Lionel Shriver discusses her controversial novel The New Republic which looks at the relationship between terrorism, the media and achieving political goals. We speak to the author of the classic novel Mrs Bridge - a tale of a woman trapped in her comfortable 1930s mid America world - and to Joshua Ferris about its enduring appeal. And Francine Prose, who has lectured in literature for over twenty years, argues there is much to learn for writers and readers alike in the mining of the classic.