Prolific readers Alice Slater and Bethany Rutter take a literary theme, from ghost stories to crime to fat women, and chat about it for the next 40 minutes.
Follow us on Twitter @WhatPagePod (https://twitter.com/WhatPagePod)
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Prolific readers Alice Slater and Bethany Rutter take a literary theme, from ghost stories to crime to fat women, and chat about it for the next 40 minutes.
Follow us on Twitter @WhatPagePod (https://twitter.com/WhatPagePod)
Alice and Bethany are joined by author Elizabeth Macneal to discuss her novel, The Doll Factory, as well as Michel Faber's Victorian masterpieces, The Apple and Crimson Petal & The White, which is one of Bethany's all-time favourite novels.
Alice and Bethany realised there was a trend in 2018-2019 for books with citrus fruits in the title, so decided to read them for this episode. The books were:
Blood Orange by Harriet Tyce
Tangerine by Christine Mangan
Bitter Orange by Claire Fuller
WPAYO had the great pleasure and honour of interviewing Michelle Paver, author of [among others] Dark Matter and Thin Air, two of our favourite novels of recent years. Her new novel, Wakenhyrst, is a change of direction which is no less absorbing, lifelike and haunting. Wakenhyrst is out now.
In a special bonus episode, Alice and Bethany talk to Beth McColl aka internet fave TeddyBless about her new book, How To Come Alive Again, which is out now from Unbounders.
Alice and Bethany take a look at two fictionalised accounts of the music industry via newly-released faux oral history Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid, and revisits A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan.
Alice and Bethany tackle something that Alice knows something about and Bethany knows nothing about: poetry. They talk about a series of modern poems that have achieved some kind of internet fame or virality for reasons to the artistic to the potentially criminal.
Alice and Bethany lean into the winter by reading two contemporary Nordic novels with a queer angle, Paradise Rot by Jenny Hval, and Crimson by Niviaq Corneliussen.
You've heard Alice and Bethany gush about My Sister The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite, now hear Bethany chat to Oyin herself about what inspired the character Ayoola, how she feels about that cover, and the charmed road to publication...
This week, Alice and Bethany talk about different kinds of isolated communities. They discuss Skin Deep by Liz Nugent and Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss, as well as The Beach by Alex Garland, The Water Cure by Sophie Mackintosh and Little Eve by Catriona Ward.
Alice and Bethany usher in 2019 with an episode about girls covering up for each other. They discuss Give Me Your Hand by Megan Abbott, and My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite ahead of releasing a mini episode featuring an interview with Oyinkan.
Alice and Bethany finish up the year with their top 10s of 2018.
Alice's book of the year is Women by Chloe Caldwell - https://amzn.to/2QiG9PM
Bethany's book of the year is Skin Deep by Liz Nugent - https://amzn.to/2zP3IFm
Bethany's top 10:
Skin Deep by Liz Nugent - https://amzn.to/2zP3IFm
Women by Chloe Caldwell - https://amzn.to/2QiG9PM
Normal People by Sally Rooney - https://amzn.to/2AYKxc0
House of Impossible Beauties by Joseph Cassara - https://amzn.to/2QCrheq
Fire Sermon by Jamie Quatro - https://amzn.to/2B3ktML
Lullaby by Leila Slimani - https://amzn.to/2Pqi8B0
Revolting Prostitutes by Molly Smith and Juno Mac - https://amzn.to/2L598QU
Bad Blood by John Carreyrou - https://amzn.to/2Pp96E1
Sabrina by Nick Drnaso - https://amzn.to/2B3lbcT
I'll Be Gone In The Dark by Michelle McNamara - https://amzn.to/2L1o56P
Alice's top 10:
Women by Chloe Caldwell - https://amzn.to/2QiG9PM
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata - https://amzn.to/2SC1259
Normal People - https://amzn.to/2AYKxc0
Lullaby by Leila Slimani - https://amzn.to/2Pqi8B0
Fire Sermon by Jamie Quatro - https://amzn.to/2B3ktML
What It Means When A Man Falls From The Sky by Lesley Nneka Arimah - https://amzn.to/2PseLJA
Ponti by Sharlene Teo - https://amzn.to/2Qig1El
I'll Be Gone In The Dark by Michelle McNamara - https://amzn.to/2L1o56P
Little Eve by Catriona Ward - https://amzn.to/2B3ljsT
Give Me Your Hand by Megan Abbott - https://amzn.to/2PkWcqR
The 2019 releases we can already recommend are
My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Red Snow by Will Dean
Stone Mothers by Erin Kelly
Wakenhyrst by Michelle Paver
The Doll Factory by Elizabeth Macneal
Alice and Bethany discuss two brilliant novels set in the darkest heart of suburbia, and think about the nature of young female friendship, what suburbia means and why these books so often revolve around women.
