Podcasts about costa novel award

Award-winning and bestselling author Maggie O'Farrell Hamnet and The Marriage Portrait author takes us behind the scenes of her creative process—from the early struggles of starting out to the discipline and instinct that shape her acclaimed novels.We explore the irresistible drive to write, the role of characters in steering a story, and how she blends history with imagination. Maggie also shares her thoughts on revision, redrafting without ego, and what it really takes to endure in the writing life.We discuss:The insatiable urge to write and the challenges of beginning a novelLetting characters lead and reshaping a story mid-draftWeaving fact and fiction in historical narrativesWhy revision is where the real writing happensHonest feedback, creative resilience, and writing for the long haulABOUT MAGGIE O'FARRELLMaggie O'Farrell is the author of Hamnet (winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award) and I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death, both Sunday Times number 1 bestsellers. Her other works include The Marriage Portrait, The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, After You'd Gone, The Hand That First Held Mine (winner of the Costa Novel Award), and Instructions for a Heatwave. Maggie's work is praised for its lyrical prose, emotional depth, and its ability to bring overlooked historical figures to life.*RESOURCES & LINKS

Maggie O'Farrell is the author of nine novels. Her debut, After You'd Gone, was published 25 years ago this year and won the Betty Trask Prize in 2001. Her 2010 book The Hand That First Held Mine won the Costa Novel Award; and Hamnet, her hugely acclaimed and bestselling story of the death of Shakespeare's son, won the 2020 Women's Prize for fiction. Maggie O'Farrell has also written a memoir; I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death. Maggie tells John Wilson about some of her creative influences including the Finnish writer Tove Jansson, whose book Moominland Midwinter she first read at the age of eight when she was ill in bed, suffering from encephalitis. The poet Michael Donaghy gave Maggie valuable writing advice when she attended his poetry workshops at City University and inspired her with his recitations of poetry from memory. Maggie also reveals how seeing a David Hockney photomontages called The Scrabble Game hugely influenced the way she constructs narrative and time-frame in her novels.Producer: Edwina Pitman

Stephen May is the author of seven novels including Life! Death! Prizes! which was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and The Guardian Not The Booker Prize. He has also been shortlisted for the Wales Book of the Year and is a winner of the Media Wales Reader's Prize. He has also written plays, as well as for television and film. On this episode of Little Atoms he talks to Neil Denny about his latest novel Green Ink. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Award-winning Irish writer Colm Toibin has long admired James Baldwin, ever since he read “Go Tell It on the Mountain" as a teenager, and has now written a book about him called simply “On James Baldwin.” When he picked “Go Tell It on the Mountain" from a shelf years ago, Toibin hadn't heard or read anything about the novel, one of Baldwin's most famous works. And without any pretense, he found himself immersed in the book's words and characters. Reading it later in life as an accomplished author and professor, Toibin's respect grew for Baldwin's skill at depicting the human experience defined by interiority rather than external events. Toibin shares his insights with host Razia Iqbal, and describes how Baldwin managed to satisfy so many different kinds of readers — giving them  a diversity of ideas and perspectives to take away from the pages.Toibin is the author of 11 novels, including “The Master,” “Brooklyn” and “Nora Webster.” He's also written essays, journalism and a book of poetry. His work's been shortlisted for the Booker Prize three times and he has won the Costa Novel Award and the Impact Award. He writes regularly for the New York Review of Books, the London Review of Books, the New York Times and many other publications. He is the Irene and Sidney B. Silverman Professor of the Humanities at Columbia University in New York, where we sat with him in his office, teeming with books, papers, and as you'll hear, a love for Baldwin.  Tell us what you think. We're @noteswithkai on Instagram and X (Twitter). Email us at notes@wnyc.org. Send us a voice message by recording yourself on your phone and emailing us, or record one here.Notes from America airs live on Sundays at 6 p.m. ET. The podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts.

For this special episode, recorded live at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, Adam Biles was joined by novelists Lauren Groff and Neel Mukherjee for a wide-ranging discussion that takes the temperature (and the pulse!) of the book industry, from bookshops, to publishers, to prizes, to festivals... Enjoy!Buy The Shakespeare and Company Book of Interviews: https://www.shakespeareandcompany.com/books/the-shakespeare-and-company-book-of-interviewsBuy The Vaster Wilds: https://www.shakespeareandcompany.com/books/the-vaster-wilds-3Buy Choice: https://www.shakespeareandcompany.com/books/choice-2*Lauren Groff is a three-time National Book Award finalist and The New York Times–bestselling author of the novels The Monsters of Templeton, Arcadia, Fates andFuries, Matrix, and The Vaster Wilds, and the celebrated short story collections Delicate Edible Birds and Florida. She has won The Story Prize, the ABA Indies' Choice Award, France's Grand Prix de l'Héroïne, and the Joyce Carol Oates Prize, and has been a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. Her work regularly appears in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, and elsewhere. Her work has been translated into thirty-six languages. She lives in Gainesville, Florida.Neel Mukherjee won the Writers Guild of Great Britain Award for best fiction in 2010 for his debut novel A Life Apart. His second novel, The Lives of Others, was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and the Costa Novel Award, and won the Encore Award. His novel, A State of Freedom, was a New York Times '100 Notable Books of the Year' and heralded as 'Stunning ... a marvel of a book, shocking and beautiful, and it proves that Mukherjee is one of the most original and talented authors working today' (NPR). Choice, a novel as triptych, is his latest book.Adam Biles is Literary Director at Shakespeare and Company. His latest novel, Beasts of England, a sequel of sorts to Animal Farm, is available now. Buy a signed copy here: https://www.shakespeareandcompany.com/books/beasts-of-englandListen to Alex Freiman's latest EP, In The Beginning: https://open.spotify.com/album/5iZYPMCUnG7xiCtsFCBlVa?si=h5x3FK1URq6SwH9Kb_SO3w Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donal Ryan is an award-winning author from Nenagh, County Tipperary, whose work has been published in over twenty languages to major critical acclaim. The Spinning Heart won the Guardian First Book Award, the EU Prize for Literature (Ireland), and Book of the Year at the Irish Book Awards; it was shortlisted for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and the Desmond Elliott Prize, and was voted 'Irish Book of the Decade'. His fourth novel, From a Low and Quiet Sea, was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize, shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award 2018, and won the Jean Monnet Prize for European Literature. His novel, Strange Flowers, was voted Novel of the Year at the Irish Book Awards, and was a number one bestseller, as was his most recent novel The Queen of Dirt Island, which was also shortlisted for Book of the Year at the Irish Book Awards. Donal lectures in Creative Writing at the University of Limerick. On this episode of Little Atoms he talks to Neil Denny about his latest novel Heart Be At Peace. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the season premiere of Gays Reading, host Jason Blitman talks to acclaimed author Elif Shafak (There are Rivers in the Sky) about the importance of storytelling and information vs. knowledge vs. wisdom. They also engage in a unique conversation about religion and so much more. This episode features Guest Gay Reader Franklin Cappadora aka Jason's husband.Elif Shafak is an award-winning British-Turkish author of a dozen novels, including The Island of Missing Trees, which was short-listed for the Costa Novel Award, and 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World, which was short-listed for the Booker Prize. Her work has been translated into fifty-six languages. She holds a PhD in political science and has taught at universities in Turkey, the United States and the United Kingdom. She lives in London and is an honorary fellow at Oxford University.Theme song performed by Kyle ShermanSign up to learn more about OUTspoken.Gays Reading is sponsored by Audible. Get a FREE 30-day trial by visiting audibletrial.com/gaysreadingSupport the Show.WATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreadingBOOKS!Check out the list of books discussed on each episode on our Bookshop page: https://bookshop.org/shop/gaysreading MERCH!Purchase your Gays Reading podcast merchandise HERE! https://gaysreading.myspreadshop.com/ FOLLOW!@gaysreading | @jasonblitman CONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com

