Curious Readers

Join Amanda and Joseph for their annual (slightly unhinged) Booker Prize shortlist review, along with their latest book news and an update on what they plan to read next.

Bookish News

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

East of Eden adaptation (Netflix) by Zoe Kazan @zoe.kazan

The Nobel Prize for Literature

Autobiography of Red by Anne Carson

Eros the Bittersweet by Anne Carson

The Kirkus Prize

Kin by Tayari Jones @tayari

The Booker shortlist review

The Booker Prize shortlist

The End of Everything by M. John Harrison @m_john_harrison

The Disappearers by Marlon James @marlonjameswriter

Black Bag by Luke Kennard @lukekekennnard

May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry @poorsasquatch

The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout @liztroutauthor

John of John by Douglas Stuart @douglas_stuart

The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai

Flashlight by Susan Choi

Audition by Katie Kitamura @_katiekitamura

The Shadow of the Object by Chloe Aridjis

Wimmy Road Boyz by Sufiyaan Salam @sufiyaansalam

My New Face by Amina Cain @amina_memory

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week is a bit of a departure for the Curious Readers, as Joseph and Amanda discuss all things related to pen and paper. Join them for a whole episode dedicated to stationery (with an ‘e’) in which they cover their favourite reading-adjacent supplies and where to get them - but not without a review of the Booker and National Book Award shortlists first.

Bookish News

The Booker Prize shortlist

Replica food

The National Book Awards

Paradiso 17 by Hannah Lillith Assadi @hillith

The Disappearers by Marlon James @marlonjameswriter

The Renovation by Kenan Orhan

Python’s Kiss by Louise Erdrich

Dèy by Edwidge Dandicat @dandicatedwidge

Beginning Middle End by Valeria Luiselli @valeria_luiselli

@amicus.domus

Current Reads

Uprising by Tahmima Anam @tahmima

The Understory by Chloe Benjamin @cholekbenjamin

The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

Reading accessories

Taotronic goose neck LED @taotronics_official

Mini clip on reading lights IKEA @ikea

Mornington studio Clarity Floor Standing reading light @morningtonstudio

Glocusent original neck reading light

Stabilo ‘swing cool’ highlighters @stabilo

Creator’s Friend @creatorsfriend

Paper Republic @paper_republic

Traveler’s Company @travelers_company

Mark and Fold @markandfold

Midori @thejournalshop

Daigo Japan @thejournalshop

Uni-ball Eye Micro Black Rollerball Pen @uniball_uk

Mitsubishi Pencil Company @uni_mitsibushi-pencil

Montblanc @montblanc

Caran D’Ache @carandache

Pelikan fountain pen @pelikan_passion

Pilot Kakuno @artfromtheheart_uk

Ellington Pens @ellington.pens

YStudio @ystudiostyle

Art from the Heart @artfromtheheart_uk

Present & Correct @presentandcorrect

The London Graphic Centre @londongraphiccentre

Muji @muji_global

Blueprint Coffee @coffeeblueprint

Bounty Whitstable @bountywhitstable

What we’re reading next

The Wedding People by Alison Espach @alison.espach

I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O’Farrell @maggieofarrellofficial

The Ten Year Affair by Erin Somers @theerinsomers

Attacking Earth and Sun by Mathieu Belezi and translated by Lara Vergnaud @mathieubelezi @laravergnaud

John of John by Douglas Stuart @douglas_stuart

Dusk by Robbie Arnott

Also mentioned

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the nights draw in, Joseph and Amanda look forward to all the autumn releases they hope to get through before December. Along the way, they meander through prize news, current reads and discover circular themes about the Epic of Gilgamesh, pianos and Dickens – and that’s all before they get to the mimmoths.

Bookish News

A Tale of Two Cities, a Marlowe Theatre Production

The Hugo Awards

The Everlasting by Alix E Harrow @alix.e.harrow

The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar @amalelmohtar

This Is How You Lose The Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone @max.gladstone

A Wizard Of Earthsea: A Graphic Novel by Ursula K. LeGuin and Fred Fordham

Lud-In-The-Mist by Hope Mirlees

A Drop Of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett @r.jackson.bennett

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

Current Reads

There Are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak @shafakelif

Land by Maggie O’Farrell @maggieofarrellofficial

Sophie, Standing There by Meg Mason @meg_mason_writer

Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason

Autumn Preview

Ply by Hernan Diaz

Trust by Hernan Diaz

American Hagwon by Min Jin Lee @lee_minjin

End Times Fascism by Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor @naomiklein @astraamoura

