Show Notes
Anna and Annie discuss the 2025 Women's Prize and try to predict the winner. Since we recorded this the winner has been announced: The Safe Keep by Yael Van Der Wouden. (Annie was right!) And Annie wraps up recent Australian book award news including the Stella Prize winner Theory and Practice by Michelle de Kretser and the Miles Franklin Literary Award longlist. Our book of the week is THE NAMES by Florence Knapp. Cora goes with her daughter Maia to register the birth of her son. According to family tradition, he will be called Gordon, after her husband. Cora prefers the name Julian and Maia suggests Bear. The story breaks into three as we see the ripple effects of each decision. Described as 'the best debut novel in years' (The Sunday Times), this buzzy book has been an instant bestseller and on many 'best of 2025' lists. Coming up: THE EMPUSIUM by Olga Tokarczuk translated by Antonia Lloyd-Jones. Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras and @mr_annie Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz
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Anna and Geoff discuss the challenges facing our local bookstores: rising taxes in the UK and a cyber-hacking event affecting a major distributor in Australia. We also take a look at the current front-runners for the Booker Prize.
Anna and Geoff discuss THE PALM HOUSE by Gwendoline Riley. Set in London, it centres on friends Laura and Putnam, both journalists facing a changing work landscape. It is longlisted for the 2026 Booker Prize.
A special episode: Anna and Geoff are joined by Kate Slotover of the Book Club Review Podcast, on location in London. We discuss our top holiday reading recommendations.