The books of the episode are:
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng - https://amzn.to/2OWkRBT
The End of Everything by Megan Abbott - https://amzn.to/2OZFPjd
and a special mention for:
The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides - https://amzn.to/2PST6j2
Bethany is currently reading The Piano Teacher by Elfriede Jelinek - https://amzn.to/2ScG6Bg and listening to Disobedience by Naomi Alderman on Audible - https://amzn.to/2PT5zDn
Alice is currently reading The Doll Factory by Elizabeth Macneal - https://amzn.to/2PTtwdt and listening to Pet Sematary by Stephen King on Audible - https://amzn.to/2ApVymC
This week Alice and Bethany discuss two very recent books about Japanese shop employees: The Nakano Thrift Shop by Hiromi Kawakami and Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata.
The Nakano Thrift Shop - https://amzn.to/2PoXrtK
Convenience Store Woman - https://amzn.to/2z4smS9
In this episode, Bethany interviews Molly Smith and Juno Mac, authors of Revolting Prostitutes, a rare example of a book about sex worker rights written by current sex workers.
They discuss their process of writing collaboratively, their attempts to shift how we think about 'sex work issues' and the impossibly high standards they're forced to work to.
Their book, Revolting Prostitutes, can be found here: https://amzn.to/2DjaZk7
They also recommend:
Playing the Whore by Melissa Gira Grant - https://amzn.to/2yPJNWB
Sex at the Margins by Laura Maria Augustin - https://amzn.to/2F3pp9P
To Live Freely In This World by Chi Adanna Mgbako- https://amzn.to/2OszDjG
Alice and Bethany return from their wedding-induced hiatus just in time for Hallowe'en. They discuss two creeptastic masterpieces by gothic queen Shirley Jackson: We Have Always Lived in the Castle, and The Haunting of Hill House, with much bonus chat about the Hill House adaptation on Netflix, leading to broader discussions about horror in books and films.
Alice and Bethany grapple with Jean Rhys' Wide Sargasso Sea. They don't necessarily agree on it but have a lot to say about it anyway, before going on a meander towards classics, contemporary classics, the literary legacy of Jane Eyre and more. Join us at 8pm on Tuesday 7th August for the Twitter chat on the hashtag #WPAYOSargasso.
This week, Alice and Bethany take you through their favourite books of the year so far and tell you about what they're looking forward to in the second half of the year.
In this Book Club episode, Alice and Bethany discuss When I Hit You by Meena Kandasamy, and then go off-piste to chat about book prizes and celebrity-endorsed book clubs...
Alice and Bethany discuss three books that deal with women on the edge.
Problems by Jade Sharma - https://amzn.to/2yptG4i
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath - https://amzn.to/2t59GPb
Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen - https://amzn.to/2t4Qot8
In this episode Alice and Bethany discuss classic-in-the-making I'll Be Gone In The Dark with Grace and Emma from Foul Play magazine, which you can find out about here - http://www.foulplaymag.com
In this episode Alice and Bethany talk about 5 thrillers that were released in either hardback or paperback this year which they think would make amazing summer holiday reads.
They are:
He Said She Said by Erin Kelly - https://amzn.to/2shIeMZ
Darling by Rachel Edwards - https://amzn.to/2saLt8O
The Perfect Girlfriend by Karen Hamilton - https://amzn.to/2xciXcQ
The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen - https://amzn.to/2GRd1FL
The Woman in the Window by AJ Finn - https://amzn.to/2KXzIKu
In this episode, Alice and Bethany go deep and spoilerish on Daphne Du Maurier's Rebecca. Join us at 7pm on Tuesday 15th May on the What Page Are You On Twitter account (@whatpagepod) for a live Twitter chat if you feel like joining in!
In a little extra episode, Bethany talks to Emer McLysaght and Sarah Breen, authors of the hilarious and moving novel Oh My God, What A Complete Aisling!, which was born out of a Facebook group started by the pair 10 years ago. They talk about working collaboratively, turning a Facebook group into a novel and their hopes for the 8th amendment referendum.
This week, Alice and Bethany talk about girls going wild, whether thats for booze or love. The books we discuss are
Animals by Emma Jane Unsworth - https://amzn.to/2JBmGlm
Eat My Heart Out by Zoe Pilger - https://amzn.to/2KnbJF6
I Love Dick by Chris Kraus - https://amzn.to/2jiIeYW
We also mention
Ponti by Sharlene Teo
Marlena by Julie Buntin
The Awakening by Kate Chopin
In today's episode we focus on Stephanie Danler's Sweetbitter, and are joined by writer, academic and former waitress Rebecca May Johnson. There will be a Twitter chat to accompany this Book Club episode at 7pm on Tuesday 10th April under the hashtag #WPAYOSweetBitter.