The Shampoo Effect by Jenny Jackson @jennyjacksonpineapple

Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson

The Wedding People by Alison Espach @alison.espach

The Strangers by Naomi Alderman @naomi_alderman

The Power by Naomi Alderman

Partita by Barbara Kingsolver @barbara.kingsolver

Minihorror by Barbi Marković translated by Jen Calleja @barbimarkovich @jencalleja_

Rejection by Tony Tulathimutte @tonytula

Off The Reservation by Stephen Graham Jones @stephengrahamjones

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham-Jones

Gilgamesh by Simon Armitage @simonarmitage_official

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus @bonnie_garmus_author

Peck & Peck by Bonnie Garmus

Stations by Louise Kennedy @louisekennedywriter

Trespasses by Louise Kennedy

Furious, Disney Plus

Widow’s Bay on Apple TV

Gaining Ground by Joan Barfoot (also know as Abra in Canada)

Six Four by Hideo Yokoyama

Lady Joker by Kaoru Takamura

On The Calculation of Volume - Volume V by Solvej Balle

The Pen: A Human History by Simon Garfield

The Missing Ink: How Handwriting Made Us Who We Are by Philip Hensher

The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper by Roland Alan

Hudson by Hernán Ronsino, translated by Mallory Craig-Kuhn

Fruit Fly by Josh Silver

Look What You Made Me Do by John Lancaster

Capital by John Lancaster

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joseph and Amanda are back from summer break with a bumper episode deep diving into Ann Patchett’s latest novel, Whistler. They also take some time to cogitate over the Booker Prize long list, as well as catch up on what they've been reading recently and the titles they hope to pick up next.

Bookish News

The Imagination Library @imaginationlibraryuk

Booker Prize Longlist and Predictions

The Shadow of the Object by Chloe Aridjis

Switzy by Emma Cline @emmanancycline

Helen of Nowhere by Makenna Goodman @makenna_good

The End of Everything by M. John Harrison @m_john_harrison

The Disappearers by Marlon James @marlonjameswriter

Black Bag by Luke Kennard @lukekekennnard

The Renovation by Kenan Orhan

May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry @poorsasquatch

The Palm House by Gwendoline Riley

The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout @liztroutauthor

John of John by Douglas Stuart @douglas_stuart

All Them Dogs by Djamel White @djamelwhitewriter

The Vivisectors by Missouri Williams @missouriwilliams

What We’ve Been Reading

Frost in May by Antonia White

Novel on Yellow Notepaper by Stevie Smith

Peking Picnic by Ann Bridge

The Caravners by Elizabeth von Arnim

The Anniversary by Andrea Bajani

The Hyena’s Daughter by Jupiter Jones @jupiterjones

It Will Come Back To You by Sigird Nunez

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

Intermezzo by Sally Rooney @sallyrooney6

Selected Books of Ann Patchett

Parnassus Books @paranassusbooks

The Patron Saint of Liars

Taft

The Magician’s Assistant

Bel Canto

Run

State of Wonder

The Dutch House

Tom Lake

Whistler

What We’re Reading Next

Astronaut! by Oana Aristide

My Dreadful Body by Egana Djabbarova @egana_djabbarly

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

As we bid farewell to Summer Break, we take questions from our listeners in a special post bag episode - and of course, we can’t help but make some recommendations along the way. And don’t worry, normal service will be resumed on 11 September when return to the mics for a deep dive into Ann Patchett's latest novel, Whistler.

Recent Reads

The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockton

Post Bag Questions

http://claude.ai

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield

My Phantoms by Gwendoline Riley

The Sunken Land Begins to Rise Again by M. John Harrison

Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash

An Apprenticeship, or The Book Of Pleasures by Clarice Lispector The Passion According to G.H. by Clarice Lispector

The Hour of the Star by Clarice Lispector

The Hypocrite by Jo Hamya

The Life of M by Rachel Cusk

Audition, by Katie Kitamura

Enter Ghost by Isabella Hammad

@apairofbookendspod

Maus: A Survivor’s Tale by Art Spiegelman

The Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons

Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

Alison by Lizzie Stewart

The Wreck by Lizzie Stewart

Ducks by Kate Beaton

From Hell by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell

Black Hole by Charles Burns

The Property by Rutu Modan

Something Will Happen, You’ll See by Christos Ikonomou

Little Infamies by Panos Karnezis

Greekling by Kostya Tsolakis

The Odyssey by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson

Circe by Madeline Miller

Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes

Hot Milk by Deborah Levy

What We’re Reading Next

Whistler by Ann Patchett

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

How many times have Amanda and Joseph joined the ‘Just One Book’ Deception Society? Too many to count. This week they are talking about the joy of browsing and the bookshops they love visiting across the UK. Plus, as always they’ll be chatting about what they’ve been reading recently and the titles they're hoping to pick up next.

