Books On The Go

A special episode: Anna chats with author Kylie Needham about her debut novel, Girl In A Pink Dress.

Girl in a Pink Dress centres on Frances, an artist in her 40s who is invited to her former lover's exhibition opening in Sydney. A beautiful, spare novel that explores the idea of two artists living together and female rage, against the backdrop of the Australian landscape. Described as "a quiet triumph" (Heather Rose) and "breathtakingly good" (David Wenham), we loved this book.

Kylie recommends:

Can A Woman Who Is An Artist Ever Just Be An Artist? by Rachel Cusk

The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante

The New Yorker The Writer's Voice Podcast

The Witch Trials of J. K. Rowling Podcast

Coming up: The Great Fire by Shirley Hazzard.

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Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie discuss the Stella Prize shortlist (belatedly!)

Our book of the week is The New Life by Tom Crewe. A brilliant debut novel about two marriages and sexual freedom in 1890s London, it evokes the time and place beautifully but feels modern and resonates today. It reminded us of Colm Tóibín, with "the spirit of Forster" (Washington Post).

Coming up: The Great Fire by Shirley Hazzard.

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Email: [email protected]

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna, Annie and Amanda react to the 2023 Women's Prize Shortlist and give our winner predictions.

And Annie has news!

The shortlist is:

• Black Butterflies by Priscilla Morris
• Pod by Laline Paull
• Fire Rush by Jacqueline Crooks
• Trespasses by Louise Kennedy
• The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell
• Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

Coming up: The New Life by Tom Crewe and The Great Fire by Shirley Hazzard.

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Instagram: @abailliekaras , @vibrant_lives_podcast , @mr_annie

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Annie, Anna and Amanda discuss the shortlist for the 2023 Stella Prize and give their winner predictions.

The shortlist is:

• We Come With This Place by Debra Dank
• big beautiful female theory by Eloise Grills
• The Jaguar by Sarah Holland-Batt
• Hydra by Adriane Howell
• Indelible City by Louisa Lim
• Bad Art Mother by Edwina Preston

Coming up: The Great Fire by Shirley Hazzard and our Women's Prize Shortlist episode.

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Email: [email protected]

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Twitter: @abailliekaras and @mister_annie

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie discuss the 2023 Dylan Thomas Prize Shortlist.

Our book of the week is All That's Left Unsaid by Tracey Lien. This debut novel tells the story of Ky, a Vietnamese-Australian woman who looks for answers when her brother is killed in Cabramatta, Sydney. It won the 2023 Indie Book Award for Debut Fiction.

Coming up: The New Life by Tom Crewe.

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Email: [email protected]

Facebook: Books On The Go

Twitter: @abailliekaras and @mister_annie

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie discuss the books they are keeping or culling, including

• Pure Colour by Sheila Heti
• The Invention of Medicine by Robin Lane Fox
• Troy by Stephen Fry

Our book of the week is Stone Blind, the latest novel by Natalie Haynes. It tells the story of Medusa from a feminist perspective, is witty, rich with details from Greek mythology and has been long-listed for the 2023 Women's Prize for Fiction. We loved this one.

Coming up: All That is Left Unsaid by Tracey Lien.

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Twitter: @abailliekaras and @mister_annie

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Annie react to the 2023 Women's Prize Longlist and the Booker International Longlist.

Our book of the week is I Have Some Questions For You by Rebecca Makkai, the follow-up novel to her Pulitzer Prize winning best-seller The Great Believers. The story centres on podcaster Bodie, who is drawn back to a murder case from her boarding school days and starts to fear that the wrong man has been imprisoned. A gripping mix of crime, #MeToo and campus drama, this is perfect for book clubs. We recommend it.

Coming up: Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes

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Email: [email protected]

Instagram: [at] abailliekaras and [at] mr_annie

Twitter: [at] abailliekaras and [at] mister_annie

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

A special episode: Anna and Amanda chat with best-selling author Sally Hepworth about her new novel The Soulmate. The Soulmate is a gripping story about Pippa and Gabe, who are happily married until a woman dies near their home and they become entangled in the mystery that follows. A compulsive read which raises questions about marriage and loyalty, we could not put this down.

Sally also recommends:

Authors Jane Harper, Liane Moriarty, Kate Morton and Holly Ringland;

Podcasts The First Time Podcast and The Lise and Sarah Show; and

TV show Bad Sisters.

Coming up: I Have Some Questions For You by Rebecca Makkai.

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Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @abailliekaras , @vibrant_lives_podcast and @sallyhepworth

Facebook: Books On The Go

Twitter: @abailliekaras

Litsy: @abailliekaras

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Annie and Anna discuss the 2023 Stella Prize Longlist.

Our book of the week is Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr, the follow-up to his best-selling and Pulitzer Prize winning novel All the Light We Cannot See. Cloud Cuckoo Land was on the New York Times bestseller list for over 20 weeks and was a National Book Award finalist. Set in 15th century Constantinople, modern day Idaho and a future spaceship, it is about children in times of peril who find hope in a book.

Coming up: The Soulmate with special guest Sally Hepworth.

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Email: booksonthegopodcast [at] gmail.com

Instagram: [at] abailliekaras and [at] mr_annie

Twitter: [at] abailliekaras and [at] mister_annie

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

A special episode as we chat with Eve Thomson about her debut novel She Too.

She Too is a legal thriller about a young lawyer who acts for a man accused of being an abusive husband as he sues a news website for defamation. It looks at the nature of truth, celebrity and power.

Eve recommends the book Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr and the podcasts Conversations, Chat 10 Looks 3 and Head Noise.

Coming up: Cloud Cuckoo Land.

Follow us!

Instagram: @abailliekaras

Facebook: Books On The Go

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @abailliekaras

Litsy: @abailliekaras

Credits

Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz