Bookends with Mattea Roach

Bonnie Garmus says she came to poetry “kicking and screaming,” but her new novel is about why we need it more than ever. Peck & Peck follows a young man named Batter Gray who starts working at a prestigious poetry magazine. Batter is consumed by poetry, but it’s not an easy path to take in a world obsessed with profits … not to mention the complicated private affairs of his new colleagues. You might know Bonnie from her debut novel, Lessons in Chemistry. It was a major hit novel and TV series. But did you know it took her 98 rejections to get there? This week, Bonnie tells Mattea Roach about what kept her writing during that time, her interest in twins and why she loves the impractical.

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• Why you shouldn’t go gentle into that good night
• Life of Pi author Yann Martel on the wars in your everyday

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Jenna Timmons-Oikawa is the winner of the 2026 CBC Nonfiction Prize. Her piece, Wawa Indian, was inspired by the discovery that her mother was taken in the Sixties Scoop. This was a government practice in Canada from the 1960s to 1980s that removed Indigenous children from their homes and placed them in foster homes or put them up for adoption with predominantly white families. In today's episode, the Ottawa-based writer speaks with Mattea Roach about themes of stolen heritage, reclamation and renewal that she explores in her winning story.

You can read Jenna's story here.

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Communication gets complicated across different languages, time zones and generations. FaceTime and translation apps can only help so much. That's the personal challenge R. F. Kuang drew on in her latest novel Taipei Story. It's about Lily, a Chinese American college student who spends the summer in a language program in Taipei, hoping to connect with her culture and family. But as things unravel, Lily starts to realize that true belonging goes deeper than language and words. This week, R. F. Kuang joins Mattea Roach in front of a live audience for a deeply personal conversation about her own Taipei story, connecting with her grandparents… and why so many white guys want to learn Mandarin.

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Girlbossing on an oil rig

A novel inspired by the death of a tree

How bad was your worst friendship breakup?

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The new novel from Marlon James is based on a rumour … but it’s no rumour that Marlon’s book is one of the year's hottest titles. The Disappearers is an epic Jamaican novel that centres on a group of gay men who were brutally attacked in Kingston in the late 1980s. The story follows the men in the aftermath of the attack, as they seek connection, new identities, understanding and revenge. Marlon calls The Disappearers his most personal book yet, and it draws on his time as a young queer man in Jamaica and his own experiences with invisibility. This week, Marlon tells Mattea Roach about why he doesn’t shy away from writing about violence

and why he once called himself a “disappearer.”

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• Douglas Stuart was a fashion exec — now he designs stories
• In the Caribbean, secret lives come at a cost

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Canadian writer Anne Carson is the winner of this year’s Nobel Prize in Literature. For today’s podcast, we’re diving into the archives and revisiting one of Anne’s conversations with Eleanor Wachtel on Writers & Company. Anne Carson is celebrated for poems and essays that defy the boundaries of genre. She frequently blends ancient Greek myth with modern stories of love, grief and desire. Anne spoke with Eleanor in 2011 about her book Nox — which means night. Combining poetry, letters, photographs and sketches, the book is an elegy to her brother … and a moving reflection on family and absence.

If you want to hear more from the archives of Writers & Company, the show’s entire catalogue is available on Simon Fraser University’s Digitized Collections website: https://digital.lib.sfu.ca/writers-company

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Anita Rau Badami’s new novel, Asha in Her Garden, is her first in over a decade … and it all started with the striking image of a dying tree. On her seventieth birthday, Asha Mohan’s beloved backyard maple tree is cut down. As she watches it disappear, Asha begins to look differently at the life she’s spent years building. From her move to Canada from India, to the trials of raising her children to an act of violence that changed the family forever, Asha’s garden becomes a space for her to reflect on how she built her family and where she can go now. This week, Anita joins Mattea Roach to talk about the real tree that inspired the book, the maze of memory and a character called “The Hag.”

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• Why writing a novel is like riding a horse
• What does dystopia look like in the suburbs?

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Imagine the pressure of being the only woman working on an offshore oil rig. That was the reality for Y.M. Abdel-Magied … and she turned her years in the field into a thrilling novel about oil, power and survival on the water. At Sea follows Zainab, a toolpusher who is tasked with leading an all-male drilling crew on an oil rig off the coast of Australia. As Zainab navigates the complicated power dynamics of her role, she begins to uncover signs of catastrophe that could devastate the ocean around her and threaten the lives of everyone on the rig. This week, Y.M. joins Mattea Roach to talk about her experience working on rigs, writing a nuanced story about oil and how everything started with her love of racecar driving.