Recent Reads

I Want You To Be Happy by Jem Calder

Service by John Tottenham

Bookshops and browsing

Sweet Valley High series by Francine Pascal

The Book of Lost Tales (Volume 2) by J R R Tolkien

Persephone Books, Bath and London @persephonebooks

If The Boot Fits by Rebekah Weatherspoon

Charco Press @charcopress

Daunt Books, Marleybone or Cheapside @dauntbookspub

Bookmongers, Brixton @bookmongersbrixton

Harbour Books, Whitstable @harbourbooks

A Passage North by Anuk Arudpragasam

In The Distance by Hernan Diaz

London Review of Books Bookshop, London @londonreviewofbooks

Judd Books, London @juddbooks

Book Bar, London @bookbaruk

Hatchards, St Pancras @hatchstpancras

Brick Lane Bookshop, London @bricklanebookshop

Pages of Hackney, London @pagesofhackney

The Margate Bookshop, Margate @themargatebookshop

Little Green Bookshop, Herne Bay @thegreenbookshop

Michael’s Bookshop, Ramsgate @michaelsbookshopramsgate

Plunder Books, Ramsgate @plunderbooks

Heffers, Cambridge @heffers_cambridge

Body in the Bookshop, Cambridge @bodiesinthebookshop

Murder and Mayhem, Hay on Wye @murder_and_mayhem

Richard Booth’s Bookshop, Hay on Wye @richardboothsbookshop

What We’re Reading Next

The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockton

The Disappearing Act by Maria Stepanova

Also mentioned

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Amanda and Joseph as they set out to excavate Land, Maggie O’Farrell’s latest historical novel and family drama which is set in 1860s Ireland, a decade after the Great Famine. Plus, as always they chat about what they've been reading recently and what they hope to pick up next.

Bookish News

Children’s Booker Prize

Frank Cottrell-Boyce @frank_cottrellboyce

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys

The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald

Beast in View by Maragert Millar

Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont by Elizabeth Taylor

Great Granny Webster by Caroline Blackwood

@herrealtake

Recent Reads

The Finest Hotel in Kabul by Lyse Doucet @lyse.doucet

Her Majesty’s Royal Coven series by Juno Dawson @junodawson

Parallel Lives: A Love Story from a Lost Continent by Iain Pears

Selected Books of Maggie O’Farrell @maggieofarrellofficial

The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox

Instructions for a Heatwave

This Must Be the Place

Hamnet

The Marriage Portrait

Land

What We’re Reading Next

The Odyssey, directed by Christopher Nolan @theodysseymovie

Crossing The Wine-Dark Sea: Journeys Through Ancient Literature by Emily Wilson

I Want You To Be Happy by Jem Calder

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Amanda and Joseph as they go through the looking glass into the fascinating (and anxiety inducing) world of artificial intelligence - and recommending some fiction and non-fiction picks about Large Language Models, bots, and the machines learning to live like us. Plus, as always they'll be chatting about what they've been reading recently and what they hope to pick up next.

Bookish News

Lambda Literary Awards @lambdaliterary

Nova Scotia House by Charlie Porter

Black Panther Woman by Mary Frances Phillips @maryfrancisphillips

The Lilac People by Milo Todd @todd_milo

Virago Modern Classics @viragopress

Frost In May by Antonia White

Peking Picnic by Ann Bridge

Recent Reads

The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout @lizstroutauthor

Soft Core by Brittany Newell @frottage_industry

Good Girl by Aria Aber @aria.aber

The Spare Room by Helen Garner

How to End a Story by Helen Garner

Small Rain by Garth Greenwell @ggreenwell

The Ghost in the Manuscript

Olga Tokarczuk @tokarczuk_olga

Martin Scorcese @martinscorcese

Kane Parsons @kanepixels

Josh Johnson @joshjohnsoncomedy

Field Work as a Sex Object by Meena Kandasamy @k.a.n.d.a.s.a.m.y

The New Age of Sexism by Laura Bates @laura_bates_

Meditations for the Anxious Mind @meditationsfortheanxiousmind

How to Talk to AI (and How Not To) by Jamie Bartlett @jamiejbartlett

Annie Bot by Sierra Greer @sierra_greer_writer

Machines Like Me by Ian McEwan

The Reverse Centaur's Guide to Life After AI by Cory Doctorow

What We’re Reading Next

Whistler by Ann Patchett @annpatchett

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the height of Prize Season, Amanda and Joseph are back with a bumper episode asking what all the hullabaloo is about - how are prizes judged and awarded, and are the winners worth our time? Plus, they talk about Amanda’s recent trip to the Women’s Prize ceremony, and as always, what they’ve been reading recently and what they hope to pick up next.

