95bFM: Loose Reads

Jenna joins us with a book that's made her feel a little hopeful in what's been a strange year. Humankind: A New Hopeful History of Human Nature by Rutger Bregman is the non-fiction that everyone is bound to hear about this year. Covering economics and philosophy, this book has received praise from Yuval Noah Harari, the author of Sapiens.

Kiran returns to the studio with a book she highly recommends. If you're looking for a new read, look no further because Nothing To See by Pip Adam is one to get into.

Jenna's back in the studio and we are certainly glad to see her. While using the pizza paddle seems like a distance memory, there are still plenty new books to discover, and this week Jenna reckons you've got to get your hands on Fake Baby by Amy McDaid.

Kiran's got a book that really got her laughing and she's definitely recommending it. A Terrible Country by Keith Gessen is definitely one to grab to get through the week, after moving from New York to Moscow, Andrei Kaplan is desperate to tell his Grandmothers story despite some challenges along the way.

A layered, sometimes visceral portrait of contemporary Japanese womanhood, Mieko Kawakami's Breasts & Eggs reaches new audiences via her first widely disributed English translation. Jenna lets us in on how she found Kawakami's family fiction on gender, beauty, and that classically contested site: the human female body.

Kiran joins us with a special book this week, one that she's been savouring for months and months. Underland: a Deep Time Journey by Robert Macfarlane takes you on a journey through time and the world beneath you and is certain to give you a visual experience that you want forget. 

Jenna's covering the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards, with a heads up on some of the nominations and how you can get involved from the comfort of your own home! Glorious.

Kiran's been plowing through the Ockham NZ Book Awards fiction shortlist, with plenty of time for reading on her hands. Pearly Gates by Owen Marshall, is not only entertaining but insightful and is sure to make you feel at home during some strange times. Add it to your list.

Reading lists are our best friends at the moment, Jenna joins us after ploughing through hers. One of her top picks for the week is Rebecca Solnit's Recollections of My Non-Existence, a portrait of a woman that asks how a young writer finds her voice in a society that prefers women to be silent.

Kiran joins us to talk about a book that kept her up reading well into the night, Auē by Becky Manawatu. Shortlisted for the Ockham NZ Book Awards, this novel is definitely one to add to your reading list. Whilst touching on some heavier topics, this is a novel that is still hopeful and full of love.