The Book Club Review

• The 2025 Booker Prize: From Shortlist to Spotlight

  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 Booker Prize ceremony. We won't spoil the plots for you, just whet your appetite to read some or all of the books, all of which make for brilliant discussion.BooklistPaddy Clark, Ha, H, Ha by Roddy DoyleLincoln in the Bardo by George SaundersFlesh by David SzalayAll That Man Is by David SzalayStarling House by Alex E. HarrowAny Human Heart by William BoydThe Rest of Our Lives by Benjamin MarkowitzCarmageddon by Daniel KnowlesYou Don't Have To Live Like This by Benjamin MarkowitzOh William by Elizabeth StroutAll Fours by Miranda JulyThe Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran DesaiThe Inheritance of Loss by Kiran DesaiAudition by Katie KitamuraOrbital by Samantha HarveyFlashlight by Susan ChoiNothing to Envy by Barbara DemickPachinko by Min Jin LeeThe White Tiger by Aravind AdigaProphet Song by Paul LynchSeascraper by Benjamin WoodBooker Longlist episodeEpisode 181 of The Book Club ReviewMartin's Eyes On the Prize blogBrowse Martin's archive and discover his extensive reviews (including The Women's Prize) here.PatreonHead to www.patreon.com/thebookclubreview for all the benefits (extra shows, readalongs, book club and more) and how to sign up.Serious ReadersTo take advantage of the special offer code for any Serious Readers HD Essential Reading Light head to SeriousReaders.com/bcr and use the code BCR at checkoutInstagramFollow Kate for updates between shows @bookclubreviewpodcastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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• Beyond the Shortlist: The 2025 Booker Longlist titles worth your time • #181

  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' books selected from over 150 submitted titles. As we know, really great books can get overlooked for the shortlist. Consider Trust by Hernan Diaz, longlisted but not shortlisted, or, going further back Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro and before that Penelope Fitzgerald's miraculous novel The Blue Flower. The fallibility of the judging process thus proven let's leave no stone unturned in considering this year's selection. Did the judges overlook a new favourite read? The Booker Prize is announced on 10th November and we'll be recording an episode on the shortlist on the night. Coming soon! Booklist Misinterpretation by Ledia Xhoga Seascraper by Benjamin Wood Endling by Maria Reva One Boat by Jonathan Buckley The Outline Trilogy by Rachel Cusk The Rough Guide to Venice and the Veneto Universality by Natasha Brown The South by Tash Aw Love Forms by Claire Adam Barn 8 by Deb Olin Unferth The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai Patreon Head to www.patreon.com/thebookclubreview for all the benefits (extra shows, readalongs, book club and more) and how to sign up, and know that you'll be supporting a show that takes a lot of time and love to make. Serious Readers To take advantage of the special offer code for any Serious Readers HD Essential Reading Light head to SeriousReaders.com/bcr and use the code BCR at checkout Instagram Follow Kate for updates between shows @bookclubreviewpodcastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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• Autumn bookshelf, with Kate & Laura • Episode #180

  In this episode: Kate and Laura are catching up on their pre-Booker season reading. Did You Are Here by David Nicholls make Laura want to lace up her walking boots? How did Kate get on with A Waiter in Paris by Edward Chisholm, a page-turning account that explores a side of the city that tourists never see. We're also reporting back on book club reads Mouthing by Orla Mackey and The Pretender by Jo Harkin. Mix in the enjoyment of Curtis Sittenfeld's latest collection of short stories, and the all-too relevant classic Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, and that's our Autumn bookshelf. Books mentioned You Are Here and One Day by David Nicholls The Wedding People by Alison Espach A Waiter in Paris by Edward Chisholm Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain Show Don't Tell by Curtis Sittenfeld Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky Your Life and Other Stories and Exhalations by Ted Chiang The Left-Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. LeGuin Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury Mouthing by Orla Mackey Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout Every One Still Here by Liadan ní Chuinn The Pretender by Jo Harkin The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller Sky Daddy by Kate Folk The Rest of Our Lives by Benjamin Markovitz You Don't Have To Live Like This by Benjamin Markovitz Serious Readers Book Club Review listeners get £150 off any HD Essential Reading Light, plus free UK delivery. Go to SeriousReaders.com/bcr and use the code BCR at checkout. It's completely risk-free with a 30-day home trial. If you don't feel the difference, they'll collect it for free and fully refund you. Patreon Support the show on Patreon and get ad-free episodes, extra shows, chat groups, book clubs and readalongs. Head to patreon.com/thebookclubreview to find out all the benefits and how to sign up. Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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• Book Club: Universality and Sparks of Bright Matter • Episode #179

