The Book Show

Looking to the stars with Ceridwen Dovey, Emily St John Mandel and more

12 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For Science Week, The Book Show goes intergalactic in a star themed episode. Ceridwen Dovey, Alicia Sometimes, Nardi Simpson, Max Barry and Emily St ...

Keanu Reeves and China Miéville write a book together

05 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Hollywood star Keanu Reeves and British science fiction author China Miéville reveal how they collaborated to to write the novel The Book of Elsewhe...

Pod extra: Alexis Wright makes literary history

01 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Alexis Wright is the 2024 winner of the Miles Franklin Literary Award for her novel Praiseworthy. She makes history as the only writer to have won bo...

Meet Samantha Shannon's biggest critic: herself

29 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Samantha Shannon has such power as a bestselling writer that she's reissued her fantasy Bone Season series with new edits. In a revealing conversatio...

Meet the authors on the 2024 Miles Franklin shortlist

22 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

'Flabbergasted' and 'surprised' — ahead of the winner announcement, the Miles Franklin shortlisted writers tell you about their books and what it m...

R.O. Kwon's ambitions and desires

15 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

American author R.O. Kwon's novel, Exhibit, explores the taboo topic of female desire; Jenny Ackland exacts feminist revenge in Hurdy Gurdy and Jessi...

Writer to writer with Claire G Coleman and Dylan Coleman

08 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For NAIDOC week, Indigenous speculative fiction author Claire G Coleman chats to Dylan Coleman about her novel Mazin Grace republished as a UQP First...

Bri Lee and Liam Pieper take down celebrity art

01 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Australian writers Bri Lee and Liam Pieper's latest novels expose the unholy connection between money, art and power.Bri Lee is the author of the bes...

Kevin Kwan wrote a book about weddings, just don't invite him to one

24 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Weddings of the ultra-rich get the Kevin Kwan treatment in his novel Lies and Weddings, Siang Lu's ambitious and complicated novel Ghost Cities and W...

Booker Prize winner Paul Lynch and his fear of mediocrity

17 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Two authors at the top of their game: Booker Prize winner Paul Lynch reveals how his award winning novel Prophet Song came into being and Booker long...

Jeanette Winterson and Kate Grenville on the gift of writing

10 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Jeanette Winterson asks how AI will give new meaning to ghost stories and Kate Grenville reflects on a lifetime of writing and how accepting failure ...

Celeste Ng — "Every one of my books starts with a question"

03 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

American author Celeste Ng shares how her latest novel Our Missing Hearts explores one of her deepest fears. Celeste Ng is known for her dark realis...

Shankari Chandran, Stuart Turton and Julie Janson on refuge, failure and outlaws

27 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Shankari Chandran's follow up to her Miles Franklin award winning book, British author Stuart Turton's complicated murder mystery and Julie Janson's ...

Colm Tóibín's Brooklyn sequel

20 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

One of Colm Toibin's most beloved books is Brooklyn and now he's written a sequel, Long Island.Brooklyn was first published in 2009 and it's about Ei...

Banned Books 05: Censorship in Iran

18 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Iran's Kafka like book censorship is causing authors to flee, including writer Shokoofeh Azar who now lives in Australia.Banned Books is a new series...

Percival Everett reimagines Huckleberry Finn

13 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Percival Everett, a prolific author known for his versatility across various genres and styles, reinterprets an American classic novel.Percival Evere...

Banned Books 04: USA's most banned book in Australia

11 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe is the most banned book in the USA and now it's  being challenged in the courts in Australia. Banned Books is a new ser...

Val McDermid and Jonathan Seidler on ancient queens and modern love

06 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Crime writer Val McDermid investigates Scotland's most famous female character to reveal a very different Lady Macbeth. And Sydney writer Jonathon Se...

Banned Books 03: Homoerotic fiction in China

04 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Webfiction is a gargantuan platform for writers in China but authors of male to male fiction - known as the danmei or boyslove genre - are experienci...

Pod extra — Alexis Wright wins a second Stella Prize

02 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Alexis Wright has won the 2024 Stella Prize, for her novel, Praiseworthy. The novel is an Aboriginal fable, about a fictional town, a haze cloud, a h...