Bookish News

Hay Festival

Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams @sarahww_

Women’s Prize

Women’s Prize Live and other events

Rivals on Disney+

Felicity Blunt @thebluntoffice

Laura Wade

Katherine Parkinson @parkinson.katherine

Field Work as a Sex Object by Meena Kadasamy @k.a.n.d.a.s.a.m.y

Rapture by Emily Maguire @emilymaguirewriter

These Impossible Things by Salma El-Wardany @salmaelwardany

The Finest Hotel in Kabul by Lyse Doucet @lyse.doucet

The Correspondent by Virgina Evans @virginia.l.evans

Dominion by Addie E. Kitchens @addie_citchens

The Mercy Step by Marcia Hutchinson @marxia1

Recent Reads

Air by Christian Kracht

Eurotrash by Christian Kracht

Imperium by Christian Kracht

You With the Sad Eyes by Christina Applegate @christinapplegate

Prizes and Prize-Worthy Recommendations

The Nobel Prize for Literature

The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction

The Booker Prize

National Book Award

Milkman by Anna Burns

‘The Hemingway Veto’ and For Whom The Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway

The Riders In The Chariot by Patrick White

The Tree of Man by Patrick White

The Rabbit Hutch by Tess Gunty

Martyr by Kaveh Akbar @kavehakbar.kavehakbar

Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively

Trust by Hernan Diaz

What We’re Reading Next

The Beautiful Ones by Prince and Dan Piepenbring

The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout @lizstroutauthor

Also mentioned

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Where have the last six months gone? Join Amanda and Joseph as they check in on the reading goals they set themselves in January. Find out if they’ve stuck to their promises, or if they’ve bombed out on their reading resolutions. Plus, they talk about more prize news, and as always, what they’ve been reading recently and what they hope to pick up next.

Bookish News

Hay Festival

Taiwan Travelogue by Yang Shuang-zi (translated by Lin King)

John of John by Douglas Stuart @douglas_stuart

Ruth Ozeki @ozekiland

Carol Shields Prize for Fiction

Canon by Lee Lai @_leelai

Hellions by Julia Elliott @jelliottic6

A Guardian and A Thief by Megha Majumdar @megha.maj

Women’s Prize

The Booker Prize

Recent Reads

Famesick by Lena Dunham @lenadunham

May We Feed The King by Rebecca Perry @poorsasquatch

Stone Fruit by Rebecca Perry

Our Mid-Year Reading Goals

Buckeye by Patrick Ryan @patrickryanyc

The Benefactors by Wendy Erskine @wednesdaywerskin

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke @caroclaireburke

The Wreck by Lizzy Stewart @lizzy_stewart

Prairie Oyster by Sophoe Robinson @sophiepoetry

London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe @praddenkeefe

Dominion by Addie E. Kitchens @addie_citchens

The Correspondent by Virgina Evans @virginia.l.evans

Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash @madelinecash

Middlemarch by George Eliot

The Guardian’s ‘100 Best Novels of All Time’

The Little Friend by Donna Tartt

Ordinary People by Haldor Laxness

Death’s End by Cixin Liu

Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves by Sophie Gilbert @sophiegilbertwrites

A World Appears: A Journey Into Consciousness by Michael Pollan @michael.pollan

You With the Sad Eyes by Christina Applegate @christinapplegate

Indignity by Leah Ypi

Winter In The Blood by James Welch

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones @stephengrahamjones

The Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman

The Oldest Bitch Alive by Morgan Day @yeah_okday

The Sleep Thief by Ibtisam Azem @ibitisam.azem

Charco Press 2026 Fiction Bundle @charcopress

Die, My Love by Ariana Harwicz @arianaharwiczw

Kingfisher by Rozie Kelly

Angel Down by Daniel Kraus @kraus_author

Kin by Tayari Jones @tayari

Every One Still Here by Liadan Ní Chuinn

On The Calculation of Volume series by Solvej Balle

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

Practice by Rosalind Brown

Land by Maggie O’Farrell @maggieofarrellofficial

The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout @lizstroutauthor

Sophie, Standing There by Meg Mason

Exit Party by Emily St John Mandel @emilystjohnmandel

What We’re Reading Next

John of John by Douglas Stuart

The Left and the Lucky by Willy Vlautin

Also mentioned

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

It seems everyone is talking about Yesteryear, and now Joseph and Amanda are too. Join them for their latest deep dive into the most hotly anticipated debut of the year, and hear about what they've been reading recently and which books they hope to pick up next.