  Book Club: Universality by Natasha Brown & Sparks of Bright Matter by Leeanne O'Donnell Welcome to The Book Club Review! In this episode, Laura joins Kate to dive into two book club picks: Natasha Brown's much-anticipated second novel, Universality, and the debut Sparks of Bright Matter by Leeanne O'Donnell. In this episode: Kate and Laura catch up on their current reads, including Sky Daddy by Kate Folk and A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett, before diving into a discussion of Universality. How did it compare to Brown's acclaimed debut Assembly, and did the satirical style, bold narrative choices, and themes of media, class, and culture wars work for our book club. We then move on to Sparks of Bright Matter by Leeanne O'Donnell, an historical tale of alchemy set across 18th-century London and Ireland. We're exploring the vivid sense of place and real-life inspirations behind the story, but did the many different characters and story arcs knit together? We're also meeting Kristina Ambrosia, who offers a creative twist on book club with her "Graffiti Book Club," where members are encouraged to write, doodle, and annotate in their books before passing them around. All that plus our current reads and community updates on how to join the Book Club Review Patreon, participate in chat groups, and readalongs. Books mentioned: Universality by Natasha Brown Assembly by Natasha Brown Sparks of Bright Matter by Leeanne O'Donnell Sky Daddy by Kate Folk A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett Katabasis by R. F. Kuang Welcome to Glorious Tuga by Francesca Segal The Women by Kristin Hannah Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma by Claire Dederer Just Kids by Patti Smith All Fours by Miranda July Theory and Practice by Michelle de Kretser And more! Links & Extras: Special offer for Serious Readers HD Essential Reading Lights: visit seriousreaderscom/bcr and use code BCR at checkout. Join the Book Club Review community on Patreon for ad-free episodes, bonus content, and monthly book club meetings: patreon.com/thebookclubreview Follow on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast or email [email protected] If you enjoyed the show, please share it with friends or leave a review – your support helps us reach more book lovers! Happy reading!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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• Shelf-reflective: Books about Books, with Joseph Dance • #178

  Something a little different this episode as I invite you to head down the rabbit hole with me into the world of books about books. Accompanying us into this particular wonderland is 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 to discover yet more books we might want to read. From Alberto Manguel's library of 35,000 titles, to Alejandro Zambra's essay collection On Not Reading, we're considering a broad spectrum of perspectives that help us reflect on and enrich our reading lives. And so listen in to hear what happens when two book podcasters get together to talk about their favourite topic. Booklist The Library Book by Susan Orlean The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón Possession by A.S. Byatt Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald Packing my Library by Alberto Manguel The Book Forger by Joseph Hone Once Upon a Tome by Oliver Darkshire Shelf Life: Chronicles of a Cairo Bookseller by Nadia Wassef A Bookshop of One's Own by Jane Cholmeley In Search of Lost Books by Giorgio van Straten Diary of a Tuscan Bookshop by Alba Donati Further reading / listening Alberto Manguel's library And here's Manguel sharing his favourite bookstores and libraries with Biblio-file podcast host Nigel Beale Umberto Eco's library on Youtube Kate's Moleskine reading journal Read this wonderful review of Shelf Life from Australian critic Beejay Silcox, who lived for two years in Cairo and knew the Diwan bookstore well. Patreon Head to patreon.com/thebookclubreview for full membership details and how to joinSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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