This week on the podcast, we’re joined by Bolivian author Liliana Colanzi, one of the most exciting new voices in Latin American horror. Her latest short story collection, You Glow in the Dark (2022), recently translated into English, blends science fiction, myth, and social commentary with a distinctly eerie beauty. We talk about the four books that shaped her imagination, the rise of female Latin American horror, and how she crafts stories that blur the boundaries between the cosmic and the intimate. A must-listen for fans of speculative fiction, contemporary horror, and global literature.
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Liliana Colanzi’s four books were:
Being Dead, by Jim Crace (1999)
The Houseguest and Other Stories, by Amparo Dávila (2018)
The Colour out of Space, by H. P. Lovecraft (1927)
Women Talking, by Miriam Toews (2018)
This week I’m speaking with award-winning British author Tessa Hadley about her newest novella, The Party. Set in postwar Bristol, it follows two sisters over a single weekend as they move through a series of gatherings that reveal the class divisions and shifting gender roles of mid-century Britain — that fascinating era between the war and the Beatles.
In our conversation, we discuss Hadley’s approach to memory, social change, and everyday life, as well as the literary influences that shaped her work. Known for novels like The Past and Free Love, and for her regular stories in The New Yorker, Hadley offers sharp insights into British society and storytelling. It was a great chat, and I hope you enjoy listening to it.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Tessa Hadley’s four books were:
As we approach Halloween, I figured it was time to get a little gothic on the Lit With Charles podcast. My guest today is writer and literary champion Mairi Kidd, whose new novel Poor Creatures imagines the world of Mary Shelley before she wrote Frankenstein - the people around her, the ideas she was grappling with, and the forces that shaped one of the most enduring stories in literature.
Our conversation ranges from the radical literary circles of the early 19th century to the power of Scottish folklore and those places where the veil between worlds feels thin. It was such a pleasure to speak with Mairi, and learn a little bit more about a fascinating writer’s history.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Mairi Kidd’s four books were:
We don’t have enough poetry on this show, and it’s time to change that. My guest today is Richard Scott, a contemporary British poet known for his bold, lyrical explorations of queer identity, desire, shame, and the politics of the body. He trained as an opera singer before turning to poetry, and has released two collections, Soho (2018) and That Broke into Shining Crystals (2025). In our conversation, Richard and I go through 4 poems that have inspired his journey as a poet and I was so grateful to have such a fun yet deep conversation with him about poetry, and to learn a little more about this beautiful craft.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Richard Scott’s four poems were:
Clair de Lune by Paul Verlaine (1869)
Flowers by Arthur Rimbaud (written in the early 1870s and first published posthumously in 1886)
A Part Song by Denise Riley (2012)
Singing by Mei-mei Berssenbrugge (2020)
We’re revisiting one of our most popular episodes: a 2023 conversation with rare bookseller Tom Ayling. Tom shares insights into the world of rare and antiquarian books — from the thrill of uncovering forgotten first editions to the evolving market for collectors.
Now running his own business in Oxfordshire, Tom offers a behind-the-scenes look at book collecting, the history of the trade, and the enduring appeal of physical books. Perfect for anyone curious about rare books, literary history, and the stories hidden on library shelves.
Find Jonkers Rare Books: https://www.jonkers.co.uk/
Follow me @litwithcharles for more book reviews and recommendations!
Today I’m joined by acclaimed novelist and critic Tom McCarthy to talk about his latest book, The Threshold and the Ledger, a fascinating exploration of Ingeborg Bachmann — one of the most important writers of postwar European literature.
We discuss Bachmann’s major works, including Malina and Salt and Bread, and the recurring themes of trauma, memory, history, and hospitality in her writing. Tom also shares the writers and books that shaped his own work, and we explore the connections between Bachmann, Derrida, and the wider world of modernist literature.
If you’re interested in literary history, feminist writing, or the politics of language, this episode is full of ideas and inspiration.
Follow @litwithcharles for more author interviews, book conversations, and literary deep dives — and leave a review if you enjoy the show.
In this episode of Lit with Charles, I speak with Alexander Starritt, author of the novels We Germans (2020) and Drayton and Mackenzie (2024).
We Germans is a devastatingly humane wartime confession: an elderly German writes a long letter to his British grandson about serving on the Eastern Front, with the grandson’s present-day interjections sharpening the moral contrasts between war and ordinary life. Drayton and Mackenzie is a rare, gripping business novel that follows two friends from graduation into the high-stakes world of building a clean-energy company, where private choices collide with macro forces - finance cycles, technology, and industrial realities.
We talk about structure (letters, interjections, and the occasional omniscient lens), how fiction can engage with the “big stuff” shaping our lives (economics, climate, technology), why industrial solutions - not apps - sit at the core of decarbonisation, and how character is revealed gradually, the way real people change. We also explore Alexander’s rural upbringing, German heritage, and the literary influences that inform his work - from Larkin’s melancholy clarity to Tolstoy’s vast social canvas.
If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review and follow me on Instagram @litwithcharles.
