Curious Readers

This week, Joseph and Amanda tackle romance. But this is romance with a twist, no tropes or formulas, just good writing that even the most hard-hearted cynic can enjoy. And before that, as Prize season is upon us, they dish the latest on prestigious longlists, and top and tail the episode with current and future reads. Bookish newsThe Women’s Prize for Non-FictionDaughters of the Bamboo Grove: China’s Stolen Children and a Story of Separated Twins by Barbara Demick @barbara.demickThe Finest Hotel in Kabul: A People’s History of Afghanistan by Lyse Doucet @lyse.doucetDon’t Let It Break You, Honey: A Memoir About Saving Yourself by Jenny Evans @jenny_evans_authorArt Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health by Daisy Fancourt @daisyfancourtWith the Law on Our Side: How the Law Works for Everyone and How We Can Make It Work Better by Lady HaleTo Be Young, Gifted and Black: Creativity and Race in the 21st Century by Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason @kadiatukannehmasonArtists, Siblings, Visionaries: The Lives and Loves of Gwen and Augustus John by Judith Mackrell @judithmackrellAsk Me How It Works: Love in an Open Marriage by Deepa Paul @storiesbydeepaDeath of an Ordinary Man by Sarah Perry @sarah_grace_perryThe Genius of Trees: How Trees Mastered the Elements and Shaped the World by Harriet Rix @harrietjennierixHotel Exile: Paris in the Shadow of War by Jane Rogoyska @janerskaMother Mary Comes to Me a memoir by Arundhati Roy @arundatiroyauthorFinding Albion: Myth, Folklore and the Quest for a Hidden Britain by Zakia Sewell @zzzakiaTo Exist As I Am: A Doctor’s Notes on Recovery and Radical Acceptance by Grace Spence GreenNation of Strangers: Rebuilding Home in the 21st Century by Ece Temelkuran @ece.temelkuranIndignity: A Life Reimagined by Lea Ypi International Booker PrizeDublin Literary AwardEndling by Maria Reva @revawritesGood Girl by Aria Arber @aria.aberWhat I Know About You by Eric Chacour @ericchacourThe Creation of Half-Broken People by Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu Live Fast by Brigitte GiroudRecent Reads Every One Still Here by Liadan Ní ChuinnLost Lambs by Madeline Cash @madelinecashRomance for CynicsGiovanni’s Room by James BaldwinWuthering Heights by Emily BronteEmma by Jane AustenPersuasion by Jane AustenPride and Prejudice by Jane AustenJane Eyre by Charlotte BronteVillette by Charlotte BronteThe books of Lily King @lilykingbooksMinor Black Figures by Brandon Taylor @brandonlgtaylorThe Late Americans by Brandon TaylorNormal People by Sally Rooney @sallyrooneyofficialYou Are Here by David Nicholls @davidnichollswriterHeated Rivalry by Rachel Reid @rachelreidwritesHappy All The Time by Laurie ColwinReasons To Be Cheerful by Nina Stibbe @ninastibbe Crush by Ada Calhoun @adacalhounGood Material by Dolly Alderton @dollyaldertonThe Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller @madeline.e.millerThe Disenchantment by Celia Bell The Lovers by Paolo Cognetti The Eight Mountains by Paolo CognettiSorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason @meg_mason_writerReally Good, Actually by Monica Heisey @monicaheiseyYou, Again by Kate Goldbeck @kategoldbeckHeartburn by Nora EphronWhat We’re Reading Next Midnight Is Not In Everyone’s Reach by António Lobo Antunes @antonio.lobo.antunesWhite Spines: Confessions of a Book Collector by Nicholas Royle @nicholasroyleSilver Sparrow by Tayari Jones @tayariKin by Tayari JonesMy Friends by Frederik Backman @frederickbackmanThe Winner by Teddy WayneThe Benefactors by Wendy Erskine @wednesdaywerskinCurious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudioFollow us on Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

This week, Joseph and Amanda talk about some of their favourite short story collections - ranging from canonical gems to new voices - plus, as always, they talk about what they’ve been reading recently and discuss what they’re excited to read next. (1:24) Bookish news(2:20) Birchbark Books(2:27) Inkwell Books(2:40) Red Balloon Books(2:56) Excelsior Bay Books / Milkweed Books / Black Garnet Books(3:08) Shop Minneapolis bookshops from anywhere at Bookstore.org and libro.fm(4:31) Standwithminnesota.com(5:36) The TS Eliot Prize(6:03) Wellwater by Karen Solie (7:17) Recent Reads (7:27) Buckeye by Patrick Ryan @patrickryanyc(12:40) A Question of Upbringing by Anthony Powell(17:14) Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh(18:17) Short Story Collections(18:26) Joseph's Short Story Quiz(25:38) Games and Rituals by Katherine Heiny @katherineheiny(30:59) Standard Deviation by Katherine Heiny(34:32) Mslexia(34:45) Drinking Coffee Elsewhere by Z.Z. Packer @zzpacker56(40:42) In Our Time by Ernest Hemingway(46:37) The Latehomecomer: Essential Stories by Mavis Gallant(51:18) Furies: Stories of the Wicked, Wild and Untamed by Margaret Atwood and others @therealmargaretatwood(52:21) Stories of Place:///zinc.level.blindfold edited by Niamh McAnally @niamh_mcanally(53:00) The Woman Dies by Aoko Matsuda @matsudaoko(56:40) You Glow in the Dark by Liliana Colanzi @lilianacolanzi, translated by Chris Andrews (58:06) Selected stories by Nikolai Gogol(59:19) Every One Still Here by Liadan Ní Chuinn(59:59) What We’re Reading Next (1:00:13) I’m Glad My Mother Died by Jennette McCurdy @jennettemccurdy(1:00:50) Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy(1:01:19) Palaver by Bryan Washington @bry.washingCurious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudioFollow us on Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

This week, Amanda and Joseph go into the trenches with Daniel Kraus’s repulsively propulsive Angel Down. They also discuss what they’ve been reading recently, including the new Ian McEwan novel and a slew of non-fiction, as well as what they’re looking forward to picking up next. (2:40) Bookish news(2:44) Storygraph (@josephjdance and @itsmoleyreads)(3:47) Faversham Literary Festival, 20 February to 1 March, 2026(4:44) Chocolat and Vianne by Joanne Harris (5:41) Recent reads (6:00) Books, A Manifesto: Or, How To Build A Library by Ian Patterson(7:19) Trees In Winter by Richard Shimell (richardshimell.co.uk)(8:21) Hiroshima by John Hersey (10:33) What We Can Know by Ian McEwan(14:05) Deep Dive - Angel Down(14:45) The Shape of Water by Daniel Kraus(14:53) Trollhunters by Daniel Kraus(15:04) The Monster Variations by Daniel Kraus(15:27) Rotters and Scowler by Daniel Kraus(15:46) The Death and Life of Zebulon Finch by Daniel Kraus(15:57) Whale Fall by Daniel Kraus(19:13) Angel Down by Daniel Kraus @krausauthor(23:49) Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellman(24:04) Zone by Mathias Enard (24:18) Septology by Jon Fosse(38:56) 1917, directed by Sam Mendes(38:59) All’s Quiet on the Western Front (2022), directed by Edward Berger(41:39) In Memoriam by Alice Winn(57:33) Final thoughts(59:38) What We’re Reading Next(59:44) A High Wind In Jamaica. Or The Innocent Voyage by Richard Hughes(1:00:59) The Woman Dies by Aoko Matsuda Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudioFollow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Happy New Year! Start the year with Amanda and Joseph as they talk about their reading intentions for 2026. (2:09) Bookish News (2:36) Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (directed by Emerald Fennell)(2:46) Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell (directed by Chloe Zhao)(2:59) Die My Love by Ariana Harwicz (directed by Lynne Ramsey)(3:34) Train Dreams by Dennis Johnson (directed by Clint Bentley)(3:51) A Pair of Bookends podcast (7:15) What We’ve Been Reading  (7:19) Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson(8:22) The Correspondent by Virginia Evans(13:51) Reading Resolutions(23:28) The Little Friend by Donna Tartt(24:39) Independent People by Halldór Laxness(25:05) Death’s End by Cixin Liu(26:29) Farewell Fountain Street by Selçuk Altun(26:42) Cold Nights of Childhood by Tezer Özlü(26:54) Journey To The Edge of Life by Tezer Özlü(27:00) Snow by Orhan Pamuk (28:17) My Clavicle and Other Major Misalignments by Marta Sanz(31:12) Steering the Craft by Ursula K Le Guinn(31:21) On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King(31:45) Consider This by Chuck Palahniuk(33:51) Katabasis by RF Kuang(34:06) The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami(34:14) The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong(35:14) On The Calculation of Volume by Solvej Balle(37:05) Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver(45:17) Rougon-Macquart Cycle by Emile Zola(46:26) The Persians by Sanam Mahloudji(50:31) What We’re Reading Next(50:44) Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy(52:27) Money by Emile Zola(53:20) Angel Down by Daniel Kraus Also MentionedWhitstable Silent Book Club @silentbookclubwhitstableCurious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudioFollow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Join Amanda and Joseph for an end-of-year bibliofest as they talk about their top 10 books of the year, plus they dish the dirt on the titles that sadly didn’t live up to their expectations over the last twelve months. (1:20) Bookish News (1:24) The Warwick Prize For Women In Translation (1:44) And The Walls Became The World All Around by Johanna Ekström and Sigrid Rausing, translated by Sigrid Rausing(3:33) The New Yorker at 100 (Netflix)(5:22) Our Top 10 Books of 2025 (#10 to #6)(6:55) New York Times Best Books of 