The Book Club Review

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. • 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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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  

We’re joined by US Vogue senior editor Chloe Schama to consider The Faraway Nearby by Rebecca Solnit which was Kate’s last book club read. We consider the genre of ‘anti-memoir’ (and if you’re unfamiliar with the term you will find yourself among friends) and come up with some light alternative reading in case it all gets too much. Our regular interview is with Financial Times Life and Arts editor Natalie Whittle who tells us about the FT book club, and we finish with some great recommendations for your next book club read. • Get in touch with us at thebookclubreview@gmail.com, 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 were Wanderlust and Men Explain Things to Me by Rebecca Solnit and Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. In the recommendations we talked about Terra Incognita by Sara Wheeler and Paris to the Moon by Adam Gopnik. Chloe Schama recommended The Empathy Exams by Leslie Jamieson and we briefly discussed her own book, Wild Romance, at the beginning of the show. And if you’re interested in what we’ve been reading outside of our book clubs keep listening to our extra bit at the end where we discuss Circe by Madeleine Miller, Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan, The Loved Ones by Evelyn Waugh, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark, and The Death of Truth by Michiko Kakutani. • Our next episode will be on Lullaby by Leila Slimani, a murderous nanny thriller that became an international bestseller but what did Laura's book club make of it? Tune in to find out.