The Book Club Review

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. • sign up for our weekly newsletter here • Follow us on Instagram • Follow us on Facebook • Follow us on Twitter • Check out our website

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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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 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.

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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com

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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com.

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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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 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.

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 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, 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 thebookclubreview@gmail.com. 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.