Set in small-town, post-crash Ireland, The Bee Sting follows the Barnes family—Dickie, Imelda, Cass and PJ—as the fabric of their lives first frays at the edges, then begins to unravel completely. The Barnes' are endearing, and complex, and funny, and infuriating… In short, one of the most realistic and memorable portrayals of a family you'll find in contemporary fiction.Throughout the book The Bee Sting's focus masterfully expands and contracts between the minutiae of adolescent friendship, marital tensions and financial woes, and the threat of full scale global apocalypse, while touching on pretty much everything in between.It is a book about families, how they build you up and how they knock you down, about how both the lived past and the imagined future weigh on our lives, about coincidence, about loneliness, about optimism, about love and loss, about climate change, and about shame… it's also a book, unsurprisingly, about bees—although perhaps not in the way that you might think.Buy The Bee Sting: https://www.shakespeareandcompany.com/books/the-bee-sting-3*Paul Murray was born in Dublin in 1975 and is the author of An Evening of Long Goodbyes, Skippy Dies, The Mark and the Void and The Bee Sting. An Evening of Long Goodbyes was shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award and nominated for the Kerry Group Irish Fiction Award. Skippy Dies was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award, and longlisted for the Booker Prize. The Mark and the Void won the Everyman Wodehouse Prize. The Bee Sting won the Nero Book of the Year Award and the An Post Irish Book of the Year, and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, the Writers' Prize for Fiction and the Kirkus Prize for Fiction. Paul Murray lives in Dublin.Adam Biles is Literary Director at Shakespeare and Company. His latest novel, Beasts of England, a sequel of sorts to Animal Farm, is available now. Buy a signed copy here: https://www.shakespeareandcompany.com/books/beasts-of-englandListen to Alex Freiman's latest EP, In The Beginning: https://open.spotify.com/album/5iZYPMCUnG7xiCtsFCBlVa?si=h5x3FK1URq6SwH9Kb_SO3w Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

​Bookwaves/Artwaves is produced and hosted by Richard Wolinsky. Links to assorted local theater & book venues    Colm Tóibín discusses his latest novel, “Long Island,” which follows characters from his earlier best-seller, “Brooklyn” twenty years later. Hosted by Richard Wolinsky. Colm Tóibín was born in Enniscorthy, Ireland, in 1955. He is the author of 11 novels including The Master, Brooklyn, The Testament of Mary, Nora Webster, House of Names and The Magician. His work has been shortlisted for The Booker Prize three times, has won the Costa Novel Award and the IMPAC Award. He has also published two collections of stories and many works of non-fiction. Special thanks to the folks at BookShop West Portal in San Francisco for their assistance. Complete Interview.   Ayodele Nzinga, the Poet Laureate of Oakland  and the director of the play “Pac and Biggie Are Dead” by Biko Eisen-Martin, which is running at BAM House in Oakland through June 30, 2024, in conversation with host Richard Wolinsky Ayodele Nzinga, known as “Wordslinger,” is the lead curator of BAM House (formerly the Flight Deck and Piano Fight Oakland), YBCA Creative Corps fellow, director of BAMD Fest, an international biennial arts festival in 2025, and creator and director of Lower Bottom Playaz, Inc. She has written a book of poetry, “Incandescent,” and is also an actor and playwright. “Pac and Biggie Are Dead” focuses on two deceased rap artists who were central to the art form, Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. in a place that might be heaven as they ponder their past and their present, in a non-linear work that attempts to put their art in the context of the African American experience.   Review of “Company” at the Orpheum Theater through June 23, 2024.   Book Interview/Events and Theatre Links Note: Shows may unexpectedly close early or be postponed due to actors' positive COVID tests. Check the venue for closures, ticket refunds, and vaccination and mask requirements before arrival. Dates are in-theater performances unless otherwise noted. Some venues operate Tuesday – Sunday; others Wednesday or Thursday through Sunday. All times Pacific Time. Closing dates are sometimes extended. Book Stores Bay Area Book Festival  See website for highlights from the 10th Annual Bay Area Book Festival, June 1-2, 2024. Book Passage.  Monthly Calendar. Mix of on-line and in-store events. Books Inc.  Mix of on-line and in-store events. The Booksmith.  Monthly Event Calendar. BookShop West Portal. Monthly Event Calendar. Center for Literary Arts, San Jose. See website for Book Club guests in upcoming months. Green Apple Books. Events calendar. Kepler's Books  On-line Refresh the Page program listings. Live Theater Companies Actor's Reading Collective (ARC).  Calendar of upcoming readings. African American Art & Culture Complex. See website for calendar. Alter Theatre. See website for upcoming productions. American Conservatory Theatre  The Lehman Trilogy by Stefano Massini . Adapted by Ben Power, directed by Sam Mandes, May 25-June 23, Toni Rembe Theater. Aurora Theatre  The Lifespan of a Fact by Jeremy Kareken & David Murrell and Gordon Farrell, June 21-July 21. Streaming:  July 16-21. Awesome Theatre Company. Por La Noche (By Night), October 11 – 26, 2924. See website for information. Berkeley Rep Galileo, World Premiere Musical, book by Danny Strong, with Raul Esparza, extended to June 23, Roda Theatre. Mother Road by Octavio Solis, June 14-July 21, Peets Theatre. Berkeley Shakespeare Company. See website for upcoming shows. Boxcar Theatre. The Speakeasy. Must close June 29, 2024 Brava Theatre Center: See calendar for current and upcoming productions. BroadwaySF: Company, June 5-23, Orpheum. Mrs. Doubtfire, July 2-28. Girl from the North Country, July 30-Aug 18, Golden Gate. See website for events at the Orpheum, Curran and Golden Gate. Broadway San Jose:  Peter Pan, June 25-30. California Shakespeare Theatre (Cal Shakes). As You Like it, September 12 – 29. Center Rep: Cabaret, May 26 – June 23, Lesher Center for the Arts. Central Works  Accused by Patricia Milton, July 13 – August 11. Cinnabar Theatre. La Boheme June 21 – July 5. Club Fugazi. Dear San Francisco ongoing. Check website for Music Mondays listings. Contra Costa Civic Theatre In Repertory: Hamlet and Rosencranz and Gildenstern Are Dead, September 7 – 22. Curran Theater: Sesame Street Live, Say Hello, June 7-8; The Cher Show, June 19-23. Custom Made Theatre. In hibernation. Cutting Ball Theatre. See website for upcoming shows. 42nd Street Moon. Bright Star postponed. Golden Thread  Conversations with Artists via Zoom and Howlround TV, through June 13, 2024. Hillbarn Theatre: Always…Patsy Cline, August 22 – September 15. Lorraine Hansberry Theatre. See website for upcoming productions. Lower Bottom Playaz  Pac and Biggie Are Dead by Biko Eisen-Martin, June 6 – 30, 2024, BAM House, Oakland. Magic Theatre. Garuda's Wing by Naomi Iizuka, June 5-23. Marin Theatre Company Yaga by by Kurt Sondler, October 10 – November 3, 2024. Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts Upcoming Events Page. New Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC) tick..tick..BOOM by Jonathan Larson, through June 16, 2024. Ride the Cyclone by Jacob Richmond & Brooke Maxwell, September 20 – October 20. Oakland Theater Project.  Ghost of King Created by and featuring Michael Wayne Turner III June 6-23, 2024. Odd Salon: Upcoming events in San Francisco & New York, and streaming. Pear Theater. Chaplin and Keaton on the Set of Limelight  by Greg Lam, June 28 – July 21, 2024. Presidio Theatre. See website for complete schedule of events and performances. Ray of Light: Everybody's Talking About Jamie, June 1 – 23, 2024. See website for Spotlight Cabaret Series at Feinstein's at the Nikko. San Francisco Playhouse. The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, May 2 – June 15. SFBATCO I, Too, Sing America, Grace Cathedral, June 13-15. See website for upcoming streaming and in- theater shows. San Jose Stage Company: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.  June 5 – 30. Shotgun Players.  Best Available by Jonathan Spector. May 18 – June 16. Website also lists one night only events at the Ashby Stage. South Bay Musical Theatre: Mary Poppins, the Broadway Musical, May 18 – June 8. Saratoga Civic Theater. Stagebridge: Shady Manor, a musical play by Prescott Cole. June 14-16. 2501 Harrison St., Oakland. The Breath Project. Streaming archive. The Marsh: Calendar listings for Berkeley, San Francisco and Marshstream. Theatre Lunatico  See website for upcoming productions. Theatre Rhino  Four Play by Jake Brunger, June 13 – July 7, 2024. Streaming: Essential Services Project, conceived and performed by John Fisher, all weekly performances now available on demand. TheatreWorks Silicon Valley. Being Alive: A Sondheim Celebration June 5-20, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts.. Word for Word.  See website for upcoming productions. Misc. Listings: BAM/PFA: On View calendar for BAM/PFA. Berkeley Symphony: See website for listings. Chamber Music San Francisco: Calendar, 2023 Season. Dance Mission Theatre. On stage events calendar. Oregon Shakespeare Festival: Calendar listings and upcoming shows. San Francisco Opera. Calendar listings. San Francisco Symphony. Calendar listings. Filmed Live Musicals: Searchable database of all filmed live musicals, podcast, blog. If you'd like to add your bookstore or theater venue to this list, please write Richard@kpfa.org The post Bookwaves/Artwaves – June 13, 2024: Colm Tóibín – Ayodele Nzinga appeared first on KPFA.

