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  • John of John by Douglas Stuart

    John of John by Douglas Stuart
    2026/06/23
    Anna and Geoff react to the 2026 Women's Prize winners: Virginia Evans' THE CORRESPONDENT for Fiction, which prompts Geoff to recommend 84 CHARING CROSS ROAD, and Lyse Doucet's THE FINEST HOTEL IN KABUL for Non-Fiction. Our book of the week is JOHN OF JOHN by Douglas Stuart, the Booker Prize-winning author of SHUGGIE BAIN. Set in the remote Scottish Hebrides among a weaving community, this story of John and his son Cal was an Oprah Book Club pick, a finalist for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction and picked by many as a Most Anticipated Book of 2026. Is it more Brokeback Mountain or Greek tragedy, or something else? Coming up: HOUR OF THE STAR by Clarice Lispector translated by Benjamin Moser.

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    Substack: Books On The Go

    Credits

    Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz
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    24 分
  • London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe

    London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe
    2026/06/03
    Anna and Geoff discuss the 2026 Stella Prize winner, CANNON by Lee Lai and the 2026 Orwell Prize for Political Fiction shortlist. We also react to the Guardian list of 100 best books of all time. Is there a difference between your 10 favourite novels and your top 10 best books of all time? Our book of the week is LONDON FALLING by Patrick Radden Keefe. This is Keefe's latest book, after his widely acclaimed EMPIRE OF PAIN. It explores the death of 19 year old Zac Brettler, who had been posing as a Russian oligarch's son and became entangled with the London underworld. LONDON FALLING was a Most Anticipated book of 2026 and is a New York Times Best Book of the Year So Far. There are twists and turns aplenty and much to discuss:
    • Were the Met police incompetent or was there more to it?
    • If your teenager has £850,000 in their bank account, is this a red flag?
    • What did we think of the ending?

    Coming up: JOHN OF JOHN by Douglas Stuart

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    Substack: Books On The Go

    Credits

    Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz
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    37 分
  • Transcription by Ben Lerner

    Transcription by Ben Lerner
    2026/05/20
    Anna and Geoff react to the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction winner, ANGEL DOWN by Daniel Kraus, a World War 1 novel written in one sentence. We also discuss Dwight Garner's New York Times article about the lack of book critics and our views on book influencers and reviews that make news, such as the Harper's review of To Paradise by Hana Yanagihara. Our book of the week is TRANSCRIPTION by Ben Lerner. This novel about a writer who writes an article about his mentor from his memory of their interview after dropping his phone in a sink tackles issues such as phone addiction, parenting and eating disorders. It was a Telegraph 'most anticipated book of 2026' and a New York Times 'book everyone will be talking about'. Recommended for book clubs. We had to ask:
    • Why did he not put his phone in a bowl of rice?
    • Is this a book about tech addiction?
    • How does it differ from an Ian McEwan novel?
    • How many unreliable narrators do we have here?
    Read-alikes: AUDITION by Katie Kitamura LEAVING THE ATOCHA STATION by Ben Lerner Coming up: LONDON FALLING by Patrick Radden Keefe

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    Substack: Books On The Go

    Credits

    Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz
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    30 分
  • Lázár by Nelio Biedermann translated by Jamie Bulloch

    Lázár by Nelio Biedermann translated by Jamie Bulloch
    2026/05/11
    Anna and Geoff discuss the 2026 Women's Prize for Fiction Shortlist. Is it more commercial than usual? Our book of the week is LÁZÁR by Nelio Biedermann translated by Jamie Bulloch. This sweeping historical novel about the aristocratic von Lázár family during the 20th century from the Austro Hungarian empire through to Russian occupation is a buzzy debut which has received much praise. Patti Smith, Dua Lipa and Christian Kracht are fans. It prompted some questions:
    • Is One Hundred years of Solitude a good comparison?
    • What is the meaning of the translucent skin and gothic forest?
    • Can you spot the modern literature references (Anna missed most of them!)
    Here are some read-alikes if you enjoyed Lázár:
    • Held by Anne Michaels
    • Beddebrooks by Thomas Mann
    • The Director by Daniel Kehlmann translated by Ross Benjamin
    • The Radetzky March by Joseph Roth translated by Michael Hofmann

