A books podcast made by readers
Welcome to The Book Club Review, the independent podcast about the books that get people talking, hosted by Kate and Laura. From literary prize shortlists to book club favourites we’re always on the hunt for those books that provoke conversations, the ones we can’t wait to share, the ones perfect for book club. With our cast of regular and special guests, we promise you honest opinions and lively debate. As featured in Vogue, Stylist, the iPaper and BBC Radio 5 Live. Listen via your favourite podcast player or browse our archive for over 175 episodes and many hundreds of book recommendations. Wondering if we’ve covered one of your favourites? Type the title into the search tab to find out.
Just out, listen to our most recent episode
We go through the books longlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize, but which didn’t make the shortlist. Which were the best of the rest? With Phil Chaffee and Elizabeth Eva Leach. Listen via the media player below or head to the episode page for full shownotes and a transcript.
Keep up with the pod between episodes
Reviews, recommendations and more.
EPISIDE #181 • Beyond the shortlist: the seven longlisted titles that didn’t make the final cut but which still are ‘best’ out of 150 submitted novels. In the past great books like TRUST by Hernan Diaz, THE BLUE FLOWER by Penelope Fitzgerald and NEVER LET ME GO by Kazuo Ishiguro were all overlooked, novels that have stood the test of time. And so, leaving no stone unturned, we’re running through the best of the rest. Which are the gems we think everyone should read. Listen in and find out. Link in the bio.
#bookspodcast #bookerprize2025 #bookerprizelonglist2025 #bookrecommendations #bookprize #bookclubreads
Sunday night bookstack • feat. AUDITION by Katie Kitamura, THE LONELINESS OF SONIA AND SUNNY by Kiran Desai, PET SENATARY by Stephen King, WASTING TIME ON THE INTERNET by Kenneth Goldsmith and LA BABY by Tim Key
#bookstack #bookrecommendations #bookreviews #whatshouldireadnext #currentlyreading #bookpodcast
NEW EPISODE • Discover the books on our Autumn book stacks • Episode #180, listen at the link in the bio or find The Book Ckub Review wherever you get your pods
Special thanks to @waterstones_islington @steejayhubs for brightening up a very wet morning with some brilliant book chat. Sounds like I need to bump Seascraper by Benjamin Wood back up my #tbr
#bookspodcast #bookpodcast #bookrecommendationsplease #whatshouldireadnext
Sunday night bookstack • feat
AUDITION by Katie Kitamura
PRUDENCE by Jilly Cooper
SPRIG MJSLIN by Georgette Heyer
DIDION AND BABITZ by Lili Anolik
SKY DADDY by Kate Folk
MY SALINGER YEAR by Joanna Rakoff
For anyone who makes it to the end, extra behind the scenes footage of my not particularly tidy kitchen 😬 I was trying using the front camera so the books are the right way round, but I then felt weird not being able to see the screen so I dunno…
New episode • book club chat on Booker longlisted UNIVERSALITY by Natasha Brown and historical fiction debut SPARKS OF BRIGHT MATTER by Leeanne O’Donnell. What did we think of them? And did they make for good book club reads?
We also meet @k_ambrosia5 who tells us all about her Graffiti book club - perfect inspiration for anyone seeking a fresh take on the book club format.
Plus we’ve got updates on what’s going on in the Patreon community (The Creative Way readalong, chat groups, book club, ad-free episodes and more) and our current reads and recommendations. All that plus a brilliant offer from @serious_readers makers of beautiful lamps. Listen in and find out how to get £150 of any HD light.
All that in episode #179, link in the bio or find it wherever you get your pods
Sunday night bookstack • feat.