Colm Tóibín discusses his latest novel, “Long Island,” which follows characters from his earlier best-seller, “Brooklyn” twenty years later. Hosted by Richard Wolinsky. Colm Tóibín was born in Enniscorthy, Ireland, in 1955. He is the author of 11 novels including The Master, Brooklyn, The Testament of Mary, Nora Webster, House of Names and The Magician. His work has been shortlisted for The Booker Prize three times, has won the Costa Novel Award and the IMPAC Award. He has also published two collections of stories and many works of non-fiction. Special thanks to the folks at BookShop West Portal in San Francisco for their assistance. The post Colm Tóibín, “Long Island,” 2024 appeared first on KPFA.

Brooklyn is Colm Tóibín's acclaimed 2009 novel that won the Costa Novel Award and inspired the Oscar-nominated movie starring Saoirse Ronan. Now, after all these years, it has given way to a highly anticipated sequel, Long Island, which is an Oprah book club pick. Colm joined Pat in studio this morning.

EPISODE 1586: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Maggie O'Farrell, author of THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT, about childhood, art, money and marriage in 16th Century Florence Maggie O'Farrell, FRSOL, is the author of HAMNET, Winner of the Women's Prize for Fiction 2020, and the memoir I AM, I AM, I AM, both Sunday Times no. 1 bestsellers. Her novels include AFTER YOU'D GONE, MY LOVER'S LOVER, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US, which won a Somerset Maugham Award, THE VANISHING ACT OF ESME LENNOX, THE HAND THAT FIRST HELD MINE, which won the 2010 Costa Novel Award, INSTRUCTIONS FOR A HEATWAVE and THIS MUST BE THE PLACE., and THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT. She is also the author of two books for children, WHERE SNOW ANGELS GO and THE BOY WHO LOST HIS SPARK. She lives in Edinburgh. Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Award-winning writer Maggie O'Farrell on the role that Arvon played in her early writing career how she crafts her novels today and the mindset that has led her to persist as a writer over the years and why she doesn't worry about how she is perceived. She also reads from her latest book The Marriage Portrait. This interview was hosted virtually at Arvon.*ABOUT MAGGIE O'FARRELLMaggie O'Farrell is the author of Hamnet (winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award) and the memoir I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death, both Sunday Times number 1 bestsellers. Her other books include The Marriage Portrait, After You'd Gone, The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, The Hand That First Held Mine (winner of the Costa Novel Award), and Instructions for a Heatwave. An adaptation of Maggie O'Farrell's novel will premiere at Swan theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in April and at the Garrick theatre in September. *RESOURCES & LINKSUpcoming Arvon CoursesThe Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'FarrellHamnet by Maggie O'FarrellI Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O'Farrell“My Last Duchess” by Robert BrowningAlessandro Allori's portrait of Lucrezia D' MediciRead Zoe's notes from the interviewFollow Arvon:WebsiteUpcoming Arvon CoursesTwitter*For show notes, transcripts and to attend our live podcasts visit: podcast.londonwriterssalon.comFor free writing sessions, join free Writers' Hours: writershour.com*FOLLOW LONDON WRITERS' SALONTwitter: twitter.com/​​WritersSalonInstagram: instagram.com/londonwriterssalonFacebook: facebook.com/LondonWritersSalonIf you're enjoying this show, please rate and review this show!

