Conversations about the books that get people talking
Conversations about the books that get people talking
We’re celebrating the end of the year with a look back over our favourite reads of 2025, from new releases to backlist gems, best book club books, best non-fiction, best comfort reads and more. Between us we read over 350 books in 2025. Listen in to hear the ones we loved best. We’ve also got […]
We're celebrating the end of the year with a look back over our favourite reads of 2025. With Phil Chaffee and Sarah Oliver.
‘I never travel without my diary. One should always have something sensational to read in the train’ wrote Oscar Wilde, in The Importance of Being Ernest. In this episode Kate is joined by critic, editor and podcaster Lucy Scholes and regular guest Phil Chaffee to explore the intimate world of diaries. Can immersing ourselves in […]
Why do we love reading other people's diaries? Critic Lucy Scholes joins Kate and regular guest Phil Chaffee to explore the intimate art of diary keeping
Explore this year’s Booker Prize shortlist on the latest episode of the Book Club Review! Hosts Kate and Laura and contributors Phil Chaffee and Martin Vovk discuss and debate the six shortlisted novels. Listen in to hear our predictions, and then find out our reaction to the winner as we listen in to the live […]
Explore this year's Booker Prize shortlist on the latest episode of the Book Club Review! Hosts Kate and Laura are joined by contributors Phil Chaffee and Martin Vovk to discuss and debate the six shortlisted novels, plus hear our live reaction to the winner's announcement.
In which Kate is joined by pod regular, journalist Phil Chaffee and Professor Elizabeth Eva Leach. Both read over 200 books a year, and their reading stacks this year have included the Booker longlist. And so who better to consider the books that didn’t make the final cut – but which are, notwithstanding, the ‘best’ […]
We go through the books longlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize, but which didn't make the shortlist. Which were the best of the rest? With Phil Chaffee and Elizabeth Eva Leach
Head down the rabbit hole with me into the world of books about books with Kate and Joseph Dance, host of the Curious Readers podcast. From meta-fictional narratives to booksellers with shadowy agendas, we’re flagging up some of our favourites both for behind-the-scenes insights into the literary world, and for the way they allow us […]
Kate and Joseph Dance discuss a favourite topic among literary aficionados, books that explore the world of books and reading.
Join Kate as she takes the Book Club Review on tour to New York, a city filled with incredible bookshops, and book podcasters. Christopher Hermelin of So Many Damn Books and Drew Broussard of The Lit Hub Podcast share cocktails and book recommendations on the theme of friendship. Listen via the media player above, or your […]
Join Kate as she drinks cocktails and chats books with Christopher Hermelin of So Many Damn Books and Drew Broussard of The Lit Hub Podcast, all on location in New York
From serious high-brow literature to warm and cozy rom-coms, what do we want or need from writers when it comes to including sex in their books? To consider the matter, Kate is joined by writer and critic Elizabeth Morris and author Alex Alison. Elizabeth is creator of Crib Notes, a monthly newsletter full of reading […]
From serious high-brow literature to warm and cozy rom-coms, what do we want or need from writers when it comes to including sex in their books? Elizabeth Morris and Alex Allison join Kate to discuss it.
From Murderbot to Sense and Sensiblity, what are our favourite adaptations from books that we love? Inspired by the recent Apple adaptation of Martha Wells’ sci-fi novels The Murderbot Diaries, this episode is a celebration of the world of books to film. From the joy of seeing a book that we love brought to the […]
Inspired by the recent Apple adaptation of Martha Wells Murderbot Diaries, we're diving in to all things book to TV and film. Find out our favourites, plus we hear from Philippa Donovan, literary scout, who gives us the inside track on what it takes for a book to succeed on the screen.
At a time in which digital information is increasingly uncertain it feels more essential than ever to engage with books that tell us about the world, diversify our perspectives and propose solutions for change. Yet with the best will in the world these ‘serious’ books aren’t always what we feel like reading. We have the […]
Inspired by our featured title, Carmageddon by Daniel Knowles, we're bringing you a handpicked selection of non-fiction reads so good you'll fly through them as if you were reading a favourite novel, but with the huge benefit that you'll come out wiser and full of new information about the world we live in, and how to change it for the better.