2025(8:32) The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai(8:55) Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood(9:52) Angel Down by Daniel Kraus(10:41) The Director by Andrew Kehlmann(11:15) You Should Have Left by Andrew Kehlmann(11:53) The Sisters by Jonas Hassan Khemiri (12:55) Wild Thing: A Life Of Paul Gauguin by Sue Prideaux(13:01) A Marriage At Sea / Maurice & Maralyn by Sophie Elmhirst(15:34) We Are Free to Change the World: Hannah Arendt's Lessons in Love and Disobedience by Lyndsey Stonebridge(18:16) The Lasting Harm: Witnessing the Trial of Ghislaine Maxwell by Lucia Osborne-Crowley(20:06) Objects Of Desire by Neil Blackmore (#10)(21:47) Playworld by Adam Ross (#9)(23:08) A Person Is A Prayer by Ammar Kalia (#8)(24:58) Good Girl by Aria Aber @aria.arber (#7)(27:16) Sad Tiger by Neige Sinno translated by Natasha Lehrer (#6)(31:13) Christmas Cracker Questions Speed Round(32:11) The Story of a Heart by Dr Rachel Clarke(34:10) Nevada by Imogen Binnie(36:21) A Big Storm Knocked it Over by Laurie Colwin(38:37) Margo’s Got Money Trouble by Rufi Thorpe(39:17) The Knockout Queen by Rufi Thorpe(41:15) I'm Mostly Here to Enjoy Myself by Glynnis MacNicol(41:42) Close to Home by Michael Magee(42:31) Heart the Lover by Lily King(42:37) The Correspondent by Virginia Evans(43:25) Flashlight by Susan Choi(44:38) Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab(44:55) The Names by Florence Knapp(48:29) In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust(48:51) A Dance to the Music of Time by Anthony Powell(49:26) On the Calculation of Volume, volumes I, II and III by Solvej Balle(49:54) A Court of Thorn and Roses by Sarah K Maas(50:26) Her Majesty’s Royal Coven by Juno Dawson(50:51) Our Top 10 Books of 2025 (#5 to #1)(51:02)The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai (#5)(53:24) The Coin by Yasmin Zaher (#4)(56:26) Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry (#3)(1:02:16) My Clavicle and Other Major Misalignments by Marta Sanz and translated from the Spanish by Katie King (#2)(1:02:44) Unwell Woman by Elinor Cleghorn(1:04:48) One Day Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad (#1)(1:07:37) Spent by Alison Bechdel (#1)(1:10:24) All the Way to the River by Elizabeth Gilbert(1:11:56) Twist by Column McCann(1:12:32) Moderation by Elaine Castillo(1:14:11) What We’re Reading Next(1:14:28) Angel Down by Daniel Kraus (1:14:40) Whale Fall by Daniel Kraus(1:16:24) A Dance to the Music of Time by Antony PowellAlso mentioned Gordon Burn Prize For New Writing Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudioFollow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes

Join Amanda and Joseph as they get graphic – about the best graphic novels they’ve read and the ones they are keen to add to their TBRs. Along the way, they talk about their recent reads and discuss the books they hope will close out their reading year. (0:47) Bookish News (5:41) National Book Award (6:00) The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother) by Rabih Alameddine (6:45) One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad (7:46) The Intentions of Thunder by Patricia Smith(8:25) The Teacher of Nomad Land: A World War II Story by Daniel Nayeri (8:48) We Are Green and Trembling by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara(9:52) Recent Reads (9:56) 11.22.63 by Stephen King (15:20) Ultraluminous by Katherine Faw (21:12) Graphic Novels (25:35) Alison by Lizzy Stewart(26:19) Ducks by Kate Beaton (30:11) Sabrina by Nick Drnaso (30:17) Feeding Ghosts by Tessa Hulls(30:57) The Sad Ghost Club by Lize Meddings (36:59) Goodnight Pun Pun by Inio Asano (37:22) Sheets by Brenna Thummler (38:02) Ginseng Roots by Craig Thompson (38:13) Blankets by Craig Thompson (45:05) Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts by Rebecca Hall, illustrated by Hugo Martinez (49:15) Walk Me To the Corner by Anneli Furmark (53:34) Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant by Roz Chast (54:13) Florrie: A Football Love Story by Anna Trench (54:46) Cats of the Louvre by Taiyo Matsumoto (55:53) Firefly by Robert Macfarlane and Luke Adam Hawker(56:34) Walking Distance by Lizzy Stewart (57:12) The Once and Future Riot by Joe Sacco (58:02) This Beautiful, Ridiculous City by Kay Sohini (59:04) What We’re Reading Next (59:29) On The Calculation of Volume: Volumes II and III by Solvej Balle (1:00:28) The Silver Book by Olivia Laing(1:00:43) Books: A Manifesto, Or, How To Build A Library by Ian Patterson (1:01:11) The Riders in the Chariot by Patrick White Also mentioned The Liverpool Maritime Museum and International Slavery Museum @harbourbooksCurious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudioFollow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes