The TLS Podcast

This week, Frances Wilson plunges into two biographies of the self-mythologising mystery man Edgar Allan Poe; and Will Eaves joins us to read his poem 'The Cat'.

'Darkness Becomes Bright: The haunted life (and afterlife) of Edgar Allan Poe', by Emily Ogden

'Edgar Allan Poe: A life', by Richard Kopley

Produced by Charlotte Pardy

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This week, Tristram Fane Saunders praises the form-busting brilliance of new Nobel Laureate Anne Carson; and Lily Herd on shooting stars, shipwrecks and hubris through the ages.

Produced by Charlotte Pardy

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This week, David E Cooper on a mammoth history of the garden; and Larry Wolff takes in Macbeth at the Met.

'The Garden: Our 4,000-year quest for paradise', by Jonathan Bate

'Macbeth', by Giuseppe Verdi, Metropolitan Opera, New York, until October 20

Produced by Charlotte Pardy

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This week, Sophie Oliver on Rebecca West's struggle with her love of clothing; and Robert Poole introduces us to a dashing 19th-century radical.

'A Fable for Christians', by Rebecca West

'Mad Tom's Rising: The revolutionary mystic Sir William Courtenay and the last battle fought on English soil', by Ian Breckon

Produced by Charlotte Pardy

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This week, Patrick McGuinness delves into the moving and illuminating notebooks kept by Albert Camus; and Elizabeth Lowry on the untold lives of novelist Anita Brookner.

'The Complete Notebooks', by Albert Camus, translated by Ryan Bloom

'Anita Brookner: Art and life', by Hermione Lee

Produced by Charlotte Pardy

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This week, Toby Lichtig on the six Booker hopefuls; and Kathryn Hughes joins us in an exploration of feline mysteries.

'Cats: A History', by Rod Phillips

Produced by Charlotte Pardy

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This week, Rohan Maitzen on Rose Tremain's reimagining of Rebecca, and a new way of seeing the terrifying Mrs Danvers; and Jamie McKendrick reads his poem, 'The Importance of Time'.

'The Housekeeper', by Rose Tremain

'The Importance of Time', by Jamie McKendrick

Produced by Charlotte Pardy

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This week, Anchit Sathi asks what an "author" is in the age of AI; and Keggie Carew on the world of symbiotic slime and friendly fungi.

'Togetherness: Symbiosis and the hidden story of life's greatest collaboration', by Rowan Hooper

Produced by Charlotte Pardy

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This week, Mary Beard gives us the inside track on what it's like to be a Booker Prize judge; and Russell Williams guides us through the highlights of a new season in French publishing.

Produced by Charlotte Pardy

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This week, we look back at the poets who've shared their work with us this year.

Produced by Charlotte Pardy

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