Award-winning author, Jon McGregor, set out to write about the Antarctic but it was to become a novel about stroke. Jon sat down with Julia and Elizabeth for On A Good Day to discuss the book, Lean Fall Stand, with many of its themes resonating with both hosts. Lean Fall Stand looks at the impact of stroke on survivor Robert and his wife who suddenly takes on the role of carer. It explores the challenges of communication post brain injury and its impact on the family and community. Jon tells them about the research he did to help create characters which were "real people" including an eye-opening group session for people with aphasia. In the novel, Jon refers to the lack of services available to help rehabilitate stroke survivors, speaking of his sadness at discovering how stretched they had become. Lean Fall Stand is an insightful exploration of stroke and with a potential film version of the book in the pipeline, is sure to reach an even wider audience in the future. You can buy Jon McGregor's book Lean Fall stand here: https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/lean-fall-stand-jon-mcgregor/5752546?ean=9780008204945 About Jon McGregor Jon McGregor is a writer of novels and short stories, including Lean Fall Stand, Reservoir 13, and If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things. He won the Dublin Literature Prize in 2012, and the Costa Novel Award in 2017. He is a Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Nottingham, where he edits The Letters Page, a literary journal in letters. He lives in Nottingham. You can follow Jon on Instagram and Twitter: @jon_mcgregor In the episode, Jon talks about some of the research he did while writing the book including the Rosetta Life organisation, and the Stroke Odysseys show : https://strokeodysseys.org/about-stroke-odysseys/ Jon's Antarctic research was with the British Antarctic Survey 'Artists & Writers Programme'. His 2004 residency was part of: https://www.bas.ac.uk/media-post/experience-antarctica-in-london-and-plymouth/ On A Good Day If you enjoyed this episode, please help us to grow: subscribe, rate, review and do share with others who it will benefit, tag us with the social media handles below. Follow Us On Instagram @onagood.day and Twitter @onagood_day https://www.instagram.com/onagood.day/ https://twitter.com/onagood_day Please join our NEW Facebook community too! https://www.facebook.com/groups/1216439455622395 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode Notes We discuss The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak as read by Daphne Kouma and Amira Ghazalla. Two teenagers, a Greek Cypriot and a Turkish Cypriot, meet at a taverna on the island they both call home. The taverna is the only place that Kostas and Defne can meet in secret, hidden beneath the blackened beams from which hang garlands of garlic and chilli peppers, creeping honeysuckle, and in the centre, growing through a cavity in the roof, a fig tree. The fig tree witnesses their hushed, happy meetings; their silent, surreptitious departures. The fig tree is there, too, when war breaks out, when the capital is reduced to ashes and rubble, when the teenagers vanish. Decades later, Kostas returns - a botanist, looking for native species - looking, really, for Defne. The two lovers return to the taverna to take a clipping from the fig tree and smuggle it into their suitcase, bound for London. Years later, the fig tree in the garden is their daughter Ada's only knowledge of a home she has never visited, as she seeks to untangle years of secrets and silence, and find her place in the world. Shortlisted for the Women's Prize 2022, A Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick, A top 10 Sunday Times best seller. Shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award 2021. This episode was brought to you by Alexandra Park BJJ - visit their website to book your free trial class. https://www.alexandraparkbjj.co.uk/ Support Audiobookish by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/audiobookish Find out more at https://audiobookish.pinecast.co This podcast is powered by Pinecast. Try Pinecast for free, forever, no credit card required. If you decide to upgrade, use coupon code r-8a93af for 40% off for 4 months, and support Audiobookish.

Colm Tóibín's new book, A Guest at the Feast, is a celebration of writing and brings together essays about growing up in Ireland during radical change; about cancer, priests, popes, homosexuality, and literature. He was born in Enniscorthy in 1955. He is the author of ten novels, and his work has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize three times, as well as the Folio Prize in 2015; and has won the Costa Novel Award, the Impac Award and the David Cohen Prize for Literature, amongst others. 5x15 brings together five outstanding individuals to tell of their lives, passions and inspirations. There are only two rules - no scripts and only 15 minutes each. Learn more about 5x15 events: 5x15stories.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/5x15stories Facebook: www.facebook.com/5x15stories Instagram: www.instagram.com/5x15stories

Bestselling Novelist Claire Fuller won the 2021 Costa Novel Award and was Shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction with her latest work Unsettled Ground, published with Penguin Random House. Today, she joins Grace to talk about her relatively recent turn to literature as well as the legality of burying bodies in your garden, the ethics of eating octopuses and what authors owe vs what filmmakers owe to their audience. For more of her recommendations and writing advice, go to Claire's blog (clairefuller.co.uk). If you like this interview, read our very first interview with Bestselling Biographer Miranda Seymour about her biography on Jean Rhys (we can confirm Claire read it, liked it and is a Rhys fan herself). For more interviews, go to sanclemente.co.uk or wait longingly by the phone for the next podcast episode.

This week's guest is Stephen May whose fifth novel, Sell Us the Rope is a fictional retelling of events surrounding the 5th Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour party, which took place in London in 1907.We spend most of our time following Koba—as the young man who would become Stalin was then known—as he arrives in a poverty-riddled city, and plunges into the heart of turn-of-the-century revolutionary politics. There's factionalism, and arguments, and strategising, and backstabbing, and money-grubbing, as well as the constant shadowy presence of the Okhrana—Russia's over active secret police force. There are also appearances by some of the defining personalities of the 20th-century—Lenin, Trotsky, Gorky and Rosa Luxembourg among them—long before they left their indelible marks on modern history.*SUBSCRIBE NOW FOR BONUS EPISODESLooking for Friends of Shakespeare and Company read Ulysses? https://podfollow.com/sandcoulyssesIf you want to spend even more time at Shakespeare and Company, you can now subscribe for regular bonus episodes and early access to Friends of Shakespeare and Company read Ulysses.Subscribe on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/sandcoSubscribe on Apple Podcasts here: https://podcasts.apple.com/fr/podcast/shakespeare-and-company-writers-books-and-paris/id1040121937?l=enAll money raised goes to supporting “Friends of Shakespeare and Company” the bookshop's non-profit, created to fund our noncommercial activities—from the upstairs reading library, to the writers-in-residence program, to our charitable collaborations, and our free events.*Stephen May is the author of five novels including Life! Death! Prizes! which was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and The Guardian Not The Booker Prize. He has also been shortlisted for the Wales Book of the Year and is a winner of the Media Wales Reader's Prize. He has also written plays, as well as for television and film. He lives in West Yorkshire.Adam Biles is Literary Director at Shakespeare and Company. Buy a signed copy of his novel FEEDING TIME here: https://shakespeareandcompany.com/S/9781910296684/feeding-timeListen to Alex Freiman's Play It Gentle here: https://open.spotify.com/album/4gfkDcG32HYlXnBqI0xgQX?si=mf0Vw-kuRS-ai15aL9kLNA&dl_branch=1 Get bonus content on Patreon Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

Claire Fuller is the author of four novels: her latest, Unsettled Ground, winner of the Costa Novel Award 2021, and shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction; Our Endless Numbered Days, which won the 2015 Desmond Elliott prize; Swimming Lessons, shortlisted for the Encore Prize; and Bitter Orange longlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award. She was a sculptor and director of a marketing agency, before writing fiction at the age of 40. She has a Masters (distinction) in Creative and Critical Writing from The University of Winchester. She lives in Winchester, England with her husband and a cat called Alan, and she has two grown-up children.Books chosen by Claire:Stig of the Dump by Clive KingFluke by James Herbert We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley JacksonThe Road by Cormac McCarthyThe Iceberg by Marion CouttsOther books discussed:Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia OwensKlara and the Sun by Kazuo IshiguroOther podcast mentioned:Between Lewis and Lovecraft (looks at authors' lives)You can buy books mentioned in this episode on our Bookshop.org Affiliate page. (UK Only). By purchasing here, you support both small bookshops AND our podcast. Twitter: @twolitchicksInstagram: @two_lit_chicksTikTok: @two_lit_chicksEmail: hello@twolitchicks.orgWe love our listeners, and we want to hear from you. Please leave a review on one of our podcast platforms and chat with us on social media.If you do one thing today, sign up to our newsletter so we can keep you updated with all our news.Thank you so much for listening. Listeners, we love you. Two Lit Chicks Podcast is recorded and produced by Your Voice Here.Support the show