    Coming up: TRANSCRIPTION by Ben Lerner

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    Email: Booksonthegopodcast@gmail.com

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    Substack: Books On The Go

    Credits

    Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz
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    22 分
  • Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo translated by Douglas J. Weatherford

    Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo translated by Douglas J. Weatherford
    2026/04/26
    Anna and Geoff discuss the news that Helen deWitt has turned down the Windham Campbell prize. Are authors expected to do too much publicity? Our book of the week is PEDRO PÁRAMO by Juan Rulfo translated by Douglas J. Weatherford. 'Wuthering Heights located in Mexico written by Kafka' gives a hint - this book is a trip. It broke Anna's brain but Geoff found it richly rewarding once you get into it. Pedro Páramo inspired a generation of Hispanic writers including Gabriel Garcia Márquez and is considered a classic. It's now a Netflix film - but is it too faithful to the book? We needed the Wikipedia plot summary for this one. Read-alikes THE SOUND AND THE FURY by William Faulkner AS I LAY DYING by William Faulkner ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF SOLITUDE by Gabriel Garcia Marquez A SUNNY PLACE FOR SHADY PEOPLE by Mariana Enriquez translated by Megan McDowell HURRICANE SEASON by Fernanda Melchor translated by Sophie Hughes Coming up: LÁZÁR by Nelio Biedermann translated by Jamie Bulloch

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    Substack: Books On The Go

    Credits

    Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz
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    38 分
  • Heart The Lover by Lily King

    Heart The Lover by Lily King
    2026/04/19
    Anna and Annie discuss the 2026 Booker International Shortlist. Our book of the week is HEART THE LOVER by Lily King. This buzzy novel follows three friends at university and into adulthood. A follow up from King's best-seller WRITERS AND LOVERS, it is an instant New York Times best-seller and is long-listed for the 2026 Women's Prize for Fiction (shortlist to be announced on 22 April). It's also Zadie Smith's pick for 'the book that made me weep uncontrollably.' More literary romances: THE EVENING OF THE HOLIDAY by Shirley Hazzard SEEING OTHER PEOPLE by Diana Reid

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    Instagram: @abailliekaras and @mr_annie

    Substack: Books On The Go

    Credits

    Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz
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    18 分
  • A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar

    A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar
    2026/04/11
    Anna and Annie discuss the news that Hachette has pulled the book SHY GIRL by Mia Ballard from publication after concerns it was written by AI. Our book of the week is A GUARDIAN AND A THIEF by Megha Majumdar. This follow-up to her novel A Burning is set in near-future, dystopian Kolkata. A GUARDIAN AND A THIEF is full of ethical dilemmas, flawed characters and memorable food scenes - a good book club pick. It has been long listed for the 2026 Women's Prize for Fiction. Read-alikes: THE DIRECTOR by Daniel Kehlmann translated by Ross Benjamin (iykyk) LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND by Rumaan Alam Coming up: HEART THE LOVER by Lily King Follow us!

    Follow us!

    Email: Booksonthegopodcast@gmail.com

    Instagram: @abailliekaras and @mr_annie

    Substack: Books On The Go

    Credits

    Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz
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    24 分
  • Seascraper by Benjamin Wood

    Seascraper by Benjamin Wood
    2026/03/30
    Anna and Geoff discuss the 2026 International Booker Prize longlist. We're intrigued by Women Without Men: A novel of Modern Iran by Shahrnush Parsipur translated by Faridoun Farrokh and The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar translated by Ruth Martin. Our book of the week is SEASCRAPER by Benjamin Wood. This short novel about a man who works as a shanker on a foggy beach and a film-maker who wants to set a movie there was long listed for the 2025 Booker Prize. There is much to discuss:
    • Are we now shrimping experts?
    • How do we feel about dreams in novels?
    • Do we like bleak, isolated settings?
    Annas suggests two read-alikes if you enjoyed Seascraper:
    • The Horse by Willy Vlautin
    • Clear by Carys Davies

    Follow us!

    Email: booksonthegopodcast@gmail.com

    Instagram: @abailliekaras

    Substack: Books On The Go

    Credits

    Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz
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    26 分