Books On The Go

Anna and Geoff discuss EAST OF EDEN by John Steinbeck, prompted by the new Netflix adaptation.   EAST OF EDEN is one of Steinbeck's best known works. It centres on the Trask family with the story of Cain and Abel echoing through the novel. Set in the Salinas Valley, California, it also features the Hamilton family, inspired by Steinbeck's own parents, and a number of brothels. Is Cathy real?  How do readers feel about women monsters in fiction, and do we need their backstory? Was this revenge art after Steinbeck's divorce? And did Lee's character inspire Percival Everett in writing James?   Coming up: BLACK BAG by Luke Kennard and our Booker Prize predictions.   Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras  Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Geoff discuss the news that Sally Rooney's books are selling out ahead of the ban in the UK after her publisher Faber announced it would no longer supply her books there. Our book of the week is THE RENOVATION by Kenan Orhan. This debut novel centres on Dilara, a Turkish exile living in Italy. Her bathroom turns into a Turkish prison cell in this Kafka-esque story.  She is also caring for her father, who was a fiercely intelligent and outspoken professor and now has Alzheimer's. The Renovation has been long listed for the National Book Awards and the Booker Prize.  We are both averse to magical realism so this was an interesting read for us, with mixed results! Read-alikes: THE DAYS OF ABANDONMENT by Elena Ferrante translated by Ann Goldstein MY FRIENDS by Hisham Matar LOJMAN by Ebru Ojan translated by Aron Aji and Selin Gökçesu    Coming up:    EAST OF EDEN by John Steinbeck   Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras  Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Geoff react to the 2026 Booker Prize Shortlist.   Our book of the week is THE THINGS WE NEVER SAY by Elizabeth Strout. The latest novel by the best-selling, Pulitzer Prize winning author centres on Artie Dam, a history teacher who has a full life but is upended by feelings of isolation and a secret that is revealed. This has been shortlisted for the 2026 Booker Prize.   Is this a political book? Will there be a spin-off novel about Flossie? Where do we rank it in the Booker shortlist?   Coming up: THE RENOVATION by Kenan Ohran   Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras  Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Geoff discuss the Singapore government paying people to read books, and the 2026 National Book Awards longlist for fiction.   Our book of the week is SWITZY by Emma Cline. Switzy is Cline's latest novel after her best-sellers The Girls and The Guest. David, a retired executive suffering from Alzheimers, is travelling to Zurich to end his life.  We follow David's point of view as he visits his daughter and an old school friend, while pretending he is fine. Switzy is a national best-seller, a Most Anticipated Book of Fall and has been longlisted for the 2026 Booker Prize.    Read-alikes: WHAT