the end, where we talk about what we've been reading outside of book club. Stay tuned for what we've been reading – or trying to read – over the summer.

Lincoln in the Bardo is a ghostly story that unfolds in a graveyard over the course of a single night. Narrated by a chorus of voices and historical sources this innovative novel invites discussion, and won the Booker Prize in 2017. In this episode we find out what Kate's book club made of it. Were they baffled or bewitched by this multifarious cast of ghostly characters, and were they daunted by the profound sadness of the subject matter, the death of a much loved child.

We also speak to Michelle and Claire from the East London Feminist Book Club, and get some good ideas for how to manage a book club where everyone is learning as they go along. As ever we end with a range of recommendations you won't want to miss for your next read.

Book recommendations

The Tenth of December, George Saunders

The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood

Memoir of a Dutiful Daughter, Simone de Beauvoir

The Golden Notebook, Doris Lessing

The Bees, Laline Paull

Grief is a Thing With Feathers, Max Porter

The Snow Child, Eowyn Ivey

Under Milk Wood, Dylan Thomas

Days Without End, Sebastian Barry

Beloved, Toni Morrison

Three Men in a Boat, Jerome K. Jerome

The Power, Naomi Alderman

Notes

Keep listening for our 'extra' bit at the end, where we talk about what we've been reading outside of book club. Stay tuned for true confessions of what we keep on our kindles.

Follow us on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast, or get in touch at [email protected] and tell us about a book you love. You can also find our episode archive, full shownotes and articles on our website.

What did Laura's book club make of THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD by Colson Whitehead, now a Pulitzer Prize and US National Book Award winner. We also discover a school whose library is in a specially converted London bus. Teacher Tom Milne tells us all about their school book club, and how they came up with the ultimate list of reading recommendations. 

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Books mentioned in this episode: The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead, The Miniaturist by Jesse Burton, Beloved by Toni Morrison, The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein, The Tiger Who Came to Tea by Judith Kerr, The Sellout by Paul Beatty, On Golden Hill by Francis Spufford, Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt, The Known World by Edward P. Jones, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison.

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Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod or leave us a comment at the episode page on our website, we'd love to hear from you. What's a follow-on read that you would recommend?

In which Kate and Laura have wildly differing opinions over Kim Leine's historical novel The Prophets of Eternal Fjord (nominated for the 2017 International Dublin Literary Award) but discover a shared distaste for the word 'greasy'. 'My front teeth are quite fallen out but for five that dangle like scoundrels of the night from a gallows' complains the main character, Morten Falck, as we follow his experiences attempting to convert the Inuit to Christianity in late-18th-century Greenland. Did this make for a great book club book? Listen in to find out. We also interview Frances Ambler, features editor of Oh Comely magazine about championing new books by women writers and we have some great recommendations for your next book club read.

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Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod or leave us a comment on iTunes, we'd love to hear from you. Subscribe and never miss an episode.

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Books also discussed in this episode include: The North Water, Ian McGuire, Days Without End, Sebastian Barry, The Blue Flower, Penelope Fitzgerald, The Lucky Ones, Julianne Pachico, The Idiot, Elif Batuman, The Forever War, Joe Haldeman and To The Ends of the Earth trilogy by William Golding.

In this episode Kate makes a serious confession, and we try to figure out if The Trouble With Goats and Sheep by Joanna Cannon is set in an avenue or a cul-de-sac. We also tackle the more important question of whether it made a good book club book. In our interview Kate is put through her paces on a windy Hampstead Heath chatting to Emily Rhodes about her Walking Book Club. We end with some recommendations for your next book club read.

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Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod or leave us a comment on iTunes, we'd love to hear from you.

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Books mentioned in this episode: The True Deceiver, Tove Jansson, West with the Night by Beryl Markham, All Passion Spent by Vita Sackville-West, The Living Mountain, Nan Shepherd, As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning by Laurie Lee, Someone at a Distance, Dorothy Whipple, Beware of Pity, Stefan Zweig, Brodecks Report, Philippe Claudel, Westwood, Stella Gibbons, The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton, If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things by Jon McGregor, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee, The View from the Harbour, Elizabeth Taylor, Hot Milk, Deborah Levy, Breakfast with the Nikolides, Rumer Godden, The Summer Book, Tove Jansson

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We recommend any branch of the Daunt bookshops, which can be found in Hampstead, Cheapside, Chelsea, Holland Park and Belsize Park.

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For our next book club we will be reading and discussing The Prophets of Eternal Fjord by Kim Leine.

This episode features a rare falling out between Kate and her book club over Margaret Atwood's latest novel, Hag-Seed, while Laura's book club appreciate the captivating travel memoir Border: A Journey to the Edge of Europe by Bulgarian emigrée Kapka Kassabova. We also chat with Michael Waldman, a documentary film-maker who tells us about a book so good it made a long journey on the Trans-Siberian Railway pass in a moment. And finally, as always, a few recommendations to help you decide your next book club read.

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Get in touch with us at [email protected], follow us on Instagram @thebookclubreviewpod or leave us a comment on iTunes, we'd love to hear from you. Subscribe and never miss an episode.

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Books mentioned in this episode: The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood, Alias Grace, Margaret Atwood, Birds Without Wings, Louis de Bernières, From the Holy Mountain, William Dalrymple, Exit West by Mohsin Hamid, The Penelopiad, Margaret Atwood, Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel

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For our next book club we will be reading and discussing The Trouble with Goats and Sheep by Joanna Cannon

Can a sci-fi novel make for a good book club book? We find out with The Left-Hand of Darkness by Ursula Le Guin. Did Laura's book club, mostly sci-fi newbies, like it or loathe it?

From fantasy dystopia to the real world, we also tackle Second-Hand Time, Svetlana Alexievich's history of life in Soviet and post-Soviet Russia. It's an emotionally challenging read on a difficult subject. But did Kate's book club think it worth the effort? Listen in to find out.

We also interview 88-year old Anne Thompson about her favourite literary discoveries thanks to her book club.

Books mentioned on this episode:

• The City and the City by China Mieville
• Kil'n People by David Brin
• The Complete Broken Empire Trilogy: Prince of Thorns, King of Thorns, Emperor of Thorns by Mark Lawrence
• Hyperion by Dan Simmons
• The Earthsea Quartet: Wizard of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atman, The Farthest Shore, Tehanu by Ursula Le Guin
• Chernobyl Prayer by Svetlana Alexievich

We discuss South Korean author Han Kang's short novel about a troubled woman who decides to stop eating meat.

We also look at international bestseller of yesteryear The Reader by Bernhard Schlink, which found fame in the author's native Germany before making its way onto Oprah Winfrey's book club list, and becoming an Oscar winning film starring Ralph Fiennes and Kate Winslet. But twenty years on, does the book still hold its appeal? And more to the point, were either of these books good book club books?

We also interview science journalist Sue Nelson about starting her book club in a small village where she didn't really know anybody.

Books mentioned on this episode:

• Nothing to Envy: Real Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick
• All for Nothing by Walter Kempowski
• The Tobacconist and A Whole Life by Robert Seethaler

In our first episode Kate's book club dive into Paul Beatty's 2016 Booker Prize winning novel THE SELLOUT while Laura's have been reading HILLBILLY ELEGY, Jack Vance's memoir of growing up poor in an Appalachian town.

Does Vance's book explain the rise of Donald Trump, as many commentators claimed? Did The Sellout make us laugh, as the blurb promised it would? And did these two books make good book club reads?

For a change of pace we talk to Howard Green, a book-clubber whose book clubs prioritise a sense of community and spiritual reflection and meditation.

And we've got plenty of recommendations for your next read.