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• A raunchy workplace satire ... about deradicalizing ISIS brides?
• Would a tradwife influencer survive in 1855?

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How far would you be willing to go to salvage a friendship? Maybe you just need a small break ... or how about a couples therapist? Téa Mutonji’s new novel, My Person, follows longtime friends Tania and Margot. The two have been friends since childhood, but after living together for a year, Tania realizes she's not sure if she even likes Margot anymore. But leaving is not just as simple as saying goodbye, and a messy, complicated, will-they-won’t-they friendship breakup ensues. This week, Téa joins Mattea Roach to talk about her 2 a.m. writing habits, the push and pull of long-lasting friendships and when it might be time to break up with your best friend.

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• Can our friendships age with us?
• NOT CLICKBAIT! She stole her dead twin sister’s identity!?

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When Michelle Good’s mother was in her 20s, she changed her name from Martha Eliza to Elizabeth to sound less Indigenous. Michelle’s new novel, Eliza Sunshine, is rooted intimately in her mother’s life … and gives her mother her name back. The novel weaves Eliza’s experiences and Michelle’s family history into a deeply personal story following three generations of Cree women. It’s also informed by Michelle’s experience as a community advocate, lawyer and storyteller … and her mission of keeping Indigenous stories alive. This week, Michelle joins Mattea Roach to talk about why hope is something that moves you forward and the family legacy that inspires this point of view.

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• How long could you lie about who you are?
• What would it take to become the first Cherokee astronaut?

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The criminal underworld of 1980s New York City. The last heist of a mostly-retired crook. A city battling for its future. Colson Whitehead’s Harlem Trilogy reaches its conclusion with his latest novel, Cool Machine. It follows Ray Carney, a former criminal who's gone mostly straight in his middle age … until he becomes entangled with a legendary criminal mastermind and is yanked back into a world he thought he left behind. The city has a life and a will of its own, and there’s nobody better to explore it than Colson, a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and lifelong New Yorker. This week, Colson joins Mattea Roach to talk about why he wrote a heist novel, creating a criminal code and if he’ll ever leave New York.

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• Should you be afraid of the wolf hour?
• Why Tayari Jones fights for her stories

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You might think that your boss is evil … but what if they were an actual supervillain? Natalie Zina Walschots brings that idea to life in her novels Hench and Villain. The series follows Anna, an auditor who does office work for the dark side. After being severely injured by a superhero, Anna is out for revenge … but it turns out that the difference between heroes and villains isn’t as clear cut as you might think. So what happens when spreadsheets and supervillains collide? And is it unethical to date your villain boss? This week, Natalie joins Mattea Roach to talk about combining office culture and comic books, why we love the bad guys and why hero stories are the new fairy tales.

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• Taylor Jenkins Reid is among the stars — on and off the page
• Justice for Murder Bimbo!

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The phrase "unprecedented times” was repeated over and over again during the pandemic … and Malavika Kannan’s debut novel, Unprecedented Times, dives into university life during that period. The story follows Rishi, an Indian American student who’s ready to start fresh at Stanford after her strict Florida upbringing. She has big plans to shed her old skin and finally meet people just like her, but that journey is cut short by the arrival of COVID-19. As Rishi and her peers struggle with disillusionment, political unrest and good old university drama, she starts to think more closely about her story and the shared experience that’s shaping her generation.

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• Here’s what you have wrong about teen moms
• Would a tradwife influencer survive in 1855?

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How many of your friends are over 30 years older than you? When Marc Bendavid was 12, he met a teacher that changed his life. His debut novel, The Sapling, is about their generation-defying bond … and living in those memories in the wake of her death. So how can a meaningful friendship between a 12 year-old and a 44 year-old defy what we think about the gap between generations? And how does someone live and change through our memories of them? This week, Marc joins Mattea Roach to talk about the real teacher that inspired the book, the beauty of aging and what you can gain from connecting with people older and younger than you.

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• Can our friendships age with us?
• Ocean Vuong finds beauty in a fast food shift

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Imagine you walk into your bedroom one day … and there’s a horse going on a rampage. Better yet, it’s a horse from a childhood story that has haunted you ever since you first heard it. Who’s the first person you call? In Ali Smith’s new novel, Glyph, estranged sisters Petra and Patch are brought back together when a story from their childhood comes to life in an incredible way. But what makes a ghost story real? And what can it tell us about the world we live in now? This week, Ali joins Mattea Roach to talk about her connection to horses, the power and wonder of words and whether or not she believes in ghosts.