FLESH by David Szalay
THE PRIVATE LIFE OF THE DIARY by Sally Bayley
ALPHABETICAL DIARIES by Sheila Heti
DO ADMIT by Mimi Pond (as recommended by @airmailweekly)
THE ARTISTS WAY by Julia Cameron
📚🎧 EPISODE #177 • BOOKISH IN SEATTLE • Link in the bio
An overdue promo for our Seattle episode - a rare chance for Laura and me to chat books together instead of over a zoom screen. If I could move in to Elliott Bay I would, such an amazing collection of brilliantly curated books, and enticing shelfie notes from the booksellers recommending them. Laura and I talk in the episode about what makes a perfect bookstore. I’m not sure there’s a bookshop I don’t love if I’m honest, but let’s say there’s some I love even more for different reasons. Elliott Bay is a gem.
And while you’re listening why not try a ‘Give Me Your Brains’ courtesy of Margaret C Beeler of @tropetails literary cocktail recipes for bookworms 🍸🧟♀️📚
Books mentioned
Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum (Shanna Tan)
Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa (Eric Ozawa)
The Bookshop Woman by Nanako Hanada (Cat Anderson)
Heart the Lover by Lily King
Writers & Lovers by Lily King
Euphoria by Lily King
State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
Five Ways to Forgiveness by Ursula K. LeGuin
Winter’s Orbit by Everina Maxwell
Audition by Katie Kitamura
The Odd Woman and the City by Vivan Gornick
The Transitive Vampire by Karen Elizabeth Gordon
The Cafe with No Name by Robert Seethaler (Katy Derbyshire)
Tokyo Express by Seicho Matsumoto (Jesse Kirkwood)
Bird Box by Josh Malerman
Zone One by Colson Whitehead
Sunday night bookstack • feat.
Mouthing by Orla Mackey
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
A Waiter in Paris by Edward Chisholm
Gertrude Stein: An Afterlife by Francesca Wade
The Land in Winter by Andrew Miller
More recent episodes
Kate and Laura swap notes on their Autumn reading, while gearing up to dive into the Booker Prize shortlist. Listen via the media player below or head to the episode page for full shownotes and a transcript.
Kate and Laura dive into two recent book club reads, Universality by Natasha Brown and Sparks of Bright Matter by Leeanne O’Donnell. Did they make for good book club books? Plus recent reads and we hear from a book club with a brilliant twist. Listen via the media player below or head to the episode page for full shownotes and a transcript.
Kate and Joseph Dance discuss a favourite topic among literary aficionados, books that explore the world of books and reading. Listen via the media player below or head to the episode page for full shownotes and a transcript.
Kate and Laura talk books in Seattle, including recent reads and bookshop favourites. Also featured, literary cocktails. Listen via the media player below or head to the episode page for full shownotes and a transcript.
Join Kate in New York as she drinks cocktails and chats books with Christopher Hermelin of So Many Damn Books and Drew Broussard of The Lit Hub Podcast. Listen via the media player below or head to the episode page for full shownotes and a transcript.
Inspired by the recent Apple adaptation of Martha Wells’ Murderbot Diaries, we’re diving in to all things book to TV and film. Find out our favourites, plus we hear from Philippa Donovan, literary scout, who gives us the inside track on what it takes for a book to succeed on the screen. Listen via the media player below or head to the episode page for full shownotes and a transcript.
Daisy Buchanan joins Kate to explore the healing power of books and reading to inspire, comfort and fortify – and generally bring us joy Listen here or head to the episode page for full show notes.
With New Year’s resolutions still in mind it’s the perfect time to step into a world of philosophical musings and practical wisdom with Oliver Burkeman. Meditations for Mortals is his latest book designed as a four-week mental retreat, promising to help readers lead a ‘saner, freer, and more enchantment-filled life’. He joins Kate to discuss it. Listen here or head to the episode page for full show notes.
Join Kate, Sarah, Phil and Laura as they consider the NYT’s Best Books of the 21st Century list, and come up with a Book Club Review Top 20 picking up on the ones they think were overlooked. Listen in to find out if they’ve picked any of your favourites. Listen here or head to the episode page for full show notes.
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Discussion, debate, even a little dispute
Every month we bring you a new episode. That could be Book Club where we chat about the book read most recently by one of our book clubs. An interview with a book club, bookshop or book lover. Or Bookshelf, an episode dedicated to the books we’re reading outside of book club – the ones we get to pick and choose.