It’s a new year and a new episode. Join Kate and Laura as they consider reading intentions for the year ahead, and try to set some realistic goals. Will 2025 be the year Kate gets into poetry? Will it be the year Laura weans herself off romance novels? And as always, they’re thinking of book […]
Bookish plans and projects for 2025, and a look ahead to our pick of the new releases, with Kate, Laura and Phil
Wrap up your year with the Book Club Review podcast! Celebrate the joy of reading with us as we highlight the standout books we read in 2024, from page-turners to genre reads, to literary fiction and best book club books. We’ll finish with our ‘if we could only choose one’ favourites for our overall book(s) […]
Discover stand-out novels, book-club favourites, cozy reads to curl up with, and non-fiction gems that touched our hearts and minds. Perfect for your 2025 reading list!
Curious about the Booker Prize 2024? Wondering if the shortlisted novels live up to the hype? In our latest episode Kate and Laura are joined by returning guests Phil, Sarah and Martin to dive deep into this year’s shortlist bringing you their usual frank, honest opinions in true book-club style. This isn’t your typical review […]
Kate and Laura are joined by returning guests Phil, Sarah and Martin to dive deep into the 2024 Booker Prize shortlist, bringing you their usual frank, honest opinions in true book-club style.
In this special episode, originally released for our Patreon subscribers, Kate celebrates the joys of the perfect notebook with fellow enthusiast and stationery shop owner David Frostick (Lift, Southwold). From the importance of flat-lay paper to the perfect pen we’ve got it all covered just in time for back-to-school season. And then we turn to […]
We explore the charm of notebooks, pens, and the art of notetaking in this special episode originally released to Patreons, to help you get the most out of your reading. With expert tips and, of course, some book recommendations. Find out how to get more from the pod and support the show via Patreon, including membership of our monthly book club.
We love a list, and we love an excuse for a conversation about books, and so we couldn’t have been more delighted when the New York Times released their list of the best books of the 21st century, so far. From 503 top tens submitted by authors and other literary world folk, plus a bit […]
Join Kate, Sarah, Phil and Laura as they consider the NYT's Best Books of the 21st Century list, and come up with a Book Club Review Top 20 picking up on the ones they think were overlooked. Listen in to find out if they've picked any of your favourites.
Inspired by the folk at the New York Times article ‘22 of the funniest novels since Catch 22’, join me (Kate), Phil and Laura as we consider the books that make us laugh. Listen in as we explore the NYT suggestions and add in a few of our own. Find out the author we can’t […]
Inspired by the recent New York Times article ‘22 of the funniest novels since Catch 22’, join Kate, Phil and Laura for their favourite funny reads.
Listen in to our non-fiction book recommendations as we explore literary worlds outside of the fiction shelves. Join Kate as she heads to South London to visit Backstory, a distinctive indie bookstore founded by former journalist Tom Rowley. Rowley shares his journey from journalism to opening a bookshop, the challenges and joys of running a […]
Exploring literary worlds beyond fiction: a dive into non-fiction with Tom Rowley of indie bookshop Backstory
We’ve put our 2023 reading lists behind us, and now it’s time to look ahead to 2024. Who better to guide us through all the new titles coming our way than Chrissy Ryan, owner of North London’s buzziest bookshop and social space, Bookbar. New books by favourite authors, a non-fiction page-turner that will have you […]
The books to look out for in 2024, with Bookbar's Chrissy Ryan, plus some tips for avoiding feeling overwhelmed by your TBR
What were the best books of 2023? Listen in to our review of the year to find out our absolute favourites. Join me (Kate), Laura and Phil as we look back over a year of reading – over 300 books between us, from new releases to backlist gems. Find out our overall book of the […]
What were the best books of 2023? Listen in to our review of the year to find out our absolute favourites. Join Kate, Laura and Phil for a look back over a year of reading – over 300 books between them, from new releases to backlist gems, and over 50 recommendations.
