The Book Club Review

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77. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett Oct 04, 2020

Show notes

Identical twin sisters Stella and Desiree Vignes grow up together in a small, southern black community where the inhabitants have noteably light skin. When they run away at the age sixteen they make very different choices. One will marry and then return to her hometown, the other will live her life passing for white, knowing she can never go back. What will happen, though, when the next generation of their families connects? Race, identity, family, love, belonging, all thoughtfully woven through a compulsive page-turner that had both Laura and Kate's book clubs talking... We may just have found the perfect book club book. Did we have anything bad to say about it? Listen in to find out. Booklist: A Drop of Patience by William Melvin Kelley, Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo and Passing by Nella Larsen Upcoming shows will be on Bonjour Tristesse by Françoise Sagan and The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa. Why not read along with us. Drop us a line and let us know what you think, and we can weave your comments into the show.

If you'd like to see what we're up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com. If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to us on iTunes, it helps other listeners find us and means you'll never miss an episode.

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76. Emily's Walking Book Club Sep 12, 2020

Show notes

More than ever as we gradually emerge from lockdown we find ourselves appreciating the natural world and the joys of walking. The perfect time then to revisit our interview with Emily's Walking Book Club to hear about the inherent pleasures of walking and talking about books. And picking up on the theme we have some handpicked recommendations for you, perfect for topping up your TBR pile.

From past-podcast favourites such as Peter Matthiessen's Snow Leopard to new release The Well Gardened Mind by Sue Stuart-Smith, we found walking and the natural world an easy fit when it came to recommendations. Laura has a theory that all readers like walking, and walkers like reading. But is she right? Or maybe like Kate you try to do both at the same time. Listen in to hear all about it.

For more information about Emily's walking book club including what's coming up and how to book tickets, check out Emily's website emilyrhodeswriter.com

Books mentioned by Emily: The True Deceiver by Tove Jansson, West with the Night by Beryl Markham, Westwood by Stella Gibbons, All Passion Spent by Vita Sackville-West, The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd, As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning by Laurie Lee, Someone at a Distance by Dorothy Whipple, Beware of Pity by Stefan Zweig, and Brodeck's Report by Philippe Claudel.

Kate and Laura's recommendations: The Salt Path by Raynor Wynn, The Gift by Alison Croggon, The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen, The Old Ways by Robert Macfarlane, Flâneuse: Women Walk the City by Lauren Elkin, and The Well-Gardened Mind by Sue Stuart-Smith.

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or drop us a line at thebookclubreview@gmail.com. And if you're not already, do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.

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75. Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld Aug 22, 2020

Show notes

In real life, Bill Clinton asked Hillary Rodham to marry him three times before she finally said yes. The rest is history. But in Sittenfeld's alternative world, Hillary says no, and their lives diverge from there. Hillary is alone and heartbroken, but she's also free to pursue her own political ambitions – and free from the humiliating sexual scandals that will plague Bill's political career.

Sittenfeld deftly mines the 'What if?" possibilities of her premise, but does the novel live up to the hype? Or is it just literary fan fiction? An exercise in wishful thinking?

Journalist Phil Chaffee joins us to give Rodham the full book club treatment. It's a no holds barred discussion as we try to figure out whether the novel is an ingenious yet plausible glimpse of an alternative reality, or just a writer capitalising on a famous name.

What is your book club reading next?

At the end of the show, keep listening for our follow-on recommendations, all inspired by Rodham. In this episode, that includes:

American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld
Becoming by Michelle Obama
What Happened by Hillary Rodham Clinton
'Up, Simba' from Consider the Lobster and Other Essays by David Foster Wallace
Political Fictions by Joan Didion
Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin

Other books mentioned in this episode:

Prep, Sisterland and You Think It, I'll Say It by Curtis Sittenfeld

Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace

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74. Summer Reading: Find your perfect 'beach read' Aug 08, 2020

Show notes

'Beach read', 'holiday read', 'summer read'. This year there's another term in the mix: the 'stay-cation read'. But whatever you call it, for us summer reading is all about choice. Reading what you want. Not reading what you should.

So, what do YOU feel like reading? Well, we're here to help you decide. Speed read. Comforting classic. Wish fulfillment romance. Genre-bending Whodunnit. Rollicking historical epic. Forgotten 1930s gem. We've got you covered.

