Looking for the perfect summer read? Kate is joined by Laura Potter and returning guest Phil Chaffee to compare recent reads before putting this year’s biggest summer books to the test. Inspired by reading lists from The New York Times, The Times, Lit Hub and The Booker Prize, they decide which books are beach reads, suitcase books, and which they’d happily leave behind at the airport. Plus, they reveal the books they’re packing for their own holidays.
Listen via the media player above, or in your preferred podcast player with this Podfollow link.
Books discussed
Recently read
- The Golden Mean — Annabel Lyon
- Plato and the Tyrant — James Romm
- Glorious Exploits — Ferdia Lennon
- The Game of Kings — Dorothy Dunnett
- The House of Niccolò series — Dorothy Dunnett
- We Are Green and Trembling — Gabriela Cabezón Cámara (trans. Robin Myers)
Evaluating the picks from the summer reading lists
- Hot Milk — Deborah Levy
- The Eighth Life — Nino Haratischwili
- A Month in the Country — J. L. Carr
- Whistler — Ann Patchett
- The Things We Never Say — Elizabeth Strout
- Land — Maggie O’Farrell
- Instructions for a Heatwave — Maggie O’Farrell
- John of John — Douglas Stuart
- I Want You to Be Happy — Jem Calder
- The Director — Daniel Kehlmann
- Villa Coco — Andrew Sean Greer
Our holiday recommendations
- The Feast — Margaret Kennedy
- Free Food for Millionaires — Min Jin Lee
- Famesick — Lena Dunham
- Swimming Home — Deborah Levy
- Radiant Star — Ann Leckie
- The Balkan Trilogy — Olivia Manning
- Wait for Me — Deborah, Duchess of Devonshire
- The Pursuit of Love — Nancy Mitford
Also mentioned
- Pachinko — Min Jin Lee
- Shuggie Bain and Young Mungo — Douglas Stuart
- Less — Andrew Sean Greer
- Transcription — Ben Lerner
- Reading Lolita in Tehran — Azar Nafisi
Timecodes
00:00 Welcome
02:44 Phil on The Golden Mean
07:39 Laura on Dorothy Dunnett
11:55 Kate on Green and Trembling
16:54 Beach read game rules
18:20 Booker picks: Hot Milk
19:40 Doorstop epic The Eighth Life
21:46 Classic: A Month Country
23:07 NYT Beach Reads, Whistler by Ann. Patchett
25:33 Elizabeth Strout and American vibes
28:22 Switching to the (UK) Times list
28:29 Times list features
29:03 Maggie O’Farrell debate
30:51 Douglas Stuart pick John of John
33:05 New paperback picks
35:03 Kehlmann masterpiece The Director
38:28 The LitHub list of lists
38:55 Villa Coco verdict
41:44 Get more from the pod on Patreon
43:26 Our personal holiday reads
44:03 Phil recommends The Feast
46:01 Min Jin Lee deep dive
48:18 Lena Dunham Famesick
51:44 Laura’s summer stack
53:56 Mitfords and Tana French
01:02:20 Final wrap and farewell