The Booker Prize 2023: We read all six shortlisted books. Join us as we evaluate them and try to second-guess the Booker judges, before finding out the winner, and so keep listening for our hot take. ‘A novel is a mirror carried along a high road’ says Chair of the Booker judges Esi Edyugan, quoting […]
The Booker Prize 2023: We read all six shortlisted books. Join us as we evaluate them and try to second-guess the Booker judges, before finding out the winner, and so keep listening for our hot take.
Is there any point in doing a nice thing if you can’t flaunt it on social media? Can we ever know what it’s like to be a bat? If we know Cinderella isn’t real, why do we care about whether or not she marries the prince? In this episode Kate is joined by Jonny Thomson, […]
We're feeling philosophical this back-to-school season, with Jonny Thomson, author of Mini Philosophy and Mini Big Ideas. Listen in as we discuss Tolstoy's morbid novella The Death of Ivan Illyich, Death and the Penguin by Andrey Kurkov and international bestseller Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
Late summer reading – the best kind of reading? Whether you’re after fly-through-them page-turners or immersive long-reads, or perhaps you’re after a challenge, or the perfect discussion book, we’ve got the list for you. Find out our expert picks from indie-bookshop Bookbar’s Chrissy Ryan, a woman at the centre of a hub of reading recommendations […]
Late summer reading – the best kind of reading? Whether you're after fly-through-them page-turners or immersive long-reads, or perhaps you're after a challenge, or the perfect discussion book, we've got the list for you. We compare notes with Bookbar's Chrissy Ryan and find out the books not to miss for late summer and early Autumn.
Join Kate in the historic market town of St. Albans, home to a cathedral, some impressive Roman ruins and one of Kate’s favourite independent bookshops. Books on the Hill is owned and run by a mother and daughter duo who launched it just before the pandemic. Listen in and find out what makes it so […]
Come book-shopping with us to the historic market town of St. Albans, home to a cathedral, some impressive Roman ruins and one of Kate's favourite independent bookshops, Books on the Hill.
Join us as professional book-recommender and Bibliotherapy queen Ella Berthoud helps us figure out how to overcome life’s essential problems (if you’re a reader, that is), namely how to cope with all the books there are in the world, what to do when you feel stuck in a reading rut, and the ultimate question, if […]
Join us as professional book-recommender and Bibliotherapy queen Ella Berthoud helps us figure out how to overcome life’s essential problems (if you’re a reader, that is).
The Women’s Prize 2023, one of our favourite episodes to read for and discuss. We’re joined by old friend Sarah Oliver and new to the pod Nina Davies: listen in as we share our thoughts this year’s list. As ever, you’ll hear our frank opinions about the books, but we won’t spoil the plots for […]
The Women's Prize 2023 episode is here. Listen in for full and frank opinions on the shortlist, but no plot spoilers. Find out our picks to win and the best book club reads. With Sarah Oliver and Nina Davies.
When in Vancouver, run to the coolest bookstore you can find and interview the owner. Such is the busman’s holiday I’ve recently been enjoying on a visit to Laura’s hometown. It also fits nicely into a new series we’ve been cooking up where we get to indulge our love of independent bookshops. First up is […]
Bookshopaholics is our new series of occasional episodes where we get to indulge our love of independent bookshops. Every episode we'll be visiting a different bookshop, chatting with the owners and pulling some gems off the shelves. This week, taking advantage of a sojourn in Vancouver, Kate visits iconic used and antiquarian bookstore The Paperhound.
Future reads! 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 […]
Come with us for a look into the future as we hear from Chrissy Ryan and her team at Bookbar and find out the must-read books coming up in 2023.
The Thursday Murder Club: 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 […]
Join us as Kate and two very special guests give The Thursday Murder Club the book club treatment. No spoilers, just lots of good discussion as we try to understand just what it is that so many people love about this book. Plus a range of recommendations for your next read.
The nights are drawing in, the leaves are on the ground, summer reading seems but a distant memory, it must be time for The Booker Prize 2022. Our most demanding, but possibly also our favourite episode of the year as we’re joined by bookshop owner Chrissy Ryan of Bookbar, and journalist and pod regular Phil Chaffee to […]
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.
Step back in time with us as Kate visits Charleston home of Vanessa Bell and important gathering place for the members of the Bloomsbury Group, that collection of writers and artists including Virginia Woolf that coalesced around Gordon Square in London. Undaunted by the ghosts of her relatives Nino Strachey, author of a new book, Young […]
Step back in time with us as Kate visits Charleston home of Vanessa Bell and important gathering place for the members of the Bloomsbury Group, that collection of writers and artists including Virginia Woolf that coalesced around Gordon Square in London. Undaunted by the ghosts of her relatives Nino Strachey, author of a new book, Young Bloomsbury, joins us to discuss the up-and-coming younger generation.
“How any woman with a family ever put pen to paper I cannot fathom.’ Virginia Woolf wrote, ‘Always the bell rings and the baker calls.’ It did indeed prove almost impossible to get four women into the same room to discuss all six books on the 2022 Women’s Prize shortlist, but after much postponement and […]
Listen in for our full and frank take on the winner of the 2022 Women's Prize for fiction: The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki and the other five books on the shortlist. Does Ozeki's book hold up against the competition? Maybe you don’t have time to read them all and just want to read one? Let us help you decide.
Whether you’re soaking up Nutcrackers on Rockaway beach like Kate’s book-reviewing heroine Molly Young, throwing down a picnic rug in your garden or the local park, fighting your way through airport chaos with the promise of a trip abroad or cosying up with a warm blanket in the Southern Hemisphere, we’ve got the Summer Reading […]
Whether you’re soaking up Nutcrackers on Rockaway beach like Kate’s book-reviewing heroine Molly Young, throwing down a picnic rug in your garden or the local park, fighting your way through airport chaos with the promise of a trip abroad or cosying up with a warm blanket in the Southern Hemisphere, we’ve got the Summer Reading show for you. It’s packed full of recommendations including our own favourite beach reads and tips from booksellers, authors and other friends of the pod.
It’s Mother’s Day here in the UK and as there’s nothing Kate loves more than a special episode we’ve put together a show on the theme of motherhood. We’re joined by Claire Lynch, author of Small: On Motherhoods, her literary memoir of her own unusual journey into motherhood. Elizabeth Morris of Crib Notes book club […]
Join us as we explore the theme of motherhood with Claire Lynch, author of Small: On Motherhoods, and Elizabeth Morris of Crib Notes book club – who better to help us pull together our essential reads on the topic. Listen in to discover our favourites.
We’ve all felt the lure of the short, sweet read, one of those slim books you can finish in a few hours, maybe over a hot cup of tea. But what about the books that may take weeks, even months, to read? The door stoppers, the heavy weights, the long reads. Think Dickens, Tolstoy, […]
Join us as we discuss The Magic Mountain, and recommend our favourite doorstop books from Proust to Olga Tocarczuk's Books of Jacob. We're joined by Phil Chaffee and Toby Brothers of the London Literary Salon.
Wondering what books 2022 has in store for you? What will be your next great read? We’re joined by friends of the pod and bookworld insiders Chrissy Ryan of bookshop and bar Bookbar, and Elizabeth Morris of Crib Notes to talk what’s hot and what to look forward to. We’re looking months ahead to new […]
Wondering what books 2022 has in store for you? What will be your next great read? We're joined by friends of the pod and bookworld insiders Chrissy Ryan of bookshop and bar Bookbar, and Elizabeth Morris of Crib Notes to talk what's hot and what to look forward to.