Téa Obreht and Emily O'Grady on Balkan fairytales, nepo babies and wild creatures

29 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Author of The Tiger's Wife Téa Obreht reterns with Morningside, a dystopian fairy tale, and Stella Prize-shortlisted author Emily O'Grady on the rot...

Banned Books 02: The Satanic Verses and the fatwa

27 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie inspired riots in England and book burnings in India; death threats, murders and a fatwa; and ultimately, a deva...

Andrew O'Hagan's biggest novel yet

22 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Scottish author Andrew O'Hagan explains why finishing his latest novel Caledonian Road was like "landing 65 planes on the tarmac"; plus a teaser for ...

Banned Books 01: Race and racism in the USA

20 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas was inspired by the black lives matter movement and explores police brutality — so why is it being taken off librar...

Sunjeev Sahota, Vanessa Chan and Winnie Dunn bring us stories from home

15 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Booker-shortlisted author Sunjeev Sahota argues that class is more important than identity, Vanessa Chan draws on her grandmother's stories of Japane...

André Aciman and Anjali Joseph on the joy of doing nothing

08 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Known for his sumptuous novel Call Me By My Name, André Aciman's latest book also explores love and beauty in Italy. Plus, Indian author Anjali Jose...

Melissa Lucashenko on writing through flood, fire and pestilence

31 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

At Adelaide Writers' Week, Melissa Lucashenko explains how understanding that "all history is fiction" allowed her to write her historic novel Edengl...

Jane Smiley and Louise Milligan on stories they couldn't let go

24 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Award winning Australian journalist Louise Milligan on her debut crime novel inspired by police and PTSD and Pulitzer Prize winning Jane Smiley on wh...

Jonathan Lethem returns to Brooklyn

17 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Bestselling American author Jonathan Lethem explains why he returned to Brooklyn in his fiction after 20 years. 

Anne Enright on motherhood, Irish poets and famous parents

10 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

At Adelaide Writers' Week, Booker-winner Anne Enright speaks about the contradictions at the heart of families.

RF Kuang and Nam Le on Yellowface, mums and minorities

03 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

RF Kuang speaks about her bestseller Yellowface and Nam Le, Australian author of The Boat, explains why his latest is a book of poetry.

Jennifer Croft, Imbi Neeme and Mykaela Saunders on translation, chewing and the Tweed

25 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Award-winning literary translator Jennifer Croft imagines what happens when translators get together in a primeval forest, Imbi Neeme's exploration o...

Jasper Fforde, Amy Brown and Leo Vardiashvili on surprises, fairytales and rickrolling

18 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Jasper Fforde's sequel to Shades of Grey, Amy Brown introduces us to Miles Franklin's sister and Leo Vardiashvili's missing persons quest through the...

Kristin Hannah, Jodi McAlister and Sharlene Allsopp on women, war and love

11 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Bestselling American author Kristin Hannah digs into the little known stories of US nurses during the Vietnam War, Jodi McAlister's comic take on The...

Hisham Matar and Ela Lee on the friendships that save you

04 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Pulitzer Prize winning Libyan author Hisham Matar on friendship in political exile and British author Ela Lee on the power of friendship at times of ...

Kiley Reid, Rachael Johns and Iain Ryan on money, love and corruption

28 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Kiley Reid's follow up to Such a Fun Age in a campus novel that she says isn't a campus novel, Rachael Johns' love story about a woman called Bridget...

Michael Cunningham and Madeleine Gray on romance and relationship breakdown

21 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Cunningham's latest novel Day explores a bromance, Madeleine Gray on writing a funny "sad girl novel" and Jessica Zhan ...

Fakes and Frauds 05 | A big hoax — Wanda Koolmatrie and My Own Sweet Time

16 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My Own Sweet Time was a memoir said to be written by Wanda Koolmatrie, a member of the Aboriginal stolen generations. But it was a hoax and this epis...

Pip Williams, Shankari Chandran and Josh Kemp on bookbinding, bushwalking and book awards

14 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Pip Williams' follow up to her bestselling novel The Dictionary of Lost Words, Josh Kemp on how bushwalking helps his writing and the 2023 Miles Fran...

Fakes and Frauds 04 | Fake identity and Helen Demidenko's The Hand that Signed the Paper

08 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Helen Demidenko scandal tore the Australian literary community apart in the 1990s. This episode of Fakes and Frauds charts the rise and downfall ...

