When we’re not reading books, what’s our dream publication? A magazine that takes the book club as its form and runs with it. And so it is with great delight, we bring you an episode inspired by The Happy Reader, Penguin’s very special publication that has a cult-following amongst those in-the-know. We discuss their winter Book of the Season, the sci-fi classic We by Yevgeny Zamyatin.
Seb Emina, editor of THR, tells us the secrets of how the magazine is put together, and, as someone who has a lot of reading to get through, shares some ideas for how to manage the ever-expanding TBR pile, including his tried-and-tested method of speed-dating for books.
We finish with our usual round of recommendations you might like to try for your next book club read.
Book recommendations
- Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
- 1984 by George Orwell
- Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
- The Blazing World by Margaret Cavendish
- Birds, Art, Life, Death by Kyo Maclear
- Swing Time by Zadie Smith
Notes
The Happy Reader magazine is currently produced biannually and can be found in good bookshops worldwide, or seek them out online and subscribe at www.thehappyreader.com. You can also sign up for Happy Readings, their fortnightly newsletter offering an assortment of news, conversations and other literary treasure.
Burley Fisher are at 400 Kingsland Road, London E8, or find them online at burleyfisherbooks.com.
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