Book Talk

Our final Book Talk podcast features a pair of heavyweights from the world of crime fiction and a debut author we should all be sure to keep an eye on. First up: Ryan Van Winkle has a chat with bestselling author Val McDermid and her partner in crime (research), forensic anthropologist Sue Black. Val has recently returned to her roots as a journalist with her latest book, Forensics: The Anatomy of Crime, a work of non-fiction. But although, in her own words, she usually ‘makes stuff up,’ she still does meticulous research, and for that, she turns to Sue. The pair met while guesting on a radio show years ago and have been friends and research partners ever since. Learn how the writer/expert relationship works, what Sue respects most about Val’s writing, and how they balance the dark aspects of their day jobs with normal life. Ryan next introduces us to Kate Tough, whose debut novel, Head for the Edge, Keep Walking, deals with a woman’s ‘late quarter-life crisis.’ Kate talks about her inspiration, how she went from writing poetry and short stories to a novel and the invaluable assistance she received with it, and what you can expect from her at the upcoming Aye, Write! Festival in Glasgow. Finally, Sasha de Buyl has a word with Nordic crime superstar Arne Dahl. Dahl discusses his latest book, To the Top of the Mountain, the third in the Intercrime series, and what he loves most about the crime fiction genre.

This month, our Book Talk panel turns its attention to the latest book by fantastic Scottish author, Andrew O'Hagan. The Illuminations tells two stories; the first of Anne Quirk, a once-great photographer trying to reconnect with her past, and the second, of her grandson Luke, serving in the British Army in Afghanistan. Andrew O'Hagan has been twice nominated for the Man Booker Prize as has won the Los Angeles Times Book Award and the E. M. Forster Award from the American Academy of Arts & Letters Joining Sasha de Buyl are Kaite Welsh (@kaitewelsh), journalist and chair of the Green Carnation Literary Prize, and Yasmin Sulaiman (@yasmin_sul), Books Editor at The List. The panel discusses the novel's dual perspectives, the way the book explores the inner workings of a mind in the grip of dementia and the frustrations of the voiceless. Through the podcast, they explore the two main characters and how they interact, the comparison between the beauty of art and the atrocities of war and the gentle lyricism of O'Hagan's style. If you're reading, or have read, the book, what did you think? How do you think it compares to O'Hagan's previous work? We'd love to know what you thought - you can join the discussion in the comments below, or on Twitter @scottishbktrust. Book Talk is also available on Soundcloud. BookTalk is produced by Colin Fraser of Culture Laser Productions.

This month, Ryan Van Winkle and our own Sasha de Buyl interview best-selling YA authors Garth Nix (@garthnix), Leigh Bardugo (@LBardugo) and David Levithan (@loversdiction) about returning to different worlds, crafting a series and creating characters that break the mould. Garth Nix is the Australian-born author of the Old Kingdom series, the Keys to the Kingdom series and the Seventh Tower series. Written almost 20 years ago, Sabriel was the first book in the Old Kingdom series and told the story of a young girl tasked with making sure the dead stay dead. Though Garth hasn't returned to the world of the Old Kingdom since 2003's Abhorsen, last year's Clariel found him back there, this time several hundred years before the events of Sabriel. Garth talks to Sasha about what it was like to go back, and why he went there again. Leigh Bardugo is the Jerusalem-born, LA-raised author of The Grisha Trilogy, a YA fantasy series that comprises Shadow and Bone, Seige and Storm and the third in the trilogy, Ruin and Rising. Shadow and Bone tells the story of Alina Starkov, an orphan who has to harness powers she didn't even know she had in order to save her best friend. The novel debuted on the New York Times bestseller list and the series has proved incredibly popular. Leigh talks to Ryan about crafting a trilogy, realising your potential and never taking a break. David Levithan is the hugely popular American author of a number of YA books, including Boy Meets Boy and The Realm of Possibility, and books for adults including The Lover's Dictionary. In collaboration with Rachel Cohn, he wrote Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, which was adapted into a film in 2008. His newest novel Every Day tells the the story of A, a character that wakes up in a different body and in a different life each morning. David talks to Ryan about creating a character without physical characteristics, what makes us ourselves and the nature of love. Podcast contents 00:00 - 01:02 Introduction 01:10 - 14:08 Garth Nix interview 14:09 - 22.39 Leigh Bardugo interview 22:40 - 36:27 David Levithan interview Book Talk is produced by Colin Fraser of Culture Laser Productions.

