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The TLS Podcast
BONUS: Must read – must buy?
Are authors, reviewers and publicists wasting their time on book coverage? The contemporary conversation about books and ideas goes way beyond traditional features and interviews. Book groups, academic seminars, Amazon user reviews, Goodreads, the press, radio, podcasts, and sometimes even TV: the form, tone and quality of coverage has infinite variety. But how much does any of it help the books business – if it can be measured at all? Do authors, reviewers, and publicists feel their efforts are worthwhile? Michael Caines, an editor at the TLS, chairs an eclectic panel for a crucial conversation about the conversation around books. (This a live recording of an event, in collaboration with BookMachine, which took place on October 3, 2018, at the Driver, Kings Cross, London)
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The Wind/Yikes Dichotomy
43:53|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
Cabbages and kings
52:44|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 20Produced by Charlotte Pardy
Costume Dramas
47:49|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 BreckonProduced by Charlotte Pardy
Outsiders
01:03:16|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 LeeProduced by Charlotte Pardy
The Cat's Whiskers
53:49|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 PhillipsProduced by Charlotte Pardy
Manderley Revisited
35:15|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 McKendrickProduced by Charlotte Pardy
Who's in Charge
47:32|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 HooperProduced by Charlotte Pardy
Noses to the grindstone!
51:23|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
Lines of beauty
28:48|This week, we look back at the poets who've shared their work with us this year.Produced by Charlotte Pardy