Listen in to find your perfect 'beach read' – even if you're nowhere near a beach.

We're joined by Emily of the Walking Book Group of Hampstead Heath, Elizabeth Morris of the Crib Notes newsletter, friend and journalist Phil Chaffee – who joins us on upcoming episode devoted to Rodham – and Simon of the Tea and Books podcast.

This show is all about recommendations. Here's a list of everything we cover:

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner
Sea of Poppies by Amitav Gosh
Highland Fling by Nancy Mitford
Middlemarch by George Eliot
Humankind: A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman
Business As Usual by Jane Oliver and Ann Stafford
The Bookshop on the Shore by Jenny Colgan
The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
Blonde Roots by Bernadine Evaristo

Also mentioned:

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of Empire by Akala
The Meaning of Rice by Michael Booth
Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld
Beloved by Toni Morrison
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
Love in a Cold Climate, The Pursuit of Love and Wigs on the Green by Nancy Mitford
In an Antique Land by Amitav Ghosh
Effi Briest by Theodor Fontane
H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo

You can find out more about Emily's Walking Book Club, including how to join, here. We'd also encourage you to watch Emily sing the praises of Middlemarch, part of her brilliant lockdown series.

Have a listen to Tea or Books with Simon (Stuck in a Book) and Rachel (Book Snob) as they debate ideas around books. Warning: have your notepad at the ready, as this show will leave you with a ton of recommendations.

For more recommendations, from the back list to the hottest new new releases, sign up for Crib Notes, Elizabeth Morris's monthly newsletter. Follow her on Instagram @cribnotesbookclub and Twitter @elizabethmoya for more tips and reviews.

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73. Bookshelf: What we're reading outside of book club Jul 18, 2020

Show notes

It's a summer sizzler of a Bookshelf with rave reviews from both Laura and Kate for their eclectic books of choice. For Kate, it's all about hot contemporary reads, including Carmen Maria Machado's In the Dream House, an eye-opening memoir about an abusive lesbian relationship. Whereas Laura's enchanted by the African adventures of 1930s aviatrix Beryl Markham, and dazzled by William Melvin Kelley's portrait of a black musician in Jazz Age America.

Listen in to hear what we made of…

In The Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

Uncanny Valley by Anna Wiener

Morning by Allan Jenkins

West with the Night by Beryl Markham

A Drop of Patience by William Melvin Kelley

The Mirror & the Light by Hilary Mantel

Also mentioned on this episode:

A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen

Out of Africa by Karen Blixen

Mrs Hemingway by Naomi Wood

Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou – listen in to episode 55 for a full discussion

Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris

Plot 29 by Allan Jenkins

Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker – listen in to episode 38 for a full discussion

If you'd like to see what we're up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com.

If you like what we do please do take a moment to rate, review and subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts – we love to hear from you, and you'll never miss an episode.

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72. 100 of the Finest Short Stories Ever Written Jul 04, 2020

Show notes

The short story. Sad sister to the novel? Or pinnacle of the literary form? In this episode, Laura sets out to persuade Kate, self-professed short story sceptic, she's got it all wrong.

Since the Covid Crisis went global, Laura's book club has been working their way through That Glimpse of Truth: 100 of the Finest Short Stories Ever Written selected by the late literary agent David Miller. One short story, once a week, with a Zoom chat every Monday to discuss it.

Listen in to hear the standout stories – and if Kate is convinced.

Books mentioned on this episode:

Too Much Happiness by Alice Munroe

The Tenth of December by George Saunders

Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang, which we discussed in detail on episode 63.

Laura's book club read:

That Glimpse of Truth: 100 of the Finest Short Stories Ever Written, selected by David Miller

Stories from the collection mentioned on the show:

'Mr Know-All' by W. Somerset Maugham

'The Tell-Tale Heart' by Edgar Allan Poe

'The Children Stay' by Alice Munro

'D'Accord Baby' by Hanif Kureishi

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReviewPodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com.

Subscribe to us and never miss an episode. And if you like what we do please take a moment to rate and review us! It helps other listeners find us.

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71. The Beekeeper of Aleppo Jun 20, 2020

Show notes

In honour of National Reading Group Day and World Refugee Day, we discuss The Beekeeper of Aleppo, the bestselling novel by Christy Lefteri.

