Celebrated historical novelist Phillipa Gregory speaks to James Crawford about her latest novel Boleyn Traitor and explores its connections to three other works of literature.

Philippa’s intimate portrayals of the machinations of the Tudor court have made her a bestseller and a household name. In her latest dive in to 16th Century England, she returns to the world of King Henry VIII, seen through the eyes of Jane Boleyn, confidante to five of Henry’s six wives – but was she a loyal friend, or a duplicitous spy?

For her three influences Phillipa chose: The Golden Bowl by Henry James (1904), A Room With A View by EM Forster (1908), and The Country and the City by Raymond Williams (1973).

Producer: Caitlin Sneddon

This is a BBC Audio Scotland production.

Booker Prize winning Irish author John Banville speaks about his new novel Venetian Vespers and together with presenter James Crawford they explore its connections to three other works of literary art.

Set in the year 1899, Venetian Vespers is told from the perspective of the unfortunate Evelyn Dolman, a self-confessed hack-writer who marries Laura Rensselaer, the daughter of a wealthy American plutocrat, but in the midst of a mysterious rift between Laura and her father, Evelyn’s plans of a substantial inheritance are thrown into doubt.

For his three influences John chose: the Daphne Du Maurier short story, Don’t Look Now, from 1971, which is also the inspiration for director Nicolas Roeg’s classic film of the same name; The Aspern Papers by Henry James from 1888; and Death In Venice by Thomas Mann, from 1912.

Producer: Dominic Howell

This was a BBC Audio Scotland production.

Booker shortlisted writer William Boyd speaks to Take Four Books this week about his new spy novel, The Predicament, and together with presenter James Crawford, and the crime writer Louise Welsh, they explore its connections to three other literary works. In his new novel, which is the second in a trilogy, travel writer turned accidental spy, Gabriel Dax, finds himself caught up in events in Guatemala, and then in Berlin, where he becomes aware of a plot to assassinate the charismatic, young president John F Kennedy. The stakes are high, the pace is fast, and Gabriel is finding the allure of his handler, Faith Green, difficult to resist.

For his three influences William chose: Mountolive, published in 1958, and which is the third volume in The Alexandria Quartet series by Lawrence Durrell; Len Deighton's debut novel The Ipcress File from 1962, this was later turned into a film, of the same name, starring Michael Cane; and John Le Carre's iconic The Spy Who Came In From The Cold published in1963.

Producer: Dominic Howell

This is a BBC Audio Scotland production.

BAFTA Award-winning broadcaster and novelist Graham Norton discusses Frankie, his fifth novel, which centres on the life of an apparently unremarkable Irish woman in her eighties as she recounts her story to a young carer.

Graham Norton shares the three key literary influences that helped shape the novel: Elizabeth Bowen’s The Last September (1929), Armistead Maupin’s Significant Others (1987), and Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow (2022).

Joining the discussion is acclaimed Irish author, poet, and LGBT+ activist Mary Dorcey.

Producer: Rachael O’Neill

Booker prize winning author, Ian McEwan, speaks to Take Four Books, about his new novel, What We Can Know, and explores its connections to three other literary works. What We Can Know is set almost a hundred years in the future in a Britain much of which is now underwater, and it follows the character of Tom Metcalfe, a scholar of the University of South Downs, who is looking back at the literature of the early twenty-first century.

For his his three influences Ian chose: a poem called Marston Meadows: A corona for Prue by John Fuller, first published in the Times Literary Supplement in 2021; The Immortal Dinner by Penelope Hughes-Hallett from 2000; and Footsteps by Richard Holmes from 1985.

The supporting contributor for this episode is the writer Denise Mina, and it's recorded during the Edinburgh International Books Festival.

Presenter: James Crawford

This was a BBC Audio Scotland production.

Goorie author Melissa Lucashenko joins Take Four Books from the Edinburgh International Book Festival to discuss her novel, Edenglassie.

The three books that inspired the creation of Edenglassie are: Tom Petrie’s Reminiscences of Early Queensland (1904), The Bone People by Keri Hulme (1985), and The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry (2008).

The supporting contributor for this episode is Rodge Glass, a lecturer in Literature and Creative Writing at the University of Strathclyde, where he also teaches post-colonial literature.

Producer: Rachael O’Neill

Presented by James Crawford, Take Four Books, speaks to the writer Sarah Hall about her new novel, Helm, and explores its connections to three other literary works. This new novel has been twenty years in the making and features a wind called Helm as its principal character. A number of other narratives interweave and interact differently with Helm: a Neolithic tribe tries to placate it, a Dark Age wizard priest wants to banish it, a Victorian steam engineer attempts to capture Helm, and a farmer’s daughter simply loves Helm. The contemporary narrative follows a weather researcher who fears human pollution is killing Helm.

For her three influences Sarah chose: Lincoln In The Bardo by George Saunders which was published in 2017 and won the Booker prize that same year; Angela Carter’s The Bloody Chamber from 1979; and Margaret Baker’s Discovering the Folklore of Plants from 1969.

The supporting contributor for this episode is literary editor and founder of the independent publisher thi wurd - Alan McMunnigall.

Producer: Dominic Howell

Presented by James Crawford, Take Four Books, speaks to the Booker-shortlisted American writer, Rachel Kushner, about her novel, Creation Lake, now out in paperback, and explores its connections to three other literary works. Creation Lake introduces us to the character of Sadie Smith, a ruthless 34-year-old American undercover agent who is sent by mysterious but powerful employers to a remote corner of France to infiltrate a group of eco-protestors.

For her three influences Rachel chose: Fatale by Jean-Patrick Manchette published in 1977; Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov published in 1962; and The Tribe: Interviews with Jean-Michel Mension, which was originally published and translated into English by City Lights Books in 2001.

The supporting contributor for this episode is the writer and lecturer at the University of Strathclyde, Andrew Meehan.

It was recorded at the Edinburgh International Book Festival.

Producer: Dominic Howell

Take Four Books, presented by James Crawford, this week speaks to the writer Irvine Welsh about his new novel Men In Love - the direct sequel to Trainspotting - and hears of the three other literary works that influenced and inspired Irvine's writing. More than thirty years after Trainspotting was published the iconic cast of characters of Renton, Sick Boy, Spud and Begbie are back, and entering a new phase of their lives looking for love.

For his three choices Irvine chose: William Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream first performed between 1584-1596 and published in 1600; Ulysses by James Joyce from 1922; and In Search Of Lost Time by Marcel Proust which was published in seven parts from 1913 to 1927 and is listed in the Guinness Book Of Records as the longest novel ever written.

The supporting contributor for this episode is the writer and author of Scabby Queen - Kirstin Innes.

Producer: Dominic Howell

Multi-award-winning writer Denise Mina discusses her twentieth novel, The Good Liar, which follows blood-spatter forensics expert Claudia O’Sheil as she faces a profound moral dilemma.

Denise also shares the three key influences that inspired the novel’s creation: Dorothy Thompson’s Who Goes Nazi?, Stanley Milgram’s Obedience to Authority, and George Orwell’s 1984.

The supporting contributor is award-winning author, James Bond novelist, and lecturer in Creative Writing at the University of Edinburgh, Kim Sherwood.

Producer: Rachael O’Neill