[You can buy Sweetbitter here - https://amzn.to/2GAIU5U]
Alice and Bethany take it back to 1976-1996 in New York and have a look at a couple of different scenes. First, the ball scene courtesy of House of Impossible Beauties, then the club kids and their disco bloodbath in Party Monster and What I Loved. They finish up with The Future Won't Be Long which doesn't just perfectly blend the two worlds but takes in a whole lot more.
The House of Impossible Beauties - Joseph Cassara - http://amzn.to/2pn5p6Z
Party Monster - James St James - http://amzn.to/2DCT181
What I Loved - Siri Hustvedt - http://amzn.to/2pm9OrN
The Future Won't Be Long - Jarett Kobek - http://amzn.to/2G4zySM
Alice and Bethany kick off their new regular feature - the What Page Are You On book club - with Leila Slimani's Lullaby. There will be a Twitter chat at 7pm on 6th March using the hashtag #WPAYOLullaby.
In this episode, Alice and Bethany are riding the Valentine's wave of romance, and discuss a few books that deal with forbidden love.
We talk about:
The Bones of Grace by Tahmima Anam [which regretfully both of us were unable to finish as we did not anticipate how long it was]
Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aciman
Women by Chloe Caldwell
Fire Sermon by Jamie Quatro
[We also refer to I Love Dick by Chris Kraus]
In this episode, Alice and Bethany talk about three thrillers set in nature - Dark Pines by Will Dean, Six Stories by Matt Wesolowski and Exquisite by Sarah Stovell. This is followed by a conversation between Bethany and Will about writing and publishing his first novel and everything he's learned along the way.
Alice and Bethany round off the year with 10 books they're looking forward to in 2018. For people who love spoilers, those books are
In this episode Alice and Bethany have drawn up their own lists of their top 10 books of the year, and come together to compare notes. Will there be overlap? Will there be disagreements? Only time will tell...
In this episode, Alice and Bethany interrogate each other about what they read, how they read it, who they listen to when they want recommendations and how they treat the books in their possession. You probably won't get too many new book ideas from this episode, but it'll make you laugh.
Alice and Bethany were both born in the eighties, so while we're riding the Stranger Things nostalgia wave, we decided to take it back and do an episode on literature of the 1980s.
We discuss
Less Than Zero - Bret Easton Ellis Beloved - Toni Morrison The White Hotel - DM Thomas Tiger Eyes - Judy Blume A Pale View of Hills - Kazuo Ishiguro An Artist of the Floating World - Kazuo Ishiguro Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro Jitterbug Perfume - Tom Robbins Perfume - Patrick Suskind Housekeeping - Marilynne Robinson Mort - Terry Pratchett The Silence of the Lambs - Thomas Harris Cat's Eye - Margaret Atwood
Alice and Bethany celebrate the most wonderful time of the year by chatting about ghost stories, classic and contemporary.
The books discussed: The Woman In Black - Susan Hill The Little Stranger - Sarah Waters The Silent Companions - Laura Purcell The Upstairs Room - Kate Murray-Browne Thornhill - Pam Smy
And, not a ghost story but a gothic banger we wanted to talk about- Such Small Hands by Andres Barba
The Travelling Bag - Susan Hill
In this episode, Alice and Bethany talk through their favourite film adaptations of great books, adaptations they feel missed the mark, and what we're looking forward to coming out in cinemas.
In this episode, Alice and Bethany wrestle with ethical questions around how much they enjoy true crime books, what makes true crime fiction good or bad, and whether fiction inspired by real crimes is any different to non-fiction marketed as true crime.
The books we discuss are:
The Fact of a Body - Alexandria Marzano Lesnevich
The Red Parts - Maggie Nelson
The Adversary - Emmanuel Carrere
Forensics - Val McDermid
See What I Have Done - Sarah Schmidt
Little Deaths - Emma Flint
The Girls - Emma Cline
This is the first episode of the new books podcast What Page Are You On! In this episode, Alice and Bethany talk about books that have a high fat content, both fiction and non-fiction.
The books we discuss are: Hunger - Roxane Gay Shrill - Lindy West Dumplin' - Julie Murphy Girls Series - Jacqueline Wilson Just As Long As We're Together / Here's To You Rachel Robinson - Judy Blume Butter - Erin Lange The Cat Ate My Gym Shorts - Paula Danziger Daisy In Chains - Sharon Bolton The Silence of the Lambs - Thomas Harris
We give you a super brief flavour of what you'll hear on What Page Are You On.