Bookish News

The Hay Festival

Hayplayer

Recent Reads

Cannon by Lee Lai @_leelai

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans @virginia.l.evans

Dominion by Addie E Citchens @addie_citchens

Deep Dive

The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin (adapted for screen by Bryan Forbes)

Trad Wife by Sarah Langan @sarahlangan

Trad Wife by Saratoga Schaefer @saratogaishere

The Trad Wife by Carrie Hughes @carriehughesbooks

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke @caroclaireburke

Diabolical Lies podcast

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn @thegillianflynn

What We’re Reading Next

River Sing Me Home by Eleanor Shearer @eleanorbshearer

Kingfisher by Rozie King

The Mercy Step by Marcia Hutchinson @marxia1

Prairie Oyster by Sophie Robinson @sophiepoetry

Also mentioned

Ramsgate Literary Festival @ The Book Hotel, Ramsgate

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Amanda and Joseph for this week’s episode as they delve into the best that nature writing has to offer. Plus, as always, they talk about their current reads and what they're looking forward to picking up next, as well as the latest from the Women's Prize for Fiction shortlist.

Bookish News

Women’s Prize shortlist

Recent Reads

Pearl Oyster by Sophie Robinson @sophiepoetry

London Falling, by Patrick Radden Keefe @praddenkeefe

Tilt by Emma Pattee

Nature Writing

Helm by Sarah Hall

Bewilderment by Richard Powers

The Overstory by Richard Powers

A World Appears: A Journey Into Consciousness by Michael Pollan @michael.pollan

Crow Planet by Lyanda Lynn Haupt @lyandahaupt

Walden by Henry David Thoreau

Silent Spring by Rachel Carson

The Sea Around Us by Rachel Carson

H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald @emerillon

Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton @chloedaltonuk

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer @robinwallkimmerer

An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us by Ed Yong

I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong

Soundings: Journeys In The Company of Whales by Doreen Cunningham @doreenwriting

My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell

Wintering by Katherine May @katherinemay_

Intertidal: A Coast And Marsh Diary by Yuvan Aves @a_naturalists_column

The Peregrine by J.A. Baker

The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd

Underland: A Deep Time Journey by Robert Macfarlane @robertmacfarlane

Dart by Alice Oswald

What We’re Reading Next

California Gold by Jodie Chapman @jodiechapman

The Italian Girl by Iris Murdoch

The Bell by Iris Murdoch

The Sea, The Sea by Iris Murdoch

Also mentioned

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Amanda and Joseph for this week’s episode as they delve into the Golden Age of Detective Fiction, remember Agatha Christie and talk about their favourite mysteries. This time, they really try to be spoiler free!

Bookish News

International Booker Prize shortlist short flims

Helen DeWitt and Windham Campbell Literary Award

Recent Reads

There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm (Sam Hughes)

The Wreck by Lizzy Stewart @lizzy_stewart

Alison by Lizzy Stewart

The Novels of Agatha Christie and Golden Age Detective Fiction

Snow Upon the Desert by Agatha Christie

Murder On The Orient Express by Agatha Christie

Death On The Nile by Agatha Christie

Evil Under The Sun by Agatha Christie

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

The Murder of Roger Akroyd by Agatha Christie

A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie

A is for Arsenic by Kathryn Harkup

V is for Venom by Kathryn Harkup

The Knox Decalogue

S.S. Van Dine’s Commandments

Fair Play by Louise Hegarty

Our Favourite Mysteries

In the Woods (The Dublin Murder Squad series) by Tana French @tanafrenchwrites

The Trees by Percival Everett

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett @r.jackson.bennett

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett @janice.hallett

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

The Whitstable Pearl by Julie Wassmer

The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

‘Only Murders in the Building’

The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino

Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Høeg

The Girl in the Maze by R K Jackson @randal.jackson1

The Water is Wide by Pat Conroy

None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai

What We’re Reading Next

Ghachar Ghochar by Vivek Shanbhag

The Oldest Bitch Alive by Morgan Day @yeah_okday

Prairie Oyster by Sophie Robinson @sophiepoetry

Also mentioned

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Joseph and Amanda as they discuss the reads they are most looking forward to this Spring, plus a few more updates from prize season. We also introduce a new segment – DNF corner, where we talk about the books we couldn’t wait to put down.