John Boyne, Esther Freud, Louise Kennedy and the Irish voice

07 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Is there such thing as an Irish voice in fiction? 

Fakes and Frauds 03 | Fabrication and lies in Marlo Morgan's Mutant Message Down Under

02 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Cannibalism, telepathy and celibacy are just some of the false claims about Australian Aboriginal people that Marlo Morgan made in her 1990s new age ...

Ian McEwan's most personal novel, plus Booker winner Paul Lynch

31 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Booker winner Ian McEwan explores his 1960s childhood in his latest novel and reigning Booker winner Paul Lynch on his unflinching dystopian novel se...

Fakes and Frauds 02 | Fact or fiction in Norma Khouri's Forbidden Love

26 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Find out how to catch a con-artist in this episode of Fakes and Frauds that delves into the fake memoir Forbidden Love by Norma Khouri 20 years after...

Pulitzer Prize winners Barbara Kingsolver and Hernán Diaz

24 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The two winners of the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction are both about money but at opposite ends of the spectrum — Barbara Kingsolver's is about po...

Fakes and Frauds 01 | Plagiarism scandal in The Dogs by John Hughes

19 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Fakes and Frauds is a new series that unpacks famous Australian literary scandals. The first and most recent controversy was the discovery of plagiar...

Ego and creativity with Anna Funder and Paul Jennings

17 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Australian writers Anna Funder and Paul Jennings on what it takes to be a writer.

Naomi Alderman and Charlotte Wood on bunkers, billionaires and nuns

10 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Naomi Alderman takes on tech giants and survivalists in a novel that imagines the end of the world, and an atheist joins a monastery in Charlotte Woo...

Amanda Lohrey, Matthew Reilly and Katherine Brabon on the sacred, swimming and Einstein

03 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Miles Franklin winner Amanda Lohrey asks where we find community in our secular world, Matthew Reilly's latest adventure and the restorative power of...

Pod extra with the Booker Prize winner Paul Lynch

27 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Paul Lynch is the 2023 Booker Prize winner for his novel Prophet Song. Prophet Song (Bloomsbury) is an unflinching dystopian novel set in Ireland whe...

Richard Flanagan on the atomic bomb, HG Wells and a kiss

26 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Booker winner Richard Flanagan on why writing his latest book Question 7 "felt like a strange dream". Also, the artist's muse in fiction and how a mi...

Tony Birch and Christos Tsiolkas on love, shame and dangerous dinner-parties

19 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Two very different writers explore the dynamics of family and violence: Tony Birch in a 1960s working class, Catholic family and Christos Tsiolkas in...

Booker Prize shortlist — mythical, profound and lyrical

12 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the lead up to the 2023 Booker Prize award, we dive into the six shortlisted novels and meet the authors.

"We don't come from nowhere" — Melissa Lucashenko on her historical novel Edenglassie

05 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brisbane is in the spotlight with Melissa Lucashenko exploring the early days of the colony in time for the city's bicentenary and debut novelist Mel...

Haunting fiction with Shehan Karunatilaka, Steve Toltz and many more

29 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Things are getting spooky on The Book Show, as we explore ghostly fiction. Booker winner Shehan Karunatilaka and Australian Steve Toltz will imagine ...

Between two worlds with Jesmyn Ward, Graham Akhurst and Anna McGahan

22 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Three authors on the spirits and spirituality at the heart of their novels - award winning US author Jesmyn Ward's lyrical novel about slavery, Indi...

"It began with a crime" — Cassandra Clare's latest fantasy fiction

15 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Bestselling fantasy author Cassandra Clare draws on her Jewish background in her first novel for adults, Kareem Abdulrahman on translating Kurdish I...

Trent Dalton on homelessness, hope and the tyrannosaurus waltz

08 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Trent Dalton's foray into Brisbane's underworld in his third novel, Leah Kaminsky's story of dolls and exile and Peter Polities on mothers and sons. ...

Jeanette Winterson on avatars and the afterlife, plus Kate Mildenhall

01 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Two writers imagine how technology will shape our future: Jeanette Winterson talks about how AI will give new meaning to ghost stories and Australia...

Sebastian Faulks and what makes us human

25 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Sebastian Faulks on what makes us human, Emily Perkins takes on female rage and Jane Harrison digs into Australian history to bring us The Visitors. ...