This month, our Book Talk panel turns its attention to the popular autobiographical graphic novel Persepolis, by French-Iranian author Marjane Satrapi. With a title that references the ancient capital of the Persian empire, Persepolis is a coming-of-age tale that spans some of the most unsettled years in Iran's recent history. The first volume tells the story of Satrapi's life in Tehran from the ages of six to fourteen, during which time she experiences the Islamic Revolution and the devastating Iran-Iraq war. The second volume marks her adolescence in Vienna, and her struggle to reconcile the girl she was with the woman she is becoming. Joining Sasha de Buyl are Damon Herd, PhD researcher at the Scottish Centre for Comic Studies, and Mona Vaghefian, Communications Coordinator for the Edinburgh Iranian Festival. The panel discusses the graphic novel's popularity with a wider audience, the new insights that the book offers on the history of Iran and the outsider perspective that Satrapi seems to experience in both Iran and Austria. Through the podcast, they explore their reactions to the honesty with which Satrapi writes about her childhood self, the dual existence of citizens during the Revolution and the book's place within the genre of autobiographical comic books, alongside such titles as Art Spiegelman's Maus and Joe Sacco's Palestine. If you're reading, or have read, the book, what did you think? How do you think it contributes to the wider graphic novel community? Have you seen the animated film that was released in 2007 - and if so, does the story carry over from the book? Book Talk is produced by Colin Fraser of Culture Laser Productions.

In our first set of interviews for 2015, Ryan Van Winkle talks to Lucy Ribchester, Lucy Hughes-Hallett and Elizabeth Gifford about suffragettes, mythology and the fascist poet who wanted to create his own utopia. Lucy Ribchester is the Edinburgh-based author of the recently-published The Hourglass Factory, her first novel. As well as being shortlisted for this year's Costa Short Story Awards, Lucy is a previous recipient of a Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award. The Hourglass Factory tells the story of Frankie George, a young reporter who becomes entangled in the messy, passionate worlds of the circus and the suffragettes when she meets Ebony Diamond, a mesmerising trapeze artist using her skills to fight for votes for women. Lucy opens up to Ryan about her inspirations, the fascinating world of those early suffragettes and why it took her five years to finish the book. Elisabeth Gifford is the author of Secrets of the Sea House, a fascinating novel which explores the interaction between history and myth. Based in the Hebrides, the book looks at the mythology of the islands and of the sea, and what happens when the two appear to come together in the form of a dark discovery. The book enjoys a very definite sense of place, and Elisabeth chats to Ryan about the culture of the Hebrides, the link between the sea and those who live by it, and the responsibility she felt in dealing with such an interesting culture. Elisabeth's new novel Return to Fourwinds is out now. Finally, Ryan speaks to Lucy Hughes-Hallett, a Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-Fiction winner and author of The Pike: Gabriele d'Annunzio, a searing biography of the man who believed he was the greatest Italian poet since Dante. The book was awarded the 2013 Costa Book Award for Biography of the Year, and the subject matter is certainly eye-opening. d'Annunzio was a creative, daredevil and fascist whose life goal was to establish a utopia based on his political and artistic ideals. Lucy talks Ryan through the intensely thrilling world of this strange man and the way his life unfolded.  Podcast contents 00:00 - 01:09 Introduction01:10 - 13:19 Lucy Ribchester interview13:20 - 19.08 Elisabeth Gifford interview19:09 - 29:33 Lucy Hughes-Hallett interview Book Talk is produced by Colin Fraser of Culture Laser Productions.

This month, our Book Talk panel turns its attention to the wildly successful Wild by Cheryl Strayed. This highly personal, admirably honest memoir details the authors journey from a lost 26-year-old who thought she had lost everything following her mother's shockingly quick death from cancer. With nothing to lose, she made the impulsive decision to walk eleven-hundred miles of the west coast of America and to do it alone with no experience of long-distance hiking. It proved to be a journey that saved her life. In early 2015, the book became a movie starring Reese Witherspoon as Cheryl. What better time to feature it on Book Talk. Join host Claire Marchant-Collier and her guests Michael Merillo from Scottish Book Trust, who's walked the trail himself, and novelist Sophie Cooke.