Bookish News

Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction shortlist

International Booker Prize shortlist

Recent Reads

The Director by Daniel Kehlmann, translated by Ross Benjamin

Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann, translated by Ross Benjamin

The Discomfort of Evening by Lucas Rijneveld

The Winner by Teddy Wayne

Companion Piece by Ali Smith

Joan Is Okay by Weike Wang

Top Ten Reads for Spring

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

Land by Maggie O’Farrell

Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell

Kin by Tayari Jones

The Vanishing Half by Britt Bennett

American Marriage by Tayari Jones

Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones

Devotions by Lucy Caldwell

Openings by Lucy Caldwell

If We Cannot Go At The Speed Of Light by Kim Cho-yeop, translated by Anton Hur

Transcription by Ben Lerner

Leaving the Atocha Station by Ben Lerner

My Year In Paris With Gertrude Stein by Deborah Levy

You With The Sad Eyes by Christina Applegate

Famesick by Lena Dunham

‘Too Much’ by Lena Dunham

‘Girls’ by Lena Dunham

Your Presence Is A Danger To Your Life by Samar Yazbek, translated by Leri Price

Second Hand Time by Svetlana Alexivich

London Falling: Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth by Patrick Radden Keefe

Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe

Tell Noone by Patrick Radden Keefe

Ghost Stories: A Memoir by Siri Hustvedt

Mother Mary Comes To Me by Arundhati Roy

One Aladdin, Two Lamps by Jeanette Winterson

DNF Corner

My Friends by Frederick Backman

Britt-Marie Was Here by Frederick Backman

Workhorse by Caroline Palmer

Also mentioned

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

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Join Amanda and Joseph for their next deep dive into Wendy Erskine’s debut novel, The Benefactors, a polyphonic story about a sexual assault and the lengths that three mothers will go to to keep their sons from being held accountable. Along the way, they discuss the latest prize news, with the Carol Shields Prize longlist topping the episode.

(0:49) Bookish News

(1:52) Carol Shields Prize for Fiction longlist

(5:12) Recent Reads

(5:18) The Brittle Age by Donatella Di Pietrantonio

(11:13) The Only Story by Julian Barnes

(14:07) Deep Dive into The Benefactors

The Benefactors by Wendy Erskine

Sweet Home by Wendy Erskine

Dance Move by Wendy Erskine

Close to Home by Michael Magee

Magnolia, written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

The Bee Sting by Paul Murray

(51:27) What We’re Reading Next

(51:33) Waiting For The Fear by Oguz Atay

(52:04) The Door by Magda Szabo

(52:58) Indignity by Lea Ypi

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, join Amanda and Joseph for one of their most personally revealing episodes yet, as they discuss the books that made them: the teenage obsessions, the gateway reads, and the unforgettable titles, passages and writers that made us the readers they are today.

(1:20) Bookish News

(1:40) The Women’s Prize for Fiction Longlist

(2:49) Gloria Don't Speak by Lucy Apps @lucy.emma13

(3:10) The Mercy Step by Marcia Hutchinson @marxia1

(4:32) The International Booker Prize Longlist

(5:36) The Nights Are QuietIn Iran by Shida Bazyar

(5:59) Women Without Men by Shahrnush Parsipur

(6:28) Taiwan Travelogue Yáng Shuāng-zǐ

(8:08) Recent Reads

(8:17) Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves by Sophie Gilbert @sophiegilbertwrites

(12:52) The Missing Ink by Philip Hensher @philiphensher

(17:43) The Books That Made Us

(23:16) The Odyssey by Homer (various translations including Robert Fagles and Emily Wilson)

