A Pair of Bookends

As there's no recorded episode this week and this is also the week of the 2024 Booker Prize shortlist announcement, I thought I'd take the chance to share a sneak peek of a recent Patreon episode where Emma and I chat about The Booker Prize longlist, the books we read from the list, our predictions for the shortlist (how many did we get right?) and the books we're excited to get to. 

For more exclusive content head to https://www.patreon.com/APairofBookends where for less than £3 a month you can hear the rest of this episode, gain an extra episode a month, early access to all episodes & have the opportunity to submit Qs to authors. We also now have a pay what you can option with all the same perks, no questions asked. 

Books mentioned in this episode: 
Drive your Plow over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
Bring Up The Bodies by Hilary Mantel
Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange
Wild Houses by Colin Barrett
Held by Anne Michaels
Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner
The Mars Room by Rachel Kushner
This Strange Eventful History by Claire Messud
Playground by Richard Powers
Enlightenment by Sarah Perry
Orbital by Samantha Harvey
James by Percival Everett
The Safe Keep by Yael van der Wouden
My Friends by Hisham Matar
In the Country of Men by Hisham Matar
Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood
The Weekend by Charlotte Wood
Headshot by Rita Bullwinkel

If you enjoy this episode please do rate, review & subscribe as it's a free way to support the pod and makes a huge difference. Thank you so much for listening, until next time- happy reading!

TW: This episode contains discussion around coercive control & male violence against women which some listeners may find distressing

For today's Debut Spotlight episode Hannah was joined by debut author Rachel Blackmore to chat about her new novel Costanza
They discuss the importance of representation of women's stories in history, the writing & research process of this book, the London Writer's Salon community & much more. If you enjoy this episode please do rate, review & subscribe, it's a free way to support the pod and means the world. To gain exclusive content for less than £3 a month sign up to us on Patreon
You can follow us via Instagram, Twitter and Tik Tok 
You can follow Rachel & her work via Instagram Twitter & Threads

Books & authors mentioned in this episode:
 The Artist by Lucy Steeds
Jean Plaidy
Philippa Gregory
Hilary Mantel
Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
In Control: Dangerous Relationships and How They End in Murder by Jane Monckton Smith
Still Life by Sarah Winman

You can buy the books mentioned in this episode and from our back catalogue via our Bookshop.org page
Thanks so much for listening, until next time- happy reading! x

For this month's Book Club episode, Hannah was joined by Women's Prize long listed author of 'Small Pleasures', Clare Chambers, to discuss her latest novel Shy Creatures. 
They discuss the true stories that inspired her books, her research into psychiatry, why the suburbs is such a great setting to write about and lots more. If you enjoy this episode please do rate, review & subscribe as it's a free way to support the pod and means the world.
For less than £3 a month and for extra exclusive content you can support us via Patreon.
You can follow Clare here and to buy her books or any books mentioned in this episode visit our bookshop.org page.
You can follow us via Instagram, Twitter and Tik Tok

Books & other mentions in this episode: 
Missing Person: Alice by Simon Mason
The Muslim Cowboy by Bruce Omar Yates
The Examined Life: How We Lose and Find Ourselves by Stephen Grosz
Sanity, Madness and the Family by R.D Laing and Aaron Esterson
Asylums: Essays on the Social Situation of Mental Patients and Other Inmates by Erving Goffman
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
This House of Grief by Helen Garner
The Good Life (Now TV)
The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin (Amazon Prime)
Keeping Up Appearances (BBC Iplayer)
One Foot in the Grave (U)

Thanks so much for listening, until next time- happy reading!

Welcome back Bookends! On today's Debut Spotlight episode, Hannah chatted to debut author Bruce Omar Yates about his new novel The Muslim Cowboy (Dead Ink Books) 
(This discussion is spoiler free!)
We discuss the various tropes of Westerns, the journey from song-writing to novel writing, the iconic camel character in Bruce's book & loads more!
If you enjoy this episode please do rate, review & subscribe, it's a free way to support the pod and it means the world. You can also support & gain exclusive content via Patreon.
You can follow Bruce via Instagram or Twitter, & to buy The Muslim Cowboy or any books mentioned in this episode click here.
You can also follow us via Instagram, Twitter & Tik Tok

Books & other mentions in today's episode:
The Story of the Jews by Simon Schama
Great Short Stories of the Masters edited by Charles Neider
Shane (1953)
The Mandalorian
The Last of Us
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
The Harder They Fall (Netflix)
Patrick Melrose by Edward St Aubyn

Thanks so much for listening, until next week-happy reading!

For today's Bonus episode before a little Summer break, Hannah was joined by the wonderful Claire Daverley, author of Talking at Night. 
They discuss Summer reading plans, success after rejection, writing about OCD, the books Claire has loved this year & lots more, thank you also to those of you who submitted questions for Claire! 
If you enjoy this episode please do rate, review & subscribe as it's a free way to support the pod and it means the world! For more exclusive content you can also support via https://www.patreon.com/APairofBookends
You can follow Claire via Instagram & Twitter/ X
and you can follow us via Instagram, Twitter & Tik Tok

For the full list of books mentioned in today's episode, visit our bookshop.org page

Books mentioned on this episode: 
Breakdown by Cathy Sweeney
Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason
The Offing by Benjamin Myers
All The Colours of the Dark by Chris Whitaker
Butter by Asako Yuzuki
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors
Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors
Sandwich by Catherine Newman
We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman
True Love by Paddy Crewe
As Young As This by Roxy Dunn
Green Dot by Madeleine Gray

If you want to get in touch you can email via [email protected]
Thanks so much for listening. Have a great summer!

For today's Debut Spotlight episode Hannah was joined by author and content creator behind @thechamberofsecretbooks on Instagram & @chamberofsecretbooks on Tik Tok to chat all about her debut novel 'I'll Look For You, Everywhere' which can be bought here.
We discuss how her followers helped her throughout the writing process, what it was like to write those spicy scenes, her dream casting and so much more! 
If you enjoy this episode please do rate, review & subscribe as it helps to boost us in the charts and means the world. If you want to give us a follow you can do so via Instagram, Twitter and Tik Tok
If you wish to support us further & gain exclusive content, for less than £3 a month you can sign up to our Patreon

Books & other recs mentioned in this episode: 
The Guest by Emma Cline
Not In Love by Ali Hazelwood
Normal People by Sally Rooney
Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney
Normal People - BBC Iplayer
Baby- Netflix
Fleabag - BBC Iplayer
Medici- Netflix
Talking at Night by Claire Daverley
My Lady Jane - Amazon Prime

Thanks so much for listening! Until next time, happy reading!

For this month's Book Club episode Hannah was joined by 'Little Scratch' author Rebecca Watson to chat about her latest novel 'I Will Crash' (out now & published by Faber).
We discuss what and who inspires her unique writing style, family estrangement and how pertinent that feels now following the story of Alice Munro, how it felt having her work adapted to stage and lots more! If you enjoy this episode please do rate, review & subscribe as it helps to boost us in the charts and means the world! 
If you want to give Rebecca a follow you can do so via Instagram & Twitter
You can also follow her work via https://rebeccawatson.substack.com/
You can follow us via Instagram, Twitter & Tik Tok& for extra exclusive content for less than £3 a month, subscribe to us on Patreon

Books & other mentions on this episode: 
Little Scratch by Rebecca Watson
I Will Crash by Rebecca Watson
Intermezzo by Sally Rooney
https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/my-stepfather-sexually-abused-me-when-i-was-a-child-my-mother-alice-munro-chose/article_8415ba7c-3ae0-11ef-83f5-2369a808ea37.html
Virginia Woolf
Crave by Sarah Kane
The Lasting Harm: Witnessing the Trial of Ghislaine Maxwell by Lucia Osborne-Crowley

Thank you so much for listening & if you want to let us know your thoughts you can do so via [email protected], until next time happy reading!

For today's episode Hannah was joined by author of 'Above Us The Sea', Ania Card. Aswell as talking about her journey as a debut author, we chat about immigrant representation (specifically Polish immigrants), how music and dancing were central to the novel, writing safe spaces for Queer characters and lots more.
If you enjoy this episode please do rate, review & subscribe, it's a free way to help support us, you can also for less than £3 a month support us via Patreon
Or check out our Bookshop.org page here.

You can follow Ania via Instagram or via Twitter/X
Or buy her book here

If you want to give us a follow you can do so via Instagram, Twitter and Tik Tok

Books mentioned in this episode: 
Determination by Tawseef Khan
The Wren, The Wren by Anne Enright
Drive Your Plow Over The Bones Of The Dead by Olga Tokarczuk
White Nights by Urszula Honek

If you want to get in touch you can email via [email protected]
Thank you so much for listening, until next time- happy reading!

Welcome back Bookends to another episode in our Debut Spotlight series, today I was joined by the wonderful Nikkitha Bakshani, author of Ghost Chilli, an incredible debut novel with a protagonist as memorable as the likes of Fleabag and Queenie. 

In this episode we discuss creating characters through the lens of astrology, cultural and generational differences in parenting approaches and therapy, modern dating and lots more. If you enjoy this episode please do rate, review & subscribe so we can reach more of you! 
You can support Nikkitha via https://substack.com/@nikkitha or follow her on Instagram

If you want to give us a follow you can do so via Instagram, Twitter and Tik Tok, for extra monthly episodes and early access you can support us via Patreon

Books & other mentions in this episode:
Erasure by Percival Everett
American Fiction - Amazon Prime
The Observable Universe by Heather McCalden
Burley Fisher Bookshop
Spoilt Creatures by Amy Twigg
Milk Fed by Melissa Broder
The Pisces by Melissa Broder

Keep an eye out on our Instagram for a giveaway of a hardback copy of Ghost Chilli! Until next time, happy reading!

For today's episode Hannah was joined by Louise Candlish, a household name in the crime/thriller genre. 
Hannah and Louise deep dive into Louise's latest book 'Our Holiday' (spoiler free!), we also speak about the real second home crisis that inspired the book, how the TV adaptation process is going, her literary influences and lots more! 
Follow Louise via Instagram, Twitter and Facebook
If you enjoy this episode please do rate, review & subscribe as it helps to put us on other people's radar, you can also support the pod by subscribing via Patreon for less than £3 a month
Follow us via: Instagram, Twitter and Tik Tok

Books, authors & other mentions on this episode:
The Orange House by Isabelle Broom
First Wife's Shadow by Adele Parks
The White Lotus- Now TV
Agatha Christie
The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe
A Man in Full by Tom Wolfe
A Man in Full - Netflix
Patricia Highsmith
Barbara Vine
Ruth Rendell
Lisa Jewell
Erin Kelly
Harriet Tyce
Inside No.9 - BBC Iplayer
Tales of the Unexpected - Now TV
The Sweeney- ITVX