Jodi Picoult is the author of 23 books that have sold over 23 million copies. Her latest novel Leaving Time debuted at number 1 on the New York Times bestseller list. The book tells the story of Alice Metcalf, and elephant researcher, and her daughter Jenna. Following Alice's disappearance, Jenna uses Alice's diaries to find out more about her mother and what might have happened to her. Jodi speaks to Ryan about the research she undertook for the book - including learning how to run an elephant sanctuary in Tennessee and working with an elephant researcher in Botswana - and how she planned the structure of a book with multiple narratives. Helen Macdonald's recent memoir, H is for Hawk, won the 2014 Samuel Johnson Prize for non-Fiction. After the sudden death of her father, Helen coped with her grief by returning to a childhood obsession and training a goshawk. "The goshawk was everything I wanted to be: it didn't know about grief, it was very solitary and it was also very powerful and full of rage... It took me a good few years to get enough emotional distance from that year to be able to write it as a book" The book is a raw and very personal reflection of a traumatic period in Helen's life and her storyis intertwined with that of writer TH White and his struggles with the difficulties in his life and attempts to train his own goshawk in 1936. Finally, Ryan talks to the author of one of his favourite books of the year, Stay Up With Me a short story collection by Tom Barbash. Tom explains how some of his stories were put together, and the power of drafting: "I do like the fact that I'm not quite getting at in the beginning".   Podcast contents 00:00 - 01:26 Introduction01:27 - 14:10 Jodi Picoult interview14:11 - 23:57 Helen Macdonald interview23:58 - 38:11 Tom Barbash

This month, the Book Talk panel has been discussing the 2014 Man Booker Prize winner, Richard Flanagan's The Narrow Road to the Deep North. Taking its title from one of the most famous books in Japanese literature, written by the great haiku poet Basho, Flanagan’s novel has as its heart one of the most infamous episodes of Japanese history, the construction of the Thailand-Burma Death Railway in World War II. In the despair of a Japanese POW camp on the Burma Death Railway, surgeon Dorrigo Evans is haunted by his love affair with his uncle’s young wife two years earlier. Struggling to save the men under his command from starvation, from cholera, from beatings, he receives a letter that will change his life forever. Joining Sasha de Buyl are Literature Manager at Creative Scotland, Jenny Niven, and former Booker prize judge and literary critic, Stuart Kelly. The panel discusses the many different facets of a novel called ‘graceful and unfathomable’ by the Telegraph, including its many scenes of torture and violence and the stripping back of concepts of traditional masculinity. Through the podcast, they explore what sort of book deserves to win a Booker prize and whether Flanagan’s Narrow Road has earned its weighty title. Despite winning the Man Booker Prize, the novel was nominated for a Bad Sex award. Were Flanagan's descriptions jarring for the panel? Flanagan is seen as a powerhouse of literary fiction in today’s market – does he mark a turn in the tide for the ‘Culture Cringe’ generation of Australian culture? If you're reading, or have read, the book, what did you think? How do you think it compares to Flanagan's previous books? Book Talk is produced by Colin Fraser of Culture Laser Productions.

In this edition of Book Talk, Ryan Van Winkle talks modern day crime with Martina Cole, 18th century science with Jack Wolf, and ancient Memopotamian stories with Irving Finkel.Martina Cole is a legendary British crime writer. She's the author of 21 books, including her most recent novel The Good Life.Cole discusses her background, how she stays up-to-date with the changing criminal world and her attraction to writing about criminals and prison life rather than from the police perspective: "I prefer writing from the perspective of the criminal, I think they're much more exciting people to write about... You know in my book who's bad and who's not."As one of the most borrowed - and stolen! - authors in prison libraries, Cole also discusses her work in prisons and why she's encouraging prisoners to escape (with a book!)Jack Wolf, whose debut novel The Tale of Raw Head and Bloody Bones, takes us back to 1750, a time where medieval superstition was on the way out and modern rationalist thinking on the way in. Wolf's protagonist, Tristan Hart, is a conflicted man caught between science and superstition.Wolf talks about conveying the mental pain of the character and also how he coped with writing a novel while keeping the language of the book as authentic as possible. "You just write. It becomes as instinctive as speaking the language I speak now".Finally, Ryan talks to Irving Finkel, a curator at the British Museum in London whose book The Ark Before Noah: Decoding the Story of the Flood looks at the origins of the Biblical story of Noah's Ark.After deciphering a cuneiform tablet brought into the British Museum, Finkel discovered that it was the beginning of the flood story. While the story of Noah in the Bible is a universally known narrative, the tablet demonstrates that the ancient Mesopotamians knew a very similar story 1000 years before the Bible came into being.Finkel discusses the strong literary link and striking similarities between the stories and his theory about how the Babylonian story developed into the biblical version that we know today. Podcast contents00:00 - 00:58 Introduction00:58 - 10:22 Martina Cole10:22 - 20:18 Jack Wolf20:18 - 30:00 Irving Finkel

