Name: Laura

Reading: And Away..., Bob Mortimer

Why did you want to read this? I think that Bob Mortimer is a lovely man. I’m not a huge reader. I sometimes (unfairly) think badly of myself because of this. I enjoy reading autobiographies of people that I admire because I feel like I already know some of the context, so I find it an easier starting point than some other books. This is, of course, a very funny and silly book but he also writes very sensitively about his life, experiences, and being a shy and quiet person.

How did you record yourself? I recorded myself using my phone, sitting at my desk at home one afternoon whilst waiting for a colleague to proof read and approve something for me. Bob’s company took my mind off the fear of them finding a horrific, unfixable mistake (there wasn’t one… there never is!).

Name: Jane

Reading: Trumpet, Jackie Kay

Why did you want to read this? I wanted to read this because it remained in my memory so clearly. I loved the story and the clarity of the narrators voice, with the words and images falling like the notes of the trumpet. Her descriptions of the house by the sea and that whole locality, feel very familiar to me as of course do the parts set in Glasgow.

How did you record yourself? I recorded this on my Samsung A50, sitting in an armchair in the sunshine. It was easier, and worked out better, than I had anticipated.

Name: Grace

Reading: Ninth Street Women, Mary Gabriel

Why did you want to read this? I decided to read this book, as in my own art practice I am heavily influenced by women artists. It’s inspiring to hear the stories of how they challenged a very male-dominated art scene. This book gives an opportunity for these pioneering women artists' stories to be heard, something that is very necessary and needed.

How did you record yourself? I recorded myself on my phone and found it to be a very enjoyable experience.

Name: Andrea

Reading: Slouching Towards Bethlehem, Joan Didion

Why did you want to read this? This essay is a treasure trove of classic Didionisms: the devoted descriptions of roads and barren lands, the dire plot twists at the end of routine enunciations, profound human truths told with a crisp sense of humor. If you follow Didion to San Bernardino, she will take you to beguiling places...!

How did you record yourself? After some trial and error, I opted for doing it sitting in my (empty) bathtub, since the bathroom turned out to be, funnily enough, the room in my house with best acoustics.

Name: Lisa  

Reading: Betty by Tiffany McDaniel 

Why did you want to read this? This book touched me in so many ways, it’s brutal, beautiful and poetic all at once. It’s a coming-of-age story based on true events and different to anything I have ever read. I loved how Betty’s dad with his rich Cherokee history used his knowledge of nature and spirituality to sooth her. Betty will always hold a special place in my heart. 

How did you record yourself? Curled up on my bed with lots of pillows, dimmed lights and a cup of tea.

Name: Jane

Reading: How to Be Both, Ali Smith

Why did you want to read this? I chose this book for my book group last year and I think without the group discussions I would have struggled with it. It is incredibly rich and beautiful and I couldn't fathom how it had been written. We all ended up loving this book. 

How did you record yourself? In my kids room with the cat on a cold Monday when I had no energy and needed to do something other than work.

Name: Freya

Reading: All The Things She Said, Daisy Jones

Why did you want to read this? It was our birthday and Mel and I thought fuck it, we should do another reading! Through lockdown I came to miss queer spaces intensely and gulped this down when it came out. We’ve also had lots of queer readers on the podcast so far, but not so many GAY BOOKS, so I thought I’d up the quota with this.

How did you record yourself? Lying on the floor in my studio.

Name: Jane

Reading: Hot Milk, Deborah Levy

Why did you want to read this? Hot Milk is the first book of Deborah Levy’s I read and is my enduring favourite. I loved meeting Sofia as she emerges from the stinging sea, seeking pain relief from the injury hut – one of many incredible metaphors for her life as a young woman, where broken things don’t quite receive adequate repair and bold ambitions are licked by caring responsibilities...and vicious Medusas.

How did you record yourself? Alone at home one Monday evening. I enjoyed being transported back to the Mediterranean on a chilly autumn evening in Bristol.

Name: Hannah

Reading: When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, Judith Kerr

Why did you want to read this? I chose When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit because it was my absolute favourite as a child and probably the book I've read the most times of any. As an adult, I don't really reread books at all but I used to read this several times a year as a kid. It reads much more poignantly now though.

How did you record yourself? I recorded myself on my phone, in bed with a duvet and a hot drink, the best way to read.

Name: Janice 

Reading: Flâneuse: Women Walk the City in Paris, New York, Tokyo, Venice, and London, Lauren Elkin 

Why did you want to read this? Walking the city was one of, if not most, crucial experiences of my formative years. Like Elkin, I discovered the concept of flâneur during my undergrad and explored in my own ways academically if there was/is, and thus what was/is the flâneuse, a woman who flâner. Could that flâneuse be an East Asian one? I will never forget the excitement, liberation and transhistorical connection I felt reading this first chapter when the book was freshly released. 

How did you record yourself? I recorded myself sitting on the sofa in my living room after a little walk along my local New River Path.