(24:27) O’ Brother, Where Art Thou directed by Joel and Ethan Cohen

(24:54) 'Penelope' by Carol Ann Duffy

(28:43) The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper

(32:48) Elidor by Alan Garner

(32:53) His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman

(34:58) The Odyssey directed by Christopher Nolan

(36:56) The Continuous Life: Poems by Mark Strand

(40:16) The Colour Purple by Alice Walker

(41:25) The Passion of New Eve by Angela Carter

(46:34) Gilead by Marilyn Robinson

(49:38) A Passage North by Anuk Arudpragasam

(53:55) In the Distance by Hernan Diaz

(54:36) What We’re Reading Next

(55:00) No Friend of This House by Natalie Haynes @nataliehaynesauthor

(55:12) One Aladdin, Two Lamps by Jeanette Winterson

(56:07) Main Street by Sinclair Lewis

(56:43) EveryDay Is For The Thief by Teju Cole @_tejucole

Also mentioned

Tate Modern, Nigerian Modernism(on until 16 April 2026)

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Joseph and Amanda tackle romance. But this is romance with a twist, no tropes or formulas, just good writing that even the most hard-hearted cynic can enjoy. And before that, as Prize season is upon us, they dish the latest on prestigious longlists, and top and tail the episode with current and future reads.

(0:52) Bookish news

(1:03) The Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction

(2:52) Indignity: A Life Reimagined by Lea Ypi

(4:03) Ask Me How It Works: Love in an Open Marriage by Deepa Paul @storiesbydeepa

(4:29) The Finest Hotel in Kabul: A People’s History of Afghanistan by Lyse Doucet @lyse.doucet

(6:04) Mother Mary Comes to Me a memoir by Arundhati Roy @arundatiroyauthor

(6:17) International Booker Prize

(6:45) The National Book Critics Circle Awards (NBCC)

(7:16) Dublin Literary Award

(7:56) What I Know About You by Eric Chacour @ericchacour

(8:09) The Creation of Half-Broken People by Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu

(8:37) Live Fast by Brigitte Giroud

(9:13) Recent Reads

(9:21) Every One Still Here by Liadan Ní Chuinn

(14:19) Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash @madelinecash

(17:45) Romance for Cynics

(19:15) Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin

(19:29) Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

(24:09) Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid @rachelreidwrites

(25:38) Emma & Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

(26:30) Persuasion by Jane Austen

(26:56) Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

(27:09) Villette by Charlotte Bronte

(29:03) The books of Lily King @lilykingbooks

(29:23) Minor Black Figures & The Late Americans by Brandon Taylor @brandonlgtaylor

(29:23) Memorial: A Novel by Bryan Washington

(30:05) Normal People by Sally Rooney @sallyrooneyofficial

(30:37) You Are Here by David Nicholls @davidnichollswriter

(31:17) Happy All The Time by Laurie Colwin

(35:46) Reasons To Be Cheerful by Nina Stibbe @ninastibbe

(39:17) Crush by Ada Calhoun @adacalhoun

(42:58) Good Material by Dolly Alderton @dollyalderton

(47:13) The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller @madeline.e.miller

(47:47) The Disenchantment by Celia Bell

(48:22) The Lovers by Paolo Cognetti

(49:24) Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason @meg_mason_writer

(50:26) Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey @monicaheisey

(51:50) You, Again by Kate Goldbeck @kategoldbeck

(52:25) Heartburn by Nora Ephron

(53:15) What We’re Reading Next

(53:26) Midnight Is Not In Everyone’s Reach by António Lobo Antunes @antonio.lobo.antunes

(54:16) White Spines: Confessions of a Book Collector by Nicholas Royle @nicholasroyle

(55:15) Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones @tayari

(55:21) Kin by Tayari Jones

(55:47) My Friends by Frederik Backman @frederickbackman

(56:00) The Winner by Teddy Wayne

The Benefactors by Wendy Erskine @wednesdaywerskin

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Joseph and Amanda talk about some of their favourite short story collections - ranging from canonical gems to new voices - plus, as always, they talk about what they’ve been reading recently and discuss what they’re excited to read next.

(1:24) Bookish news

(2:20) Birchbark Books

(2:27) Inkwell Books

(2:40) Red Balloon Books

(2:56) Excelsior Bay Books / Milkweed Books / Black Garnet Books

(3:08) Shop Minneapolis bookshops from anywhere at http://bookstore.org and http://libro.fm

(4:31) http://standwithminnesota.com

(5:36) The TS Eliot Prize

(6:03) Wellwater by Karen Solie

(7:17) Recent Reads

(7:27) Buckeye by Patrick Ryan @patrickryanyc

(12:40) A Question of Upbringing by Anthony Powell

(17:14) Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh

(18:17) Short Story Collections

(18:26) Joseph's Short Story Quiz

(25:38) Games and Rituals by Katherine Heiny @katherineheiny

(30:59) Standard Deviation by Katherine Heiny

(34:32) Mslexia

(34:45) Drinking Coffee Elsewhere by Z.Z. Packer @zzpacker56

(40:42) In Our Time by Ernest Hemingway

(46:37) The Latehomecomer: Essential Stories by Mavis Gallant

(51:18) Furies: Stories of the Wicked, Wild and Untamed by Margaret Atwood and others @therealmargaretatwood