This month finds the Book Talk panel reading and discussing The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber. Faber's first book in fourteen years is a tale of adventure, faith and the ties that might hold two people together when they are worlds apart. Peter Leigh is a husband, a Christian, and now a missionary. As The Book of Strange New Things opens, he is set to embark on a journey that will be the biggest test of his faith yet. From the moment he says goodbye to his wife, Bea, and boards his flight, he begins a quest that will challenge his religious beliefs, his love and his understanding of the limits of the human body. Sasha de Buyl is joined by Writer Development Coordinator for Scottish Book Trust, Claire Marchant-Collier, and Marketing Manager of Glasgow Film (and former host of Book Talk), Paul Gallagher. Despite creating a strong character whose faith plays a major part in the story, and regularly referencing the Bible (the hardback edition of the book even looks like a copy), Faber is himself an atheist. Do the author's personal beliefs cause him to stereotype his characters or their faith? Peter and his wife describe their feelings for each other and their predicaments through a series of letters - is it a realistic portrayal of a long-distance relationship? Colonialism and the motives of a new alien race are also central to the novel, with Faber developing a new language that Peter, and the book's readers, are introduced to. How successful was Faber in bringing this new culture to life? Book Talk is produced by Colin Fraser of Culture Laser Productions.

In this edition of Book Talk, host Ryan Van Winkle and Sasha de Buyl talk to Ron Butlin, Donal McLaughlin and Eimear McBride about family and place. A Girl is a Half-formed ThingWith an international reputation as a prize-winning novelist, Ron Butlin is a former Edinburgh Makar/Poet Laureate (2008-2014) whose fourth novel, Ghost Moon, is out now. The book tells the story in flashback of Maggie, a young woman in post-World War II Edinburgh who falls pregnant in a society that frowns on unwed mothers. Based on Ron's own mother, the author explains where fact and fiction meet and discusses the writing process. Born in Derry in 1961, but resident in Scotland since 1970, Donal McLaughlin is a freelance writer known for his short stories, a number of which have already appeared in translation. Donal's latest collection, Beheading the Virgin Mary, and Other Stories, follows the character of Liam through a loose sequence of stories and take place over a period of three decades. Ron reads from the book and offers some insight into his technique which will be of interest to both readers and aspiring writers. Finally, Sasha talks to author Eimear McBride, who was born in Liverpool to Northern Irish parents before moving to Tubbercurry, Co. Sligo. Eimear discusses the nine-year journey between the writing of her book, A Girl is a Half-formed Thing, and its eventual publication and critical success. BookTalk is produced by Colin Fraser of Culture Laser Productions.