Booker Prize winner: Margaret Atwood

18 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's Booker Prize season so The Book Show has gathered interviews with some of the most recent winners for you. Here's Margaret Atwood who won the p...

Booker Prize winner: Damon Galgut

18 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's Booker Prize season so The Book Show has gathered interviews with some of the most recent winners for you. Here's South African writer Damon Gal...

Booker Prize winner: Shehan Karunatilaka

18 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's Booker Prize season so The Book Show has gathered interviews with some of the most recent winners for you. Here's Sri Lankan author Shehan Karun...

Booker Prize winner: George Saunders

18 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's Booker Prize season so The Book Show has gathered interviews with some of the most recent winners for you. Here's American short story writer, e...

Booker Prize winner: Douglas Stuart

18 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's Booker Prize season so The Book Show has gathered interviews with some of the most recent winners for you. Here's Scottish author Douglas Stuart...

Booker Prize winner: Bernardine Evaristo

18 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's Booker Prize season so The Book Show has gathered interviews with some of the most recent winners for you. Here's Bernardine Evaristo who shared...

Feel good fiction with Anita Heiss, Marlon James, Monica Ali and more

18 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Literary fiction is good at the hard stuff – grief, pain and conflict - but what about the books that make you feel good? Authors Joan Silber, Ton...

Zadie Smith on Jamaica, delusion and Dickens

11 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Two historical novels with colonialism as their backdrop: one by the famous UK writer Zadie Smith and the other a debut novel by Fijian Australian au...

"We love the people we damage" — Anne Enright

04 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Former Booker Prize winner Anne Enright says she's drawn to life's contradictions and in her latest The Wren, The Wren she explores the complicated,...

Coming of age with Chris Womersley, Maxine Beneba Clarke and Zeynab Gamieldien

28 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Womersley exposes the dark side of suburbia in his sixth novel Ordinary Gods and Monsters, Maxine Beneba Clarke shares the joy of poetry for yo...

"Trinidad writes itself" — Kevin Jared Hosein's Hungry Ghosts, plus Kate Grenville

21 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Australian author Kate Grenville reflects on her lifetime of writing and how accepting failure Kate Grenville reflects on a lifetime of writing and h...

Crime fiction queen Jane Harper on what she'll do next

14 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Since 2016 Jane Harper has published five bestselling crime novels including The Dry and The Lost Man. Her latest novel Exiles sees a return of fin...

Ann Patchett and Tracy Sorensen on famous friends and talking organs

07 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

American author Ann Patchett believes contentment is a radical idea in today's busy world and in her latest novel Tom Lake reflects on the joy of s...

Melancholy in the library with Patrick deWitt, Josh Kemp and Ali Cobby Eckermann

31 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Stories of redemption and healing: Canadian author Patrick deWitt's latest novel The Librarianist is about a lonely, former librarian. Claire takes ...

Pod Extra with 2023 Miles Franklin Literary Award winner Shankari Chandran

25 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Shankari Chandran has won this year's Miles Franklin Literary Award for her third novel Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens, a Trojan horse of a novel tha...

Anna Funder and Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life

24 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Anna Funder's fourth book Wifedom: Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life interrogates why George Orwell's wife, Eileen Blair has been written out of his biogr...

Richard Ford says goodbye to his creation

17 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

American author Richard Ford says, "I write for the audience today" and not for immortality. Now 79, and with Be Mine, his fifth Frank Bascombe novel...

Myth-busting and Judge Judy with Tracey Lien and Nina Wan

10 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Tracey Lien watched Judge Judy as a child and Nina Wan learnt English at 10 when she migrated from China to Australia. Now they have both published e...

Writer to writer with Larissa Behrendt, Anita Heiss and Ellen van Neerven

03 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Indigenous writer, lawyer and filmmaker Larissa Behrendt speaks to writers Anita Heiss and Ellen van Neerven about the past and the future of First N...

Miles Franklin Literary Award shortlist 2023: pod extra interview special

29 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Interviews with all six shortlisted authors for the 2023 Miles Franklin Literary Award from RN's The Bookshelf and Book Show (in alphabetical order)....

Booker winners Shehan Karunatilaka and Damon Galgut

26 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A double bill of Booker Prize winners with reigning champion Shehan Karunatilaka and previous winner Damon Galgut. 

