Edward Carey and books as gifts – happy new year; we’re back!
We had a bit of a longer break over Christmas, but we’re back and raring to go with a post-Christmas discussion about whether or not we like giving books as gifts and receiving books as gifts. Which transforms into giving vs receiving at some point. We’re nothing if not flexible.
In the second half, we’re uncharacteristically modern – with two novels from the 21st century! Edward Carey’s Alva & Irva and Little go head to head.
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The books and authors we mention in this episode are:
Stoner by John Williams
Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl
Iris Murdoch
Baltasar and Blimunda by Jose Saramago (who is Portuguese, not Brazilian!)
Blindness by Jose Saramago
Milan Kundera
Old Baggage by Lissa Evans
Their Finest Hour and a Half by Lissa Evans
The Sweet and Twenties by Beverley Nichols
Cassandra at the Wedding by Dorothy Baker
Young Man With Horn by Dorothy Baker
The Red House Mystery by A.A. Milne
Book Girl by Sarah Clarkson
I’d Rather Be Reading by Anne Bogel
The Winter of Our Discontent by John Steinbeck
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
The Pearl by John Steinbeck
Out of the Red, into the Blue by Barbara Comyns
The Gap of Time by Jeanette Winterson
Robert Galbraith
Greengates by R.C. Sherriff
Bricks and Mortar by Helen Ashton
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Familiar Studies of Men and Books by R.L. Stevenson
Christine Orr
Inside Black Mirror by Charlie Brooker
Terms and Conditions by Ysenda Maxtone Graham
In the Dark Room by Brian Dillon
Yellow by Janni Visman
Observatory Mansions by Edward Carey
Summer Will Show by Sylvia Townsend Warner
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
Fantastic podcast again and welcome back. I have Little on the TBR to read and am very tempted now to pick it up. In addition, I had never heard of Alva and Irva but it is also now on the ever expanding TBR. Thanks.
Thanks very much! Carey is such a distinctive voice and I’d love it if our podcast introduced more people to his back catalogue.
I love to give books but also to receive – although with the latter, I always like to provide a little guidance if I can… Having said that, most of my friends and family members know the kind of thing I like! :D
My weekend miscellany book choices have had the happy and unintended affect of giving my friends book buying advice!
Thank you for a lovely podcast, as usual! I’ve never heard of Edward Carey, but I enjoyed your discussions of the books. I hope you like Anne Bogel’s book, Simon. It’s a fun one!
I used to give books far more often, but then I realized how nuanced each person’s taste in books is (see Anne Bogel’s podcast What Should I Read Next? for examples!) and how I was usually giving books that fit my quirky reading taste. I’d rather give a bookstore gift card and then learn what the person bought. However, I love giving books to my friends with kids, and I do that unabashedly. One friend thought a book I gave her kids was for her, so she read it aloud with her husband and they both loved it. I thought that was both amusing and gratifying.
I’m excited for the next podcast. I just read North and South for the first time about two years ago. It would certainly be worth a re-read.
Thanks Elizabeth! And had I misremembered which of those books you recommended to me – or was it both?
I’ve just starting listening to Anne Bogel’s podcast and had heard of only one of the books mentioned! Tbh the last thing I need is more on my tbr, so it’s probably no bad thing.
I’m happy to claim both. :D
I do love Anne’s podcast, despite the never-ending tbr. That’s a good idea for a future podcast…to add to the tbr or not to add to the tbr.