Kate Atkinson, YA fiction controversy, Queer writing in the noughties

Kate Atkinson discusses her new novel, Big Sky. For Jackson Brodie fans it’s been a long nine years but finally he’s back. After the first four books in this crime fiction series, the acclaimed writer turned her attention to World War II resulting in two prize-winning novels, Life After Life and A God In Ruins. She explains how almost a decade later she was ready to return to Jackson and why the sixth Jackson book is not so far away.

As insults fly, tempers flare, and books are pulled, writer Leo Benedictus, Charlotte Eyre, Children’s Editor at The Bookseller, and Children’s and YA author Patrice Lawrence discuss the impact that online criticism is having on the world of Young Adult fiction.

We continue our exploration of LGBT literature which marks the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in New York in 1969, a key moment in the birth of the gay rights movement. Today journalist Amelia Abraham, author of the recently published book Queer Intentions: a Personal Journey through LGBTQ+ Culture, guides us through her favourite LGBT books from 1999 to 2009.

Presenter Stig Abell Producer Jerome Weatherald