In his Booker Prize acceptance speech, Paul Lynch admitted his fifth novel, Prophet Song, had been difficult to write.

“The rational part of me believed I was dooming my career,” he said, “though I had to write the book anyway. We do not have a choice in such matters”.

Set in Ireland’s near future, Prophet Song depicts a collapsing society in the grip of an increasingly tyrannical government. The Booker Prize judges described it as a novel “to remind us of all that is worth saving”.

Sit down with Paul and host Michael Williams to discuss this timely and terrifying parable.

This episode was recorded live at the 2024 Sydney Writers’ Festival.

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