The Book Club Review

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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com.  

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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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. Book recommendations for Best Books of 2022 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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com, 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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com.  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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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.