Alexander Starritt’s four picks were:
“Dockery and Son,” by Philip Larkin (1964)
The Shipping News, by Annie Proulx (1993)
Red Plenty, by Francis Spufford (2010)
War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy (1869)
In this episode of Lit with Charles, I speak with Ben Pester, author of the novel The Expansion Project.
Blending corporate satire with surrealism, The Expansion Project follows Tom, who brings his daughter Hen to Capmeadow Business Park for “Bring Your Daughter to Work Day.” When Hen vanishes without a trace, Tom’s reality begins to unravel. Decades later, an unnamed Archivist pieces together the story from the ruins of the mysterious “Expansion Project.”
We discuss Ben’s approach to structure, surrealism, and storytelling, and the books that have influenced his creative process.
If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review and follow me on Instagram @litwithcharles.
Ben Pester’s four books were:
Way Far Away, by Evelio Rosero (2024)
Sweet Home, by Wendy Erskine (2018)
Something Happened, by Joseph Heller (1974)
Self Portrait in Green, by Marie Ndiaye (2005)
This week, we’re doing something a little different. Normally I’m the one asking the questions, but today, in the name of bringing new voices into the conversation, I’m handing the mic over to someone who usually works behind the scenes on the Lit With Charles podcast – Liv. In this episode, she speaks with British author Amy Twigg, whose fantastic debut Spoilt Creatures follows a 30-something woman as she joins an all-women commune in rural Kent, and falls down the rabbit hole in all that entails. I hope you enjoy it!
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Amy Twigg’s four books were:
Frankenstein, Mary Shelley (1818)
I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, Michelle McNamara (2018)
Little Eyes, Samanta Schweblin (2018)
The Haunting of Hill House, Shirley Jackson (1959)
Today’s guest is a truly remarkable creative – novellist, screenwriter, playwright, producer, past resident of the Royal Court Theatre, co-founder of the Harvard Human Rights Journal, winner of the John Cassavetes Award for film, as well as the first American to receive a fellowship to the European Court of Human Rights. I spoke with Alice Austen about her debut book, 33 Place Brugmann, which is a suspenseful, emotive portrait of a Brussels apartment block during the Second World War. It’s always a pleasure to speak with such a fascinating polymath, and I hope you all enjoy listening.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Alice Austen’s four books were:
Dubliners, James Joyce (1914)
100 Years of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez (1967)
Tropisms, Nathalie Sarraute (1939)
Tess of the d’Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy (1891)
Today’s episode marks a very fun development in the Lit With Charles universe: my first repeat podcast guest! Caitlin Macy is an American writer known for her sharp portrayals of class, privilege, and social dynamics – especially of New York City’s elite. So, when I visited the States a few weeks ago, I knew I wanted to make time to chat with her. Caitlin is a fantastic writer, and I found her thoughts on literature (and four book selections) absolutely fascinating.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Caitlin Macy’s four books were:
This week, I spoke with the Irish-Canadian author Joanna Pocock, whose new memoir, Greyhound, absolutely blew me away. The story follows Joanna as she recounts two journeys – one from 2006, and one from 2023 – that she took across the United States of America. However, unlike the classic ‘roadtrip’ novel, Joanna undertook the entirety of both journeys by Greyhound bus. What follows is an incredible portrait of a nation and its people: a feminist, ecological, anti-capitalist, profoundly humanist elegy that left me desperate to buy a ticket and head for the open road.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Joanna’s four books were:
Bear, Marian Engel (1976)
Silent Spring, Rachel Carsen (1962)
Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place, Terry Tempest Williams (1991)
America Day by Day, Simone de Beauvoir (1948)
My guest today is Tash Aw, the acclaimed author of The South, a moving coming-of-age novel set during the 1997 Southeast Asian financial crisis. The story follows 16-year-old Jay as he spends a summer on his family’s orchard in southern Malaysia, navigating family tension, economic uncertainty, and a tender relationship with another boy. It’s a quiet, potent emotional journey, as both wrestle with identity, desire, and belonging. In addition to The South, Tash is the author of several award-winning novels, including The Harmony Silk Factory and Five Star Billionaire, the latter of which was longlisted for the 2013 Booker Prize.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Tash Aw’s four books were:
Giovanni’s Room, James Baldwin (1956)
The Buru Quartet, Pramoedya Ananta Toer (1980-1988)
The Line of Beauty, Alan Hollinghurst (2004)
Uncle Vanya, Anton Chekhov (1897)
My guest today is artist and writer Gethan Dick, an Irish-born author, living in Marseille, who has written a very interesting book about survival in a post-apocalyptic world. Specifically, how pregnancy, childbirth, and childrearing interface with a desperate quest for humanity’s continuation. In the episode, we talk about the emotional and philosophical questions that arise when survival becomes the only goal, and Gethan shares her inspirations, her writing process, and how her journey through various creative mediums (film, radio, zines, and eventually visual arts) helped her arrive at the story she wanted to tell.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Gethan Dick’s four books were:
Riddley Walker, Russell Hoban (1980)
Strandloper, Alan Garner (1996)
The Sirens of Titan, Kurt Vonnegut (1959)
La Trilogie de Pan, Jean Giono (1929-1930)
In this episode, I sit down with celebrated South African novelist and playwright Damon Galgut, a literary voice I’ve admired for years. Damon Galgut is the acclaimed author of The Promise, winner of the 2021 Booker Prize, and has been shortlisted for the prestigious literary award three times over the course of his writing career.