(52:21) Stories of Place:///zinc.level.blindfold edited by Niamh McAnally @niamh_mcanally

(53:00) The Woman Dies by Aoko Matsuda @matsudaoko

(56:40) You Glow in the Dark by Liliana Colanzi @lilianacolanzi, translated by Chris Andrews

(58:06) Selected stories by Nikolai Gogol

(59:19) Every One Still Here by Liadan Ní Chuinn

(59:59) What We’re Reading Next

(1:00:13) I’m Glad My Mother Died by Jennette McCurdy @jennettemccurdy

(1:00:50) Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy

(1:01:19) Palaver by Bryan Washington @bry.washing

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

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This week, Amanda and Joseph go into the trenches with Daniel Kraus’s repulsively propulsive Angel Down. They also discuss what they’ve been reading recently, including the new Ian McEwan novel and a slew of non-fiction, as well as what they’re looking forward to picking up next.

(2:40) Bookish news

(2:44) Storygraph (@josephjdance and @itsmoleyreads)

(3:47) Faversham Literary Festival, 20 February to 1 March, 2026

(4:44) Chocolat and Vianne by Joanne Harris

(5:41) Recent reads

(6:00) Books, A Manifesto: Or, How To Build A Library by Ian Patterson

(7:19) Trees In Winter by Richard Shimell (http://richardshimell.co.uk)

(8:21) Hiroshima by John Hersey

(10:33) What We Can Know by Ian McEwan

(14:05) Deep Dive - Angel Down

(14:45) The Shape of Water by Daniel Kraus

(14:53) Trollhunters by Daniel Kraus

(15:04) The Monster Variations by Daniel Kraus

(15:27) Rotters and Scowler by Daniel Kraus

(15:46) The Death and Life of Zebulon Finch by Daniel Kraus

(15:57) Whale Fall by Daniel Kraus

(19:13) Angel Down by Daniel Kraus @krausauthor

(23:49) Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellman

(24:04) Zone by Mathias Enard

(24:18) Septology by Jon Fosse

(38:56) 1917, directed by Sam Mendes

(38:59) All’s Quiet on the Western Front (2022), directed by Edward Berger

(41:39) In Memoriam by Alice Winn

(57:33) Final thoughts

(59:38) What We’re Reading Next

(59:44) A High Wind In Jamaica. Or The Innocent Voyage by Richard Hughes

(1:00:59) The Woman Dies by Aoko Matsuda

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Happy New Year! Start the year with Amanda and Joseph as they talk about their reading intentions for 2026.

(2:09) Bookish News

(2:36) Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (directed by Emerald Fennell)

(2:46) Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell (directed by Chloe Zhao)

(2:59) Die My Love by Ariana Harwicz (directed by Lynne Ramsey)

(3:34) Train Dreams by Dennis Johnson (directed by Clint Bentley)

(3:51) A Pair of Bookends podcast

(7:15) What We’ve Been Reading

(7:19) Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson

(8:22) The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

(13:51) Reading Resolutions

(23:28) The Little Friend by Donna Tartt

(24:39) Independent People by Halldór Laxness

(25:05) Death’s End by Cixin Liu

(26:29) Farewell Fountain Street by Selçuk Altun

(26:42) Cold Nights of Childhood by Tezer Özlü

(26:54) Journey To The Edge of Life by Tezer Özlü

(27:00) Snow by Orhan Pamuk

(28:17) My Clavicle and Other Major Misalignments by Marta Sanz

(31:12) Steering the Craft by Ursula K Le Guinn

(31:21) On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

(31:45) Consider This by Chuck Palahniuk

(33:51) Katabasis by RF Kuang

(34:06) The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami

(34:14) The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong

(35:14) On The Calculation of Volume by Solvej Balle

(37:05) Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

(45:17) Rougon-Macquart Cycle by Emile Zola

(46:26) The Persians by Sanam Mahloudji

(50:31) What We’re Reading Next

(50:44) Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy

(52:27) Money by Emile Zola

(53:20) Angel Down by Daniel Kraus

Also Mentioned

Whitstable Silent Book Club @silentbookclubwhitstable

Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio

Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.