In this special edition of The LoveReading Podcast, we present the LoveReading Very Short Story Award 2019.

Novelist Colm Toibin reads from his wonderful new essay collection MAD, BAD, DANGEROUS TO KNOW: THE FATHERS OF WILDE, YEATS AND JOYCE. Liz Nugent talks about her psychological thriller SKIN DEEP, a beautifully told story of loss and reinvention. In Book Post with critic Lucy Scholes, our regular guest previews CASSANDRA DARKE, the new graphic novel by Posy Simmonds - a contemporary Christmas tale with a dark twist. Renowned editors Rosemary Davidson and Arzu Tahsin tell us about their interesting careers in publishing and about their new book, CRAFTFULNESS: MEND YOURSELF BY MAKING THINGS. Host Elena Lappin introduces her December pick SNOW: THE BIOGRAPHY by Giles Whittell. And novelist and journalist Cressida Connolly discusses her highly praised historical novel AFTER THE PARTY and its intriguing connections to the present. Thank you for listening. More information about the books and authors featured on this podcast can be found on our blog at www.lovereading.co.uk/podcast.

In this episode, we talk to two novelists who have written deeply personal essays. How have their narratives changed in the process of moving from fiction to non-fiction? Chibundu Onuzo gives us a taste of ‘1991’, her series of autobiographical essays performed at the London Literature Festival at the Southbank, and Olivia Sudjic discusses her first book of non-fiction, EXPOSURE (Peninsula Press). Lucy Scholes introduces us to HOW TO WRITE AN AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL NOVEL, a collection of essays by novelist Alexander Chee (Bloomsbury). And finally, we interview Ben Schott and discover a different type of literary alchemy in his novel JEEVES AND THE KING OF CLUBS (Hutchinson), an homage to the great humourist PG Wodehouse.

In this episode, we find echoes from the past catching up with the present in two in-depth interviews with our guest authors. In his new novel ‘Paris Echo’, bestselling novelist Sebastian Faulks creates a surprising connection between two strangers in Paris: Hannah, an American academic, and Tariq, a Moroccan teenager, each on a very different quest to discover their history. And in her new novel ‘Bitter Orange’, Claire Fuller weaves a thrilling tale around the past life of a dying woman, Frances, whose encounter with two mysterious strangers twenty years ago made her confront her own deepest secret.

In ‘My Pick’, podcast host Elena Lappin discusses her favourite book of this month: ‘21 Lessons for the 21st Century’ by Yuval Noah Harari - a provocative take on the most burning issues of our times. And finally, tune into a lively conversation among the judges of the new Lovereading Very Short Story Award 2019 about their passion for stories.

This month, WE THAT ARE YOUNG by Preti Taneja, THE LOST LETTERS OF WILLIAM WOOLF by Helen Cullen, Fatima Farheen Mirza’s stunning debut A PLACE FOR US, plus official announcement of the LoveReading Very Short Story Award 2019.

This month, NOBODY REAL by Steven Camden, THE MADONNA OF THE MOUNTAINS by Elise Valmorbida, PROMISING YOUNG WOMEN by Caroline O’Donoghue, THE CHARMED LIFE OF ALEX MOORE by Molly Flatt.

This month, Elaine Castillo discusses the hidden and shared narratives in the lives of Philippino immigrants in her dazzling debut novel America Is Not The Heart. Louisa Young reveals the heartache behind writing her memoir You Left Early, about her fiancé Robert Lockhart’s battle with alcoholism, and talks their shared love of music. In Where Books Come From, literary agent Jonny Geller and film producer JJ Lousberg debate the relationship between books and film in the age of Netflix. Lucy Scholes returns with her new Book Post for June, previewing The Female Persuasion by Meg Wolitzer, Florida by Lauren Groff, and My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh. Elena Lappin introduces her first Top Pick: Small Country by Gaël Faye, a powerful debut novel about a childhood and family torn apart by war and genocide.

This first episode, presented by author and editor Elena Lappin, features novelist Salley Vickers and her new novel The Librarian. Critic Lucy Scholes discusses new books she looks forward to reading and reviewing in Book Post, and literary agent Gaia Banks shares her top tips for writing and getting published in Where Books Come From. The podcast includes a reportage from the 2018 Sunday Times EFG Short Story Awards, featuring interviews with judges Andrew Holgate and Tessa Hadley, and the winner Courtney Zoffness. Actor Tim Dewberry reads from My Face for the World to See by Alfred Hayes.