Chocolate serves as a muse for many a writer, but did you know that the arrival of the delicious elixir in England catalysed a movement towards a more literate, engaged and sober society?For this episode of the Good Reading Podcast, historical fiction author Karen Brooks joins Angus Dalton to tell us more about chocolate's transformation of 17th-century London and her new novel, The Chocolate Maker's Wife.Listen on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2NGVDYKListen on Google Podcasts: bit.ly/2MXSxQ8Find out more about The Chocolate Maker's Wife: bit.ly/2TB1DEh

In her first book for adults since 2004, 'Gravity is the Thing', treasured children's author Jaclyn Moriarty writes about a mysterious self-help book called 'The Guidebook' that is sent to selected mailboxes one chapter at a time. Jaclyn joins Angus Dalton in this episode to talk about getting sucked in to self-help, why she would like an external committee to be in control of her life, and why she has a bone to pick with her sister, Liane Moriarty.Listen on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2NGVDYKListen on Google Podcasts: bit.ly/2MXSxQ8About Gravity is the Thing: http://bit.ly/2UeRYaA

Archivist and curator Vanessa Finney unearths Australia's earliest natural history photographs in Capturing Nature, her new book that reveals how scientific photography began at the Australian museum.From tiny inch-long fish to whale skeletons as long as buses, the museum's camera captured thousands of extraordinary images that have never been seen by the public. Angus Dalton heads to the museum to meet Vanessa and find out how photography revolutionised scientific understanding of nature and influenced the ideas of Charles Darwin.Listen on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2NGVDYKListen on Google Podcasts: bit.ly/2MXSxQ8About Capturing Nature: bit.ly/2HAgMUQ

In his first series for adults, Canberra writer Jack Heath has created a compelling character who works as a consultant for the FBI and has a very peculiar palate ...In this episode, Jack sits down with Angus Dalton to talk about Hangman and its new sequel, Hunter, getting published as a teenager, the ethical questions that surround cannibalism, and whether he'd mind being devoured upon dying. Yeah, things get weird.Listen on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2NGVDYKListen on Google Podcasts: bit.ly/2MXSxQ8Find out about Hangman & Hunter: bit.ly/2CyljTt

As a writer, Simon Cleary brings art and creativity up alongside experiences of war. In his latest novel, The War Artist, a Brigadier called James Phelan escorts the body of a young soldier home from Afghanistan. Struggling to adapt back to civilian life, an encounter with a tattoo artist named Kira changes Phelan permanently - both inside and out. Simon joined Angus Dalton to talk about the legacy of the Afghanistan War, PTSD, and the significance of tattoos in this episode of the Good Reading Podcast.Listen on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2NGVDYKListen on Google Podcasts: bit.ly/2MXSxQ8About the book: bit.ly/2TXj8CN

Peggy Frew's Hope Farm was shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award and the Stella Prize. The Melbourne writer and ARIA Award-winning musician is back with Islands, a novel about a family in crisis that covers many generations, viewpoints and timelines. In this episode, Peggy tells Angus Dalton about creative doubt, running into the ocean in her undies, and 'the big, enormous, sprawling mess' of family. Listen on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2NGVDYKListen on Google Podcasts: bit.ly/2MXSxQ8About the book: bit.ly/2VNkhdi

At a local playground where his daughter was playing, writer Jeremy N Smith met a woman who turned out to be a cybersecurity expert and a seasoned hacker. They got talking about her life and Jeremy quickly became fascinated. His new book, 'Breaking and Entering: The extraordinary story of a hacker called Alien', is the result of that chance meeting. It's a fascinating profile of a daring hacker, a deep-dive into the history of cybersecurity, and a troubling wake-up call for those of us who'd rather not think about how vulnerable we are to hackers in our hyper-connected world.Here Jeremy tells Angus Dalton about the death-defying form of hacking Alien was introduced to at MIT, and reveals why he's ditched using Google as a result of hanging out with hackers.Listen on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2NGVDYKListen on Google Podcasts: bit.ly/2MXSxQ8About the book: http://bit.ly/2GOWBkG

If given the chance, would you adjust the past to avoid a terrible tragedy in the future? And if you went back in time 20 years and tracked down a younger version of yourself, what kind of person would you find?These questions are central to Jennifer Spence's new novel, The Lost Girls. Stella slips back in time to 1997 and must disguise herself in the past, resist changing her family's fate, and attempt to get back to the present.We spoke to the author about time travel, the innocence of 1997, and gleaning writing advice from a famous parable. Listen on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/2NGVDYKListen on Google Podcasts: bit.ly/2MXSxQ8About the book: http://bit.ly/2SKhgfZ

Jacqueline Kent was working as a book editor when she was assigned a set of humorous short stories by Kenneth Cook, author of the classic horror novel Wake in Fright.Her dealings with Cook resulted in a 'volcanic' relationship and a brief marriage between two lovers of words. Jacqueline writes beautifully about her time with Ken in her new memoir, Beyond Words.In this episode, Angus Dalton asks Jacqueline about the enduring legacy of Wake in Fright, a butterfly farm, and the changes she's watched unfold across the Australian book industry.Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2NGVDYKListen on Google Podcasts: http://bit.ly/2MXSxQ8About the book: http://bit.ly/2UKEobS

Yotam Ottolenghi is universally admired for a cooking style that is complex, layered, and brimming with freshness and colour. Unfortunately that can sometimes lead to a lot of preparation and even more washing up. In his latest book, 'Simple', Ottolenghi proves that cooking his way doesn’t have to be so challenging. On the advice of his sister, Ottolenghi has created a book of recipes for the time poor or the outright lazy using a set of 10 fundamental ingredients. Gregory Dobbs asks about the perils and pleasures of cooking Ottolenghi style and how 'Simple' can help you get there.Find out more about the book: http://bit.ly/2G54PFGListen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/good-reading-podcast/id1402922430?mt=2