This month, Book Talk has been reading and discussing Northanger Abbey by Val McDermid, a modern re-imagining of the Jane Austen classic. This is the second release from the Austen Project, which pairs six bestselling contemporary authors with Jane Austen’s six complete works. Seventeen-year-old Catherine 'Cat' Morland has led a sheltered existence in rural Dorset, a life entirely bereft of the romance and excitement for which she yearns. So when Cat's wealthy neighbours, the Allens, invite her to the Edinburgh Festival, she is sure adventure beckons. Sasha de Buyl is joined by Scottish crime writer, Alex Gray, and reader, Julie Amphlett to discuss how successful McDermid has been in bringing Austen's novel into the 21st century. Launched in 2013 with Joanna Trollope's Sense & Sensibility, The Austen Project has generated much discussion among critics and readers as they debate the merits of "reimagined" titles. The panel touch upon McDermid's updates to the original story, including the use of social media and text speak - was this well done or does it immediately date the book? The panel discuss McDermid's adherence to the plot of the original - should she have remained faithful or should more twists be added to the tale? They also ask how the original novel's themes work in the modern setting. If you're reading, or have read, the book, what did you think? Do you think Austen needs to be brought into the modern world? How do you think it compares to McDermid's previous novels? We'd love to know what you thought - you can join the discussion in the comments below, or on Twitter @scottishbktrust. Discover more Read about The Austen Project, pairing contemporary authors with Jane Austen’s works. Sasha recommended Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl as a companion piece to Northanger Abbey. Follow Alex Gray on Twitter and visit her website to find out about her latest work. Follow Julie Amphlett on Twitter. Book Talk is produced by Colin Fraser of Culture Laser Productions.

In this edition of Book Talk, host Ryan Van Winkle talks to Ajay Close and David Mitchell about time, ethics and mortality. Novelist and dramatist Ajay Close discusses her latest book, Trust. Trust follows the lives of a disparate group of characters working in mining and banking and the effects or two major events, the miner's strike and the banking crisis, on their lives. Ajay discusses where the idea for the story came from and how it developed over time. If the last edition of Book Talk left you wanting to know more about David Mitchell and The Bone Clocks you're in luck - this edition of the podcast features an extended discussion with the man himself. Spoiler warning: this discussion reveals detail about characters and plot. David tells us about the process of creating the book and how he was able to effectively portray time's passage: "Stay true to life and how we perceive the passing decades and you probably won't go too far wrong". Morality, mortality and the future are also discussed. Podcast contents 00:00 - 00:28 Introduction00:28 - 08:52 Ajay Close 08:52 - 30:00 David Mitchell

This month, Book Talk has been reading and discussing The Bone Clocks, the highly anticipated new novel by David Mitchell. The book follows Holly Sykes, a young girl suffering from aural hallucinations, from her teenage years in Gravesend across the world - both geographically and temporally - to a future in the West of Ireland after civilisation has collapsed.Sasha de Buyl is joined by freelance literature and events programmer Hannah Trevarthen and Peggy Hughes, Programme Director of the Dundee Literary Festival to ask if The Bone Clocks lives up to the expectations set by the success of his previous novels.One criticism of David Mitchell's novels has been that they read more like a series of short stories than a novel. This book is no exception and is split into six sections, each featuring a different character. What did our panel think of this structure - did the novel remain cohesive or become difficult to read as a result?The panel also discuss the book's Longlisting for the Man Booker prize. Ahead of the Shortlist announcement, we ask if the book is a potential winner. With four Booker nominations - but no wins - under his belt, is it that Mitchell's books too hard to classify or too accessible to win a literary award?If you're reading, or have read, the book, what did you think? Is it an Award contender or overrated? How do you think it compares to Mitchell's previous novels? We'd love to know what you thought - you can join the discussion in the comments below, or on Twitter @scottishbktrust

Podcast Contents 00:00 - 00:45 Introduction00:45 - 11:05 Patrick Ness11:05 - 20:28 Mike Cuddihy20:28 - 32:50 John Gordon Sinclair In this edition of Book Talk. Host Ryan Van Winkle talks to Patrick Ness, Mikey Cuddihy and John Gordon Sinclair about spite, happiness and motivations for writing. Two-time winner of the Carnegie Award, Patrick Ness is the author of a number of books for adults and young adults including A Monster Calls, The Crane Wife and More Than This, the novel under discussion in the most recent episode of Book Talk. In this interview, Ness offers his own insight into some of the topics we discussed and also talks more about his writing process including how he decides whether a book is aimed at adults or teenagers, how to get started as a writer even when people tell you you can't do it: "Do it anyway... Spite is a really good place to write from. It's a really good motivator." Mikey Cuddihy discusses her memoir A Conversation About Happiness. In the book, Cuddihy takes the reader back into her childhood, which was spent at Summerhill School, where children are allowed to live freely and lessons are optional. Cuddihy talks about how she was able to go back into the voice of her 9 year old self, and whether she was truly happy in an environment where the happiness of children was considered paramount. Finally, Ryan talks to John Gordon Sinclair. Sinclair may be most famous as an actor - in particular for his role in Gregory's Girl - but his second novel Blood Whispers has just been published. The book features Keira Lynch, a Glasgow lawyer representing a prostitute on the run from a Serbian gang leader. John discusses both his writing and acting careers and how they overlap and why he wanted to bring emotion into crime writing.