What did James Joyce's Ulysses do to literature, and how has literature reacted since? What is its role in the contemporary literary landscape? In celebration of the book's centennial and in anticipation of Bloomsday, novelist and scholar Colm Tóibín spoke to Alice McCrum on May 27, 2022 at the American Library in Paris with a live audience both in person and on Zoom about the history, publication, and legacy of the book to which, in the words of T.S. Eliot, “we are all indebted, and from which none of us can escape.”Colm Tóibín is a novelist, essayist, and critic. He is the author of many works, including The Blackwater Lightship (1996), shortlisted for the Booker Prize; The Master (2004), awarded the 2006 International Dublin Literary Award and the 2004 Los Angeles Times Novel of the Year, and Brooklyn (2009), awarded the Costa Novel Award. Tóibín received the Bob Hughes Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019 and the David Cohen Prize for Literature in 2021.A student of environmental policy at Sciences Po-Paris, Alice McCrum runs programming at the American Library in Paris. *Looking for our author interview podcast? Listen here: https://podfollow.com/shakespeare-and-companySUBSCRIBE NOW FOR EARLY EPISODES AND BONUS FEATURESAll episodes of our Ulysses podcast are free and available to everyone. However, if you want to be the first to hear the recordings, by subscribing, you can now get early access to recordings of complete sections.Subscribe on Apple Podcasts here: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/channel/shakespeare-and-company/id6442697026Subscribe on Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/sandcoIn addition a subscription gets you access to regular bonus episodes of our author interview podcast. All money raised goes to supporting “Friends of Shakespeare and Company” the bookshop's non-profit.*Discover more about Shakespeare and Company here: https://shakespeareandcompany.comBuy the Penguin Classics official partner edition of Ulysses here: https://shakespeareandcompany.com/d/9780241552636/ulyssesFind out more about Hay Festival here: https://www.hayfestival.com/homeAdam Biles is Literary Director at Shakespeare and Company. Find out more about him here: https://www.adambiles.netBuy a signed copy of his novel FEEDING TIME here: https://shakespeareandcompany.com/S/9781910296684/feeding-timeDr. Lex Paulson is Executive Director of the School of Collective Intelligence at Université Mohammed VI Polytechnique in Morocco.Original music & sound design by Alex Freiman.Hear more from Alex Freiman here: https://open.spotify.com/album/4gfkDcG32HYlXnBqI0xgQX?si=mf0Vw-kuRS-ai15aL9kLNA&dl_branch=1Follow Alex Freiman on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/alex.guitarfreiman/Featuring Flora Hibberd on vocals.Hear more of Flora Hibberd here: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5EFG7rqfVfdyaXiRZbRkpSVisit Flora Hibberd's website: This is my website:florahibberd.com and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/florahibberd/ Music production by Adrien Chicot.Hear more from Adrien Chicot here: https://bbact.lnk.to/utco90/Follow Adrien Chicot on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/adrienchicot/Photo of Colm Tóibín by Brigitte Lacombe See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Filmmaker Andrea Arnold on her first documentary film, Cow, about the life of two cows, which one critic described as 'a meaty slice of bovine socio-realism.' We talk to Dr Ahmad Sarmast, founder and director of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, about the organisation's recent departure from the country. And Claire Fuller has won the Costa Novel Award 2021 for her book Unsettled Ground, about twins in their 50s living in rural England, struggling to make ends meet and negotiating family secrets. She'll talk about what winning the prize means to her. Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Simon Richardson

This 'In Conversation' talk was given as part of the first online Iris Murdoch Conference on the 15th July, 2021. Sarah and Avril discuss the importance of Iris' use of the gothic, and the impact it had on Sarah's own fiction. Avril Horner (Emeritus Professor, Kingston University) is a world-leading expert in the Gothic. She has co-edited collection on Murdoch's work, as well as ‘Living on Paper: Letters from Iris Murdoch' with Anne Rowe. Her biography of Barbara Comyns is forthcoming. Sarah Perry is the internationally best selling author of the novels Melmoth, The Essex Serpent, and After Me Comes the Flood, and the non-fiction Essex Girls. She is a winner of the Waterstone's Book of the Year Awards and the British Book Awards, and has been nominated for major literary prizes including the Women's Prize for Fiction, the Dylan Thomas Prize, the Folio Prize and the Costa Novel Award. Her essays have been widely published, and she has contributed to the Guardian, the New York Times, the Observer, and the London Review of Books. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and has a PhD in Creative Writing, and has been a UNESCO City of Literature Writer in Residence in Prague, and a Writer in Residence at Gladstone's Library and the Savoy Hotel in London. Her second novel, the No. 1 bestseller The Essex Serpent, is currently being adapted for television, starring Claire Danes in the lead role.

                  Rowan Hisayo Buchanan is the author of Harmless Like You and Starling Days. She has won The Authors’ Club First Novel Award and a Betty Trask Award and been shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award. Her work has been a New York Times Editors’ Choice, an NPR Great Read. Rowan's first novel Harmless Like You.

Episode Notes We review The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey. This beautiful novel was the winner of the 2020 Cost Book Award and the 2020 Costa Novel Award. The audiobook is narrated by Ben Onwukue and Vivienne Acheampong. Our discussion covers the use of music in audiobooks, our love of horrible villains, and how some books are written to be read aloud. About the book: March 1976: St Constance, a tiny Caribbean village on the island of Black Conch, at the start of the rainy season. A fisherman sings to himself in his pirogue, waiting for a catch but attracts a sea-dweller he doesn't expect. Aycayia, a beautiful young woman cursed by jealous wives to live as a mermaid, has been swimming the Caribbean Sea for centuries. And she is entranced by this man David and his song. Support Audiobookish by donating to their Tip Jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/audiobookish Find out more at https://audiobookish.pinecast.co This podcast is powered by Pinecast. Try Pinecast for free, forever, no credit card required. If you decide to upgrade, use coupon code r-8a93af for 40% off for 4 months, and support Audiobookish.

#ConversationswithFriends #SallyRooney #booksummary Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney, A modern romance about relationships and interpersonal dynamics. Sally Rooney is the author of the novels Conversations with Friends and Normal People. She was the winner of the Sunday Times/Peters Fraser + Dunlop Young Writer of the Year Award in 2017. In 2018, Conversations with Friends was shortlisted for both the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Rathbones Folio Prize and Normal People was the Waterstones Book of the Year, won the Costa Novel Award and was longlisted for the Booker Prize. Rooney won the Encore Award for Normal People in 2019. She was the editor of the Stinging Fly in 2018 and a Cullman Center Fellow at the New York Public Library from 2019–20. She was nominated for an Emmy for her work on the television adaptation of Normal People, which was broadcast on CBC Gem in 2020.

