How do the people and things we desire shape our identities? And how do you render the physical intensity of desire on the page? Author K Patrick joins us in thinking about desire this month - we spoke to K about their debut novel Mrs. S, which tells the story of a young Australian who arrives at an elite English all-girls boarding school for a job and ends up having a life-changing affair with the headmaster's wife. It's a sensual portrait of queer desire, and the transformative power of lust and longing, which is why we wanted to revisit the theme of desire in this show. So, listen in for all the usual recommendations, our favourite writing about desire, and why desire is crucial to the act of reading itself.

Recommendations on the theme, Desire:

Octavia: A Lover's Discourse by Roland Barthes

Carrie: Simple Passion by Annie Ernaux

General Recommendations:

Octavia: Intimacies by Katie Kitamura

K: Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson

Carrie: The Bee Sting by Paul Murray

Find a list of all recommended books at: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/november-2023-desire-with-k-patrick

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