We discuss his lifelong relationship with literature, his unique approach to fiction writing, and how his novels grapple with themes of identity, morality, and the political realities of South Africa. Whether you're a passionate reader, a writer yourself, or simply someone who loves discovering new books, this conversation offers rare insight into the creative mind behind some of the most powerful contemporary literary fiction.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Damon Galgut’s four books were:
Sometimes you meet a person who seems to have done it all – and today’s guest is definitely one of those guys. Ed Park is an American writer, journalist and general man of letters, born in New York, of Korean extraction. And, along with writing truly remarkable fiction, over the last few decades, he’s been involved with all sides of the literary sphere. We met on a rainy morning in New York City where we recorded this interview to discuss his latest book An Oral History of Atlantis, which is coming out on July 29th and well worth looking out for. He had absolutely fascinating things to say, and picked some incredible, off the beaten track books for this discussion – I know you’re going to enjoy listening to it.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Outro:
Ed Park’s four books were:
56 Water Street, Damion Searls (2010)
Last Act: The Madhouse, Rachel Ingalls (1992)
Li Fan, Alexandra Chang (2016)
The Problem of Atlantis, Lewis Spence (1924)
It was an incredible honour to interview an author I have been following for a long time, and itching to get on the show. Sue Prideaux is an acclaimed Anglo‑Norwegian biographer and novelist. Her works include I Am Dynamite!, a biography of Friedrich Nietzsche I read and reviewed last year, and more recently Wild Thing, a biography of French artist Paul Gauguin. I Am Dynamite! was named The Times Biography of the Year for 2018, and won the Hawthornden Prize for ‘imaginative literature’, and Wild Thing was shortlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize for non-fiction, longlisted for the Women’s Prize for non-fiction, and won the Pol Roger Duff Cooper Prize for non-fiction. It’s also fair to say that I absolutely loved them both, so I strongly recommend you go out and pick yourselves up copies.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Sue Prideaux’s four books were:
The Story of Babar The Little Elephant, Jean de Brunoff (1934)
The Summer Book, Tove Jansson (1972)
Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbon (1932)
Shelley: The Pursuit, Richard Holmes (1974)
My guest today is someone I’m lucky enough to have known personally for many years, so getting the chance to interview him today was a real treat. Aastish Taseer is a writer and thinker who straddles many cultures – Indian, American, British – and this cultural journey infuses his writing with refined and penetrative insights. I first met him in India, when I was living in Delhi and he took me under his wing and introduced me around & gave me some great tips on how to navigate this massive city.
In the past, I’ve really appreciated his work and always recommended it, such as his novel “The Way Things Were”, a multi-generational Indian family saga, and his non-fiction work, like “The Twice Born” where he wrote about contemporary challenges to the ancient ways of the Brahmin caste in the holy city of Varanasi in India. When I heard that he had a new book out called “A Return to Self”, where his travels to sacred and remote sites around the world would be viewed through his own complex sense of identity, I could not wait any longer and immediately called him to get an interview. In our chat today, we dig into some questions surrounding belonging, identity, exploration and exile. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed recording it.
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
Aatish Taseer’s four books were:
Survivors in Mexico, Rebecca West (2011)
In Light of India, Octavio Paz (1995)
A Bend in the River, V. S. Naipaul (1979)
My Friends, Hisham Matar (2024)
To kick off the new season, I’m joined by the brilliant Lee Cole, whose writing captures the heart, complexity, and contradictions of contemporary America. Raised in rural western Kentucky, Lee’s fiction explores themes of identity, class, and belonging with a rare mix of tenderness and clarity. In this episode, we talk about the power of literature to reveal lives and landscapes we might never otherwise encounter, and why writing about home can be both fraught and freeing.
If you love stories that dig deep into the cultural and emotional terrain of modern life, you won’t want to miss this conversation.
As always, Lit with Charles loves reviews — if you enjoyed the episode, please consider leaving one and help spread the word. You can also follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles for more literary takes and behind-the-scenes extras.
Lee’s book picks from the episode:
What We Talk About When We Talk About Love – Raymond Carver (1981)
A Good Man is Hard to Find – Flannery O’Connor (1953)
Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting by in America – Barbara Ehrenreich (2001)
The End of Vandalism – Tom Drury (1994)
Time to close another season of the Lit with Charles podcast! During this second season, I’ve had the opportunity to speak to some truly amazing authors about the books that have influenced them, the books they’ve written, and how they approach their work. For this episode, I've gone through the archive of interviews to shine a spotlight on a few of my favourite moments. It's an eclectic mix of authors sharing their thoughts on a varied list of subjects and books, and I hope you enjoy it!
Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