Mildred Pierce, James M Cain's 1941 novel was turned into a noir film starring Joan Crawford which earnt her an Academy Award. Matthew Sweet and his guests crime writers Denise Mina & Laura Lippman + academics Sarah Churchwell & Lizzie Mackarel have been re-watching the film and comparing it with the novel as they consider how the social realism and depiction of suburban female life differs from his other books which became hit films The Postman Always Rings Twice and Double Indemnity. Laura Lippman's novels include the PI Tess Monaghan series and stand alone titles such as Lady in the Lake, Sunburn and After I'm Gone. Denise Mina's crime novels have won many prizes and her latest The Less Dead has been shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award. Sarah Churchwell is Professor of American Literature and Public Understanding of the Humanities at the University of London and the author of books including The Many Lives of Marilyn Monroe and Careless People: Murder, Mayhem and the Invention of The Great Gatsby You can find other Free Thinking discussions of film and the relationship between novels and film on the programme website including Jonathan Coe's recent novel looking at Billy Wilder and his late films https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000p1dx Michael Caine in the film Get Carter made by from Ted Lewis's 1970 novel Jack's Return Home https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000mt05 Tarkovsky's Stalker https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0775023 Rashomon and the writing of Akutagawa, which led to the film by Kurosawa https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0b01vwk Marnie and Winston Graham's novel https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b098n4j4 Many are in this playlist called Landmarks https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01jwn44 Producer: Torquil MacLeod

¿Quieres escuchar el audiolibro completo? Visita http://www.penguinaudio.comGanador del Costa Novel Award.Ganador del Irish Novel of the Year.Finalista del Man Booker Prize.Finalista del Women's Prize for Fiction.Marianne y Connell son compañeros de instituto pero no se cruzan palabra. Él es uno de los populares y ella, una chica solitaria que ha aprendido a mantenerse alejada del resto de la gente. Todos saben que Marianne vive en una mansión y que la madre de Connell se encarga de su limpieza, pero nadie imagina que cada tarde los dos jóvenes coinciden. Uno de esos días, una conversación torpe dará comienzo a una relación que podría cambiar sus vidas.Gente normal es una historia de fascinación mutua, de amistad y de amor entre dos personas que no consiguen encontrarse, una reflexión sobre la dificultad de cambiar quienes somos. La segunda novela de Sally Rooney acompaña durante años a dos protagonistas magnéticos y complejos, dos jóvenes que llegamos a entender hasta en su contradicción más sonada y en sus más graves malentendidos. Esta es una historia agridulce que muestra como nos conforman el sexo y el poder, el deseo de herir y ser herido, de amar y ser amado. Nuestras relaciones son una conversación a lo largo del tiempo. Nuestros silencios, lo que las define. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Sally Rooneys famoses zweites Buch „Normale Menschen“ wird vom Guardian als „Klassiker der Zukunft“ gehandelt – und ich bin ziemlich sicher, er hat Recht. Marianne und Connell, die Hauptfiguren, sind für mich so eine Art Julia und Romeo unserer Zeit und stehen den beiden in ihrem Talent für Missverständnisse in nichts nach. Es geht um Liebe, Sex, Identität und darum, wie die soziale Klasse die Liebe und das Leben prägt. Unaufgeregt im Stil ist Rooney ein aufregendes Buch gelungen. Und weil die irische Schriftstellerin selbst eine Entdeckung wert ist, habe ich einiges über sie recherchiert und teile unten die Links mit euch. Vorab frechweg einen Link in eigener Sache: "Feiste Bücher" ist für den Buchblog Award 2020 nominiert, und ich würde mich sehr, sehr freuen, wenn ihr mir bis zum 8. September eure Stimme gebt: www.buchblog-award.de „Normale Menschen“ von Sally Rooney ist bei Luchterhand erschienen. Zoe Beck hat die 320 Seiten aus dem irischen Englisch übersetzt, das Hardcover kostet 20 €. Gerade läuft auch eine 12-teilige Serie bei Starplayzs. Und obwohl Daisy Edgar-Jones und Paul Mescal ganz bezaubernd sind, rate ich euch hier, wie eigentlich immer: Lest lieber zuerst das Buch! Und jetzt die Links zur Folge: "Normale Menschen" beruht auf der Kurzgeschichte „At the Clinic“, die die heute 29-Jährige bereits 2016 im Alter von 25 Jahren in der Londoner Literaturzeitschrift „The White Review“ veröffentlicht hat: https://www.thewhitereview.org/fiction/at-the-clinic/ Lauren Collins hat Rooney für den "New Yorker" getroffen und ein exzellentes Porträt geschrieben:https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/01/07/sally-rooney-gets-in-your-head Im Gespräch mit dem dänischen Channel.Louisina.dk spricht Rooney darüber, wie sich Bücher als Ware mit ihrer marxistischen Weltsicht vertragen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1S5bOdJq3U&t=1s Ein tolles ausführliches Gespräch mit ihr hat der London Review Bookshop aufgezeichnet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jH_0rg46Es&t=3222s Rooney hat 2018 für "Normale Menschen" den Costa Novel Award gewonnen – sympathische anderthalb Minuten mit ihr: https://youtu.be/BPmOFdCPW2I Und zum Abschluss ein Essay von ihr, der mit in die Welt der Debatten-Wettkämpfe nimmt: https://thedublinreview.com/article/even-if-you-beat-me/ Schreibt mir gern auf Insta, was ihr denkt! Folge direkt herunterladen

Rachel and Simon speak with Louise Doughty. Louise is the author of nine novels, including “Apple Tree Yard”, a number-one bestseller which was adapted as a four-part series by the BBC. Her sixth novel, “Whatever You Love”, was nominated for the Costa Novel Award and Orange Prize for Fiction; her eighth novel, “Black Water”, was chosen by the New York Times as one of their Notable Books of the Year. Her work has been translated into 30 languages. We spoke to Louise about creative writing programmes, the vexing “chick lit” label and her extensive research process. https://www.louisedoughty.com/ https://louisedoughty.com/apple-tree-yard/ https://louisedoughty.com/whatever-you-love/ https://louisedoughty.com/black-water/ You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways, and on Facebook at facebook.com/alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Nicola Kean. Our social media is run by Katy Lee. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.

This week on the podcast, we’re joined by special guest Maggie O’Farrell. The author of eight novels, plus the Sunday Time no. 1 best-selling memoir I am, I am, I am, she has been nominated for the Costa Novel Award three times, winning it for The Hand That First Held Mine. Her new book – Hamnet – is set in the summer of 1596 and imagines the story behind one of Shakespeare’s best-known tragedies and its connection to Shakespeare’s only son, Hamnet. It’s a stunning novel and a tender story of love and grief that shifts the focus to the family that Shakespeare left behind in Stratford when he moved to London to become the playwright we know today. We spoke to Maggie about how she researched the story and how she approached the daunting prospect of writing about such a well-known figure as Shakespeare. This episode features an extract from Hamnet, read by Maggie O’Farrell.

