The Book Club Review

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. * 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. * 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 * Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReviewPodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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. * 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. * 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 * Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReviewPodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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. • 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 • 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. • 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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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. • 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. • For more book reviews and recommendations between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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. • 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 • Keep up with us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com, 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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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. • 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 • 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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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. • Sign up for Crib Notes at tinyletter.com/CribNotes Find Elizabeth on Twitter @elizabethmoya and on Instagram @cribnotesbookclub • 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 • Keep up with what we're doing between episodes on Instagram and facebook @bookclubreviewpodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, and email us anytime at thebookclubreview@gmail.com, 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.

In this discussion, Christy, the general manager at a London space startup, dives into Ted Chiang's acclaimed collection, exploring its intricate narratives. She highlights Chiang's scientific precision and emotional depth, particularly in 'Story of Your Life,' contrasting it with Ursula Le Guin. The conversation touches on the book’s philosophical themes and how its complex structure reflects heptapod perception. Christy also shares insights on how sci-fi can challenge human assumptions, making it a rich topic for book clubs. Tune in for great reading recommendations!