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• For Jeanette Winterson, stories are essential to survival
• How do we restore our sense of wonder in media?

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For cheating couples who are sneaking around, it’s paradise … but how long until the cracks start to show? Sophie Mackintosh’s new novel, Permanence, follows secret lovers Clara and Francis. Francis is married, and they’ve been stealing brief moments with each other for months. When they wake up one day in a dreamy city where they don’t have to hide, everything seems perfect … until things take a sinister turn and Clara and Francis realize they can’t escape the real world forever. This week, Sophie joins Mattea Roach to talk about the new era of infidelity literature, writing about unsavoury love and where passion and desire can take you.

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• Life of Pi author Yann Martel on the wars in your everyday
• Why you can’t forget your first love

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You might be used to moving around … but you've probably never ended up in a town full of zombies, aliens and sad clowns. Jon Claytor’s new graphic novel, Nowhere, is about a young boy named Joel whose family is constantly moving. He’s trying to adjust to life in a new small town, but things get complicated when a giant, otherworldly cube appears and people start mysteriously disappearing. Jon drew from his own nomadic childhood to craft the story, and his rich visuals tell a spooky but moving story about growing up. This week, Jon joins Mattea Roach to talk about how his upbringing inspired the book, his background in oil painting and referencing the real-life Sackville cube.

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• Charles Burns: Why the comics icon keeps returning to teenage angst
• Why this comics legend is just getting started

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Bad men, bee warned. Imani Thompson’s buzzy debut novel, Honey, follows a jaded PhD student named Yrsa. She’s bored with her work and frustrated with the culture at Cambridge … but when she accidentally kills a shady professor using a bee, she realizes that she may have found her calling. As Yrsa murders more men in the name of justice, she feels a greater sense of purpose in her violent mission. But can Yrsa really justify the blood on her hands? And what happens when the killings come back to sting her? This week, Imani joins Mattea Roach to talk about how her background in sociology informed the story, getting into the mind of a killer and her mother’s impact on the novel.

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• Justice for Murder Bimbo!
• A raunchy workplace satire ... about deradicalizing ISIS brides?

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David Baerwald is a famous songwriter who’s worked with artists like Joni Mitchell and Sheryl Crow. But when he uncovered a family history filled with spies, music, and wartime secrets … David went from notes to novels and wrote a sweeping historical debut. The Fire Agent fictionalizes the story of Ernst Baerwald, David’s real grandfather. In 1900, Ernst was recruited to become a spy. His work took him across two continents and through two world wars, and his life became an adventure involving Japanese gangsters, the fight against fascism and numerous pivotal moments in history. This week, David tells Mattea Roach about espionage in the 1900s, his love of Japan and how the novel brought his family back together.

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• Anarchists have bigger hearts than you think
• Emma Donoghue boards a train destined for disaster

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If you just let go of everything that’s out of your control … can you truly be happy? Maria Semple tests that philosophy in her new novel, Go Gentle. The story follows Adora Hazzard, a Stoic philosopher in her 50s who lives a calm, mostly happy life with her teen daughter and a coven of women friends. If you think a book about Stoicism might bore you, don’t speak too soon. This one also has art heists, divorce, a toxic Hollywood comedy scene … and the philosophy stuff might be more relatable than you think. This week, Maria tells Mattea Roach about her interest in Stoicism, her long career in TV writing and how her daughter inspired a character in the story.

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• Curtis Sittenfeld is fascinated by fame
• Would a tradwife influencer survive in 1855?

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Maggie O’Farrell brought Shakespeare’s son out of the footnotes of history with her 2020 novel Hamnet. Its hugely successful movie adaptation made a splash at the Oscars and Maggie herself earned a nomination for the screenplay. Maggie’s new novel, Land, continues to pull from the shadows of history ... while also drawing on her own family myths. It's a sweeping epic that begins with a father-son mapmaking duo in 19th century Ireland. This week, Maggie joins Mattea Roach to talk about taking Hamnet from page to screen, writing about lesser known histories and her new novel’s surprising Canadian connection.

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• Douglas Stuart was a fashion exec — now he designs stories
• Jack Wang: Reimagining the lost stories of Chinese Canadians during WWII

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