It's a heartrending and important novel. The story of Nuri and Afra, a devastated couple forced to flee their home in Aleppo in the hopes of reaching safety in the UK.

Harrowing and haunting, it's a must read. But did it make for a good discussion book? Is there any hope amid the heartbreak? Listen in to find out.

We sat down to discuss it with special guest and fellow podcast host Anna Baillie Karas of Books on the Go.

If you'd like to be more involved, Christy Lefteri suggests at the end of her book that you seek out the following organisations:

Open Cultural Centre, an NGO and education project in northern Greece

Faros (The Lighthouse), a Christian non-profit providing humanitarian care in Athens

Salusbury World, a charity supporting refugees in the UK.

The Buzz Project, a Yorkshire charity founded by the Syrian apiarist Professor Ryad Alsous.

Books mentioned in this episode:

The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri

No Friend but the Mountains by Behrouz Boochani

The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan

Disoriental by Negar Djavadi

I Will Never See the World Again by Ahmet Altan

What Is The What by Dave Eggers

Cleanness by Garth Greenwell

How Much of These Hills Is Gold by C Pam Zhang

The Nickel Boys and Zone One by Colson Whitehead

Simon the Fiddler and The News of the World by Paulette Jiles

Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke

Au Revoir, Tristesse by Viv Groskop

Follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReviewPodcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod, or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com.

Subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts to never miss an episode. And if you like what we do please take a moment to rate and review us. It helps other listeners find us.

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70. The BritLit Podcast Jun 17, 2020

Show notes

We cross the Atlantic to catch up with Claire Handscombe, presenter and producer of BritLit, a fortnightly podcast that tracks what's going on in the British publishing world.

We talk about Claire's novel Unscripted, which she highly recommends as a beach read, whether you're able to go to an actual beach or just have to make do with a deckchair in your garden.

Claire also gives us a shelf's worth of great book recommendations, plus some top tips for anyone thinking of making a books podcast of their own.

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Books mentioned in this episode:

Unscripted by Claire Handscombe

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

Little Fires Everywhere by Celest Ng

The Roxy Letters by Mary Pauline Lowry

The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole by Sue Townsend

Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Rules for Being a Girl by Candice Bushnell and Katy Cotugno

What You Wish For by Katherine Center

Head over Heels by Hannah Orenstein

The Book of Hidden Wonders by Polly Crosby

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For more details on Claire, check out her website Britlitblog.com. We also love her Twitter feed @britlitpodcast, which is regularly updated with great links from the book world.

For any Wingnuts out there who might be listening, you can also check out Claire's book Walk With Us: How the West Wing Changed Our Lives.

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If you'd like to see what we're up to between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com. Do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts and take a moment to rate and review us, it helps other listeners find us and means you'll never miss an episode. Plus we love to hear from you.

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69. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens May 24, 2020

Show notes

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens is a publishing phenomenon: a debut novel that has sold more print copies in 2019 than any other adult title, fiction or non-fiction.

Appropriately, given our current Corona lockdown situation, it's a book about a girl who lives isolated in the wilderness, wrestling with loneliness. The plot draws together romance, crime and a courtroom drama building to a suspenseful conclusion.

A page-turner, then, but what did Kate's book club make of it? Listen in to find out.

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Books mentioned on this episode:

Don't Lets Go to the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller, The Five by Hallie Rubenhold, Furious Hours by Casey Cep, In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald and The Outrun by Amy Liptrot.

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For more book reviews and recommendations between episodes follow us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com.

Do subscribe to us on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts and if you like what we do please help other listeners to find us by taking a moment to rate and review us on iTunes, we always appreciate it.

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68. Bookshelf: Lockdown reads May 17, 2020

Show notes

We love our book clubs, but what do we read when we get to choose for ourselves? In this episode we have an eclectic mix, encompassing everything from hot new releases to out-of-print old childhood favourites, with some musing on just what it is we're looking for in a good Lockdown read.

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Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid

Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

Weather by Jenny Offill

The Hottest Dishes of the Tartar Cuisine by Alina Bronsky

Early Riser by Jasper Fforde

Home by Abu Bakr Al Rabeeah

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Keep up with us on Instagram or Facebook @BookClubReview podcast, on Twitter @bookclubrvwpod or email thebookclubreview@gmail.com, and if you enjoyed this episode please rate us on iTunes and subscribe, we hugely appreciate it.

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