It’s time for our best books of 2021. In Part 2 of our special end-of-year double-episode we’re looking back over the books we’ve read outside of book club this year. The ones we got to pick and choose for ourselves. The ones that didn’t feel like homework (although don’t get us wrong, we love our book […]
It's time for our best books of 2021. In Part 2 of our special end-of-year double-episode we're looking back over the books we’ve read outside of book club this year. Listen in for over 70 book recommendations from us, our book clubs and our special guests.
For our 100th podcast episode we turn the spotlight on ourselves a little more than usual to answer listeners’ questions. From our favourite childhood reads to the books that shaped us as adults, from books which kept us up all night to books we disagree on (with a shocking mid-show revelation from Laura that threatens […]
For our 100th podcast episode we turn the spotlight on ourselves a little more than usual to answer listeners' questions. From the books we love to the ones we don't and everything in-between.
Or listen via your podcast app here. Feeling quizzical? Missing your favourite pub quiz? Compete along with us as Gary Wigglesworth, author of The Book Lover’s Quiz Book, puts us through our literary paces in a special episode. Will you beat us? We especially loved the way these books questions prompted lots of side conversations […]
Feeling quizzical? Missing your favourite pub quiz? Compete along with us as Gary Wigglesworth, author of The Book Lover’s Quiz Book, puts us through our literary paces in a special episode. Will you beat us?
Or listen via your podcast app here. 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 […]
Which book will we crown our 2020 book club book of the year? Listen in to find out.
Whether you made it to a beach this year or staycationed at home we’ve got the perfect selection of options for your summer reading. Fiction, non-fiction, highbrow, lowbrow, we’ve got it all covered. Plus we asked a few friends of the show to join in, so expect recommendations from Emily Rhodes of Emily’s Walking Book […]
Summer reading for us is all about finding the perfect book to suit your mood. So listen in as we bring you a pile of handpicked book recommendations from us and a few podcast friends.
Many things make for a good book club. The right group of people, the right food, the right drinks… But in our view, the biggest guarantor of success is to choose the right books. We’ve given it some thought, so here are our top 10 books we think make for perfect book club reads. They […]
Wondering what book to read next for book club? Here's our selection of the top ten best book club books out there, all guaranteed to deliver vivid reading experiences and lively debate.
Ready to start your own book club? We’ve pulled together a special episode to tell you how, from who to invite and what books (or genre) to read, to the pitfalls you’ll want to avoid. It’s packed full of inspiration and advice from book clubs we’ve interviewed over the years, including the Proust Book Group […]
A show packed full of inspiration and advice to help you start your very own book club, everything from choosing your venue to selecting the perfect book. From successful strategies to pitfalls to avoid, we've thought of everything in our ultimate guide.
If you’ve ever dreamed of switching everything off and being able to read for hours, then this is the episode for you. Reading Retreats run holidays in Derbyshire, England, where all you do is read. Nothing less, nothing more. But what’s the experience really like? To find out, Kate made a great self-sacrifice and spent […]
Do you dream of a long weekend of reading, and only reading? Curious to find out if the dream lives up to expectations Kate heads off on a weekend reading retreat.
We look back over our book club reads this past year and crown our favourite. But which one will it be? Book recommendations Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aciman Two Serious Ladies by Jane Bowles Educated by Tara Westover Swing Time by Zadie Smith Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeleine Thien […]
It’s been a cracker of a year for both our book clubs, but only one book can come out on top. We look back through the year considering the hits and misses to work out our Book Club Book of the Year.
Wondering what to buy the book clubber in your life for Christmas? Here’s Claire Griffiths of North London bookshop Ink@84 with a brilliant rundown of new titles to catch your interest and inspire some great book club debates. Book recommendations Ghost Wall and The Tidal Zone by Sarah Moss Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi Fox 8 […]
We always love talking to booksellers because they have such a wide-ranging knowledge of books, it's the perfect way to dig out those gems you might have missed. Claire Griffiths of North London bookshop Ink@84 gives us her run-down of the best new titles and her picks for great book club reads.