Melissa Harrison is the author of the novels Clay and At Hawthorn Time, which was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and longlisted for the Bailey's Women's Prize, and one work of non-fiction, Rain, which was longlisted for the Wainwright Prize. She is a nature writer, critic and columnist for The Times, the Financial Times and the Guardian, among others. Her latest novel is All Among the Barley. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Jonathan Coe talks about Middle England which has won the Costa Novel Award 2019. Set in the outskirts of Birmingham where car factories have been replaced by pound shops and in a London beset by riots and Olympic fever, it’s a state of the nation novel that tries to make sense of our times, with characters from both sides of the EU referendum divide. Pop megastar Selena Gomez releases her 3rd studio album Rare. She’s been through an emotional rollercoaster in recent years, including an emergency kidney transplant, mental health struggles and public break-ups with Justin Bieber and The Weeknd - all inspiration for the album, which she describes as her most honest yet. Sophie Harris reviews. Johnny Flynn was nominated for an Olivier Award for his performance in Jerusalem and won acclaim for his score for the BBC 4 series Detectorists. For BBC Radio 3 he has co-written the strange tale of a tax adviser’s struggle to uncover Russian tax fraud, his imprisonment by the authorities, and an American financier’s crusade for justice. Flynn tells us about Magnitsky The Musical, which tells the story of the origins of the Magnitsky Act which allows governments to sanction those whom they see as offenders against human rights. And as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex indicate that their roles will be changing, Jan Dalley comments on royal patrons in the arts. Presenter: Stig Abell Producer: Sarah Johnson

This week on The Pleasure Podcast, our guest is the brilliantly bright, best-selling author Sarah Perry.Sarah's novels After Me Comes The Flood, The Essex Serpent, and Melmoth have made her into a house-hold name. The Essex Serpent was a number one bestseller in hardback, was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and was named Waterstones Book of the Year. It is currently being adapted for screen. Melmoth, a Gothic masterpiece of moral complexity, asking us profound questions about mercy, redemption, and how to make the best of our conflicted world, was a Sunday Times Bestseller and was shortlisted for The International Dylan Thomas Prize. She's been compared to Dickens, Bram Stoker and Kafka. But her writing refuses to follow conventions and genre and her Gothic spirit is always accompanied by sharp originality.She also happens to be one of the most interesting, worldly women I've ever had the pleasure to meet. Sarah's puritanical upbringing led her to find a secret world of pleasure and erotic imagination in literature, whether in Tess of the D'Urbervilles or her sisters' Jilly Cooper books stashed under the bed. Her tastes are wide and her conversation deep. We talk about what makes the great erotic moments in literature, what we're programmed to find erotic, the ethics of writing, the inadequacy of filthy language... and if there there really should be a Bad Sex Awards at all.She also reads out some delicious poetry by Hannah Sullivan and sexy James Joyce letters. Best to listen on your earphones for this one.The Pleasure Podcast is hosted by Naomi Sheldon and Anand Patel, edited by Matt Peover and hosted by Acast.After Me Comes The Flood, The Essex Serpent, and Melmoth are published by Serpent's TailThe Hannah Sullivan poem we discuss is You, Very Young in New York from Three PoemsElizabeth Smart's By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept is available hereYou can read some of James Jocye's letters to Nora hereAnd here's quotes from the full shortlist of the 2018 Bad Sex AwardsSocial Media:Naomi Sheldon @NaomiSheldon1Anand Patel @therealdranandSarah Perry www.sarahperry.net See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week’s podcast continues the theme of managing stress and this week we look at living with long term stress – be it illness, family dynamics or other situations that aren’t necessarily that easy to change or walk away from. Earlier this week it was announced that over 40% of businesses have seen a rise in people taking time off work last year due to stress and that 90% of cases seen by GPs are stress related. The numbers are clearly increasing when it comes to anxiety and depression so, what can we do to manage our busy lifestyles and the stress that results from it? This week we look at the example of author Maggie O Farrell and how she lives with a long term stress caused by her childhood illness and also how her family lives in a state of high alert as one of her children suffers with multiple extreme allergic reactions, sometimes life threatening, on a regular basis. I have two coping mechanisms to share with you, one for short and one for long term stress – and this is where the water and coffee come in: WATER – MANAGING MELTDOWNS AND SHORT TERM STRESS Walk away – find something that totally distracts my mind from what just happened in order to let the stress levels drop Attention – focus my attention on something positive to bring balance back into my mind Time -is my friend, we are so much more able to deal with stress once some water has passed under the bridge Emotion check – am I tired, hungry, hormonal, already stressed by something else Remind myself that I’m enough, I am a good person and this situation doesn’t define me COFFEE – COPING WITH LONG TERM LIFE STRESSES Choose your battles and compartmentalise Organise and plan Fear check – face your fears by asking what’s the worst that could happen and pre empt where possible Fun – have fun, make memories and allow yourself some space from what is going on Eat and sleep – without it we pretty much can’t function well Exercise – increase the blood flow and oxygen, giving your body the best chance to help you manage I find these help us develop resilience and determination, like Maggie O Farrell and still live our lives to the full. Links mentioned in this episode: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w172wx8kc0srb4l https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-devon-47884268/baking-was-my-escape-from-anxiety   https://www.stepjockey.com/workplace-stress-a-21st-century-health-epidemic And take a look at Maggie’s books here http://www.maggieofarrell.com/ AFTER YOU'D GONE MY LOVER'S LOVER THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US, which won a Somerset Maugham Award, THE VANISHING ACT OF ESME LENNOX THE HAND THAT FIRST HELD MINE - 2010 Costa Novel Award, INSTRUCTIONS FOR A HEATWAVE - shortlisted for the 2013 Costa Novel Award THIS MUST BE THE PLACE I AM, I AM, I AM

Normal People was named Waterstones book of the year, was longlisted for the 2018 Booker Prize and most recently won the Costa Novel Award. Sally Rooney's editor at Faber & Faber dubbed her a ‘Salinger for the Snapchat generation', while praise has been heaped on the book by the critics. But did it make for a good book club read? Is the hype justified? Listen in to find out.

Kate Atkinson won the Whitbread Book of the Year Award for her 1995 debut novel Behind the Scenes at the Museum, and has won the Costa Novel Award twice, for Life After Life in 2013 and for A God in Ruins two years later.Born in York in 1951, she was the only child of a couple who ran a medical and surgical supplies shop. She began to write after she had failed her doctorate at Dundee University and had given birth to two daughters. She took on a wide range of jobs while writing short stories for women's magazines, and did not publish her first book until she was in her early 40s. Her mid-career reinvention as a writer of detective fiction has seen her publish four novels starring her sleuth Jackson Brodie, with another one in the pipeline. She lives in Edinburgh, has two grown-up daughters, and two grandchildren.BOOK CHOICE: The Collected Poems and Letters of Emily Dickenson LUXURY ITEM: A 500 year old, mature oak tree FAVOURITE TRACK: Beethoven's Symphony no. 5Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Cathy Drysdale

Kate Atkinson won the Whitbread Book of the Year Award for her 1995 debut novel Behind the Scenes at the Museum, and has won the Costa Novel Award twice, for Life After Life in 2013 and for A God in Ruins two years later. Born in York in 1951, she was the only child of a couple who ran a medical and surgical supplies shop. She began to write after she had failed her doctorate at Dundee University and had given birth to two daughters. She took on a wide range of jobs while writing short stories for women's magazines, and did not publish her first book until she was in her early 40s. Her mid-career reinvention as a writer of detective fiction has seen her publish four novels starring her sleuth Jackson Brodie, with another one in the pipeline. She lives in Edinburgh, has two grown-up daughters, and two grandchildren. BOOK CHOICE: The Collected Poems and Letters of Emily Dickenson LUXURY ITEM: A 500 year old, mature oak tree FAVOURITE TRACK: Beethoven's Symphony no. 5 Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Cathy Drysdale

Maggie is the author of seven novels and winner of both the Somerset Maugham and Costa Novel Award. Born in Northern Ireland, she now lives in Edinburgh. Maggie took Laura to Little Sparta, the garden of Ian Hamilton Finlay, set in the Pentland Hills, south of the city. Finlay was a Scottish poet, writer and artist and, collaborating with stone carvers and sculptors, he created a beautiful, truly original garden. Our first podcast series, titled A Creative Practice, follows the writer and broadcaster Laura Barton as she journeys with six creative women to the places they find inspiring – from a walled garden in Wales to the rugged coastline of Northern Ireland.

