It's a new year and a new episode. Join Kate and Laura as they consider reading intentions for the year ahead, and try to set some realistic goals. Will 2025 be the year Kate gets into poetry? Will it be the year Laura weans herself off romance novels? And as always, they're thinking of book club reads to come. Meanwhile Phil sets a goal for himself in 2025 that might surprise you.
Books mentioned
4,000 Weeks and Meditations for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman
Rejection by Tony Tulithamutte
Bliss Montage by Ling Ma
The George Smiley novels by John le Carre
Karla's Choice by Nick Harkaway
My Struggle, Karl Ove Knausgard
The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan
Assembly and Universality by Natasha Brown
Also a Poet and Crush by Ada Calhoun
Our Country Friends and Vera, or Faith by Gary Shteyngart
Intimacies and Audition by Katie Kitamura
Robert Caro's Fifth Lyndon Johnson book
Polostan by Neal Stephenson
Finance for the People by Paca Leon
Essays of E. B. White
The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
The Husbands by Holly Gramazio
All That Glitters by Orlando Whitfield
Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon
Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs
Intermezzo by Sally Rooney
The Empusium by Olga Tokarczuk
My Friends by Hisham Matar
The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower
Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros
Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
Eight Months on Ghazzah Street by Hilary Mantel
The Gifts of Reading, Robert Macfarlane (ed)
Untitled Memoir from Nicola Sturgeon
Katabasis by R. F. Kuang
Patrick Rothfuss (The Name of the Wind trilogy)
Book Lovers by Emily Henry
Living and Death and Intimations by Zadie Smith
Notes
If you’re looking for inspiration in your reading life over the coming year why not subscribe to The Book Club Review Patreon. In addition to the various special episodes you’ll find on there, you’ll get The Book Club Review Weekend, my weeky-ish bonus episode just for Patrons, featuring Laura’s reading updates and regular chats with friends of the pod. Laura and I have cooked up a new feature, called One Book Wonder, that allows us to talk about those books that slip through the cracks between regular episodes. Listen in for our thoughts on Good Material by Dolly Alderton.
You get all that at the entry level, but at the higher tier you can also join the podcast book club and come and talk books with me in person at the end of every month over zoom, or listen back anytime if you can’t make the live session. In January we’re reading the novel that appeared on many a best-of-the-year list, Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar, In February we’re we’re reading All The Beauty in the World by Patrick Bringley, a museum guard's quest to find solace and meaning in art, and in March it’s short stories with Hateship, Friendship, Loveship, Courtship, Marriage by Alice Munroe. But will they make for good book club reads? Join me and the book clubbers over on Patreon and find out. Join our bookish community, get brilliant book recommendations and get the warm glow from knowing that you’re supporting me in making the show. Head to Patreon.com/thebookclubreview and sign up today.
Otherwise come and find me anytime on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast or check out our website, thebookclubreview.co.uk. But for now, thanks for listening and happy book clubbing.