Lisa See's portrait of female friendship in Ming dynasty China

19 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

American author Lisa See's Lady Tan's Circle of Women set during the Chinese Ming dynasty, Robert Gott's comedy of manners, Saman Shad's contributio...

Home, art and love with Kate Morton, Stephanie Bishop and Zoya Patel

12 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Bestselling Australian author Kate Morton's personal story of home and her latest novel Homecoming, Stephanie Bishop's psycho thriller The Anniversar...

Max Porter and Barbara Kingsolver's lost boys

05 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Pulitzer Prize winner Barbara Kingsolver and British author Max Porter turn their attention to lost boys failed by society.

Don Winslow, plus Fakes and Frauds #5 Wanda Koolmatrie hoax

29 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My Own Sweet Time was a memoir said to be written by Wanda Koolmatrie, a member of the Aboriginal stolen generation. But it was a hoax and this final...

Trees in fiction with Richard Powers, Hannah Kent, Elif Shafak and more

22 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Richard Powers, Hannah Kent, Elif Shafak and Michael Christie all use trees in their fiction to touch on themes of roots and connections, growth and ...

Fakes and Frauds #4 Helen Demidenko, plus Shirley Le

15 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The latest episode in our Fakes and Frauds series is about the biggest recent book scandal of all, the Helen Demidenko affair. Also Shirley Le discus...

Eleanor Catton, plus Fakes and Frauds #3 Mutant Message Down Under

08 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Cannibalism, telepathy and celibacy are just some of the false claims Marlo Morgan made in her 1990s new age hit, Mutant Message Down Under, meet the...

Curtis Sittenfeld, plus Fakes and Frauds #2 Norma Khouri

01 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Find out how to catch a con-artist in this episode of Fakes and Frauds that delves into the fake memoir of Norma Khouri. And American author Curtis ...

Alexis Wright, plus Fakes and Frauds #1 The Dogs by John Hughes

24 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Find out how to catch a plagiarist in the first of our series Fakes and Frauds - the book scandals that rocked Australia. And Australian prize winnin...

Mothers on the page with Larissa Behrendt, Alice Pung and Chloe Hooper

17 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Australian authors Chloe Hooper, Alice Pung and Larissa Behrendt reveal the complex and complicated mums in their lives and on the page.

Lessons in life, mortality and love from Julian Barnes

10 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

British Booker winner Julian Barnes's latest novel, Elizabeth Finch, is about a life-changing teacher and he tells the audience at the Sydney Writers...

Bookbinding and ghost towns with Pip Williams and Dominic Smith

03 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The smell of books and Italian cooking are celebrated in the latest novels by bestselling Australian authors Pip Williams and Dominic Smith. Pip Will...

‘I didn’t know I had anger in me’ – Anindita Ghose kills off the patriarch

26 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Indian author Anindita Ghose on life after Vogue, her friendship with Jonathan Franzen, and the joy of killing the patriarch on page one.

John Boyne, Esther Freud, Louise Kennedy and the Irish voice

19 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Irish writers John Boyne, Esther Freud and Louise Kennedy share stories of the pub, the role of the church and whether there's such a thing as an Iri...

Margaret Atwood on witches, cats and a lifetime of writing

12 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Literary titan, Margaret Atwood on the death of her beloved husband, the influence of George Orwell and the pleasures of ageing. Her latest book is ...

Grief, plague and Star Trek with Sequoia Nagamatsu

05 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

American writer Sequoia Nagamatsu shares stories from his childhood growing up in Hawaii, his love of Star Trek, how environmentalism fuels his writi...

Dragons, literary acrobatics and a house called Shirley with Samantha Shannon, Cate Kennedy and Ronnie Scott

26 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

 Bestselling British author Samantha Shannon celebrates women, love and desire in her latest fantasy novel, A Day of Fallen Night, Cate Kennedy take...

Love, lust and ghosts: celebrating queer fiction

19 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For Sydney WorldPride, we celebrate queer writers telling queer stories – the funny, the heartbreaking and the spooky. We’ve searched The Book Sh...

Ballet, bodies and grief with Meg Howrey, Inga Simpson and Dinuka McKenzie

12 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A trio of books by women about bodies, ballet, grief and working mothers. Meg Howrey on They're Going to Love You, Inga Simpson on Kath O'Connor's p...