A boy drowns. He wakes up in a house he hasn't lived in for years. The world is deserted. More Than This has a gripping and brutal opening chapter, but does the book live up to the potential of its opening? Host Sasha deBuyl is joined by children’s bookseller Eve Harvey and young adult author Keith Gray to discuss the book, the most recent Young Adult novel from Carnegie Medal-winning author Patrick Ness.Seth, the protagonist, is caught between two worlds. The sparse, deserted post-apocalyptic world he inhabits now and the rich but traumatic world that he remembers in involuntary flashbacks. The length of the book's first section divided our panel - is there enough intrigue to keep readers hooked?This is a book that deals with some very tough themes – suicide, murder, child abuse – our panel ask if young adult books should censor themselves or whether they have a responsibility to discuss these tough issues.More Than This was interpreted very differently at times by our panel - have you read the book? What did you think were the key themes from the book? How do you think it compared to the Chaos Walking trilogy? And is there really more than this?

Podcast contents00:00-01:27 Introduction01:27-12:57 Nick Barley12:57-23:35 Natalie Haynes23:35-27:22 Karrie Fransman and Amruta Patil 27:22-30:48 Gail Porter Creativity and storytelling weave their way through this edition of Book Talk as host Ryan Van Winkle talks to Nick Barley, Natalie Haynes, Karrie Fransman, Amruta Patil and Gail Porter.Nick Barley, Director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival takes up on a walk through his picks of the programme. While the big names may be getting the press coverage, Nick digs out some of the programme's hidden gems, including Conversations with Ourselves, a strand of the programme that looks at the role of our inner voices in the creative process.Comedian and writer Natalie Haynes discusses the inspiration for her debut novel The Amber Fury, and the crossover between her life on stage and her career as a writer. "I'm sure that some of the storytelling that I learned to do on stage has spilled over into this book. Withholding information until the last possible minute - that's a standup technique for sure".Graphic novelists Karrie Fransman and Amruta Patil talk about the artists and writers that influence their work, and give their advice on embracing rejection and why the things you may consider to be disadvantages are actually the things that will propel your work forward and help you develop an innovative voice.Finally, Gail Porter joins us to talk about the five books that have shaped her life. Discover moreVoices in Our Head at Edinburgh International Book FestivalColumns and journalism from Natalie HaynesClose Your Eyes podcast with guest Nick Barley

It's Tartt, but is it art? In this edition of Book Talk, host Paul Gallagher is joined by journalist and broadcaster Jane Graham and Scottish Book Trust's Head of Reader Development to delve into the themes, characters and preoccupations of Donna Tartt's bestselling third novel, The Goldfinch. Centred around the life of Theo Dekker, a New Yorker whose mother is tragically killed in a bomb blast at a prominent Manhattan art gallery, the book is a dense, detailed work, 11 years in the making. The Book Talk panel discuss whether they felt Tartt's ambitions with the novel paid off; it is clearly a book with much to say about the connections between art and life, but is it a compelling read too? They also discuss the many characters that populate The Goldfinch, and question whether Tartt's female characters are as fully-formed as the men, as well as considering the book's parallels with Dickens, Dostoevsky and other literary titans. If you have read The Goldfinch, we’d love to hear what you thought - add your comments on our Book Talk web page at ScottishBookTrust.com, on Twitter @ScottishBkTrust or on Facebook.

Paul Gallagher is joined by The Scotsman features writer Lee Randall and freelance journalist and books blogger Nicola Balkind to discuss Jennifer Egan’s 2011 Pulitzer Prize-winner A Visit from the Goon Squad, as well as choosing some related reading recommendations. Driven less by a progressing narrative or a central character than by several overriding themes - passing time, changing relationships and the nature of the music industry to name a few – A Visit from the Goon Squad investigates these themes through 13 distinct chapters, each of which focuses on a different character, all of whom are in some way connected to each other.