Kate joins Simon and Matt to chat about her new release Transcription. It tells the story of Juliet Armstrong, who is recruited as a young woman by an obscure wartime department. In the aftermath of war she joins the BBC, where her life begins to unravel.Kate won the Whitbread Book of the Year prize with her first novel, Behind the Scenes at the Museum.Her four bestselling novels featuring former detective Jackson Brodie became the BBC television series Case Histories, starring Jason Isaacs. Her 2013 novel Life After Life won the South Bank Sky Arts Literature Prize, was shortlisted for the Women’s Prize, and voted Book of the Year for the independent booksellers associations on both sides of the Atlantic. It also won the Costa Novel Award, as did her subsequent novel A God in Ruins (2015). See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Melissa Harrison is the author of the novels Clay and At Hawthorn Time, which was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and longlisted for the Bailey's Women's Prize, and one work of non-fiction, Rain, which was longlisted for the Wainwright Prize. She is a nature writer, critic and columnist for The Times, the Financial Times and the Guardian, among others. Her latest novel is All Among the Barley. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Discussion Notes: Reservoir 13 In July we read Reservoir 13 by Jon McGregor. Next month we will read Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn Rated: Clean Winner of the 2017 Costa Novel Award, Reservoir 13 by Jon McGregor challenges reader expectations by subverting mystery tropes and dwelling on the aftermath of a disappearance, such as it may... The post Reservoir 13 | Jon McGregor | Literary Roadhouse Bookclub Ep 18 appeared first on Literary Roadhouse.

Autumn and Kendra chat with Maggie O'Farrell about her first work of nonfiction, her memoir I Am, I Am, I Am. O'Farrell talks about why she wanted to write a memoir after seven novels and about her own relationship with mortality, which inspired her to share the stories her seventeen brushes with death. Author Bio Maggie O'Farrell is the author of seven novels, After You'd Gone, My Lover's Lover, The Distance Between Us, which won a Somerset Maugham Award, The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, The Hand That First Half Mine, which won the 2010 Costa Novel Award, Instruction for a Heatwave, which was shortlisted for the 2013 Costa Novel Award, This Must Be the Place and I Am, I Am, I Am. She lives in Edinburgh. Buy the Book Website | Facebook   Check out our Patreon page to learn more about our book club and other Patreon-exclusive goodies. A special thanks to our patrons Carley T. and Stephanie W.  And be sure to subscribe to our newsletter for more new books and extra book reviews!   CONTACT Questions? Comments? Email us hello@readingwomenpodcast.com. SOCIAL MEDIA Reading Women Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Website   Music “Reading Women” Composed and Recorded by Isaac and Sarah Greene Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah Perry was born in Essex in 1979. She has a PhD in creative writing from Royal Holloway, and has been the Writer in Residence at the Gladstone Library and the UNESCO World City of Literature Writer in Residence in Prague. Her first novel, 'After Me Comes the Flood', was longlisted for the Guardian First Book Award and the Folio Prize, and won the East Anglian Book of the Year Award in 2014. Het second book, 'The Essex Serpent' was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award 2017, chosen as Waterstones Book of the Year 2016, awarded Book of the Year and Fiction Book of the Year at the British Book Awards 2017 and longlisted for the 2017 Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction.

Louis de Bernières, who lives in Norfolk, published his first novel in 1990 and was selected by Granta magazine as one of the twenty Best of Young British Novelists in 1993. Since then he has become well known internationally as a writer, with Captain Corelli's Mandolin winning the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best Novel in 1994. His sixth novel, the acclaimed Birds Without Wings, came out in 2004. A Partisan's Daughter (2008) was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and Notwithstanding: Stories from an English Village was published in Autumn 2009, followed by de Bernieres’ first collection of poetry, Imagining Alexandria: Poems in Memory of Constantinos Cavafis, in 2013. His major new novel, The Dust That Falls From Dreams, was published in July 2015, and his new collection of poems, Of Love and Desire, appeared in February 2016. As well as writing, de Bernieres plays the flute, mandolin and guitar. 5x15 brings together five outstanding individuals to tell of their lives, passions and inspirations. There are only two rules - no scripts and only 15 minutes each. Learn more about 5x15 events: 5x15stories.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/5x15stories Facebook: www.facebook.com/5x15stories Instagram: www.instagram.com/5x15stories

The art critic and writer John Berger has died. He changed our perception of art with his 1972 BBC TV series and book Ways of Seeing. An accomplished poet and playwright, he also wrote several novels including the Booker Prize-winning G which tells the story of a Casanova-like figure who gradually comes to political consciousness. Writer Lisa Appignanesi assesses his work.What were "the most enjoyable" books published in 2016? Chair of Judges, historian Kate Williams reveals that the Costa Book Awards category winners are: Francis Spufford for the First Novel Award; Keggie Carew who wins the Costa Biography Award; Alice Oswald who wins the Poetry Award; Brian Conaghan for the Children's Book Award; Sebastian Barry who wins the Costa Novel Award. He tells us about writing Days Without End. Chris Lang, the creator of the ITV hit drama Unforgotten, began his career in the mid-1980s as part of a comedy trio, The Jockeys of Norfolk, alongside Hugh Grant. As the new series of Unforgotten begins, Chris discusses the screenwriter's art of wrong-footing the audience. Presented by Samira Ahmed. Produced by Angie Nehring.

Louise Doughty is the author of seven novels, most recently the top 5 bestseller Apple Tree Yard, which was chosen for the Richard & Judy Book Club, shortlisted for the Specsavers National Book Awards Crime & Thriller of the Year and the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger, longlisted for the Guardian's Not the Booker Prize, and translated into over twenty languages. Her other novels include Whatever You Love, which was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and longlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction. She is a critic and cultural commentator for UK and international newspapers and broadcasts regularly for the BBC. Her latest novel is Black Water. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Louis de Bernières talks about the life and poetry of Cavafy. Louis de Bernières, who lives in Norfolk, published his first novel in 1990 and was selected by Granta magazine as one of the twenty Best of Young British Novelists in 1993. Since then he has become well known internationally as a writer, with Captain Corelli's Mandolin winning the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best Novel in 1994. His sixth novel, the acclaimed Birds Without Wings, came out in 2004., A Partisan's Daughter (2008) was shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award and Notwithstanding: Stories from an English Village was published in Autumn 2009, followed by de Bernieres’ first collection of poetry, Imagining Alexandria: Poems in Memory of Constantinos Cavafis, in 2013; it is also available in audio, read by the author. Publication of his major new novel, The Dust That Falls From Dreams, was in July 2015, and his new collection of poems, OF LOVE AND DESIRE, is out in February 2016. As well as writing, de Bernieres plays the flute, mandolin and guitar. 5x15 brings together five outstanding individuals to tell of their lives, passions and inspirations. There are only two rules - no scripts and only 15 minutes each. Learn more about 5x15 events: 5x15stories.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/5x15stories Facebook: www.facebook.com/5x15stories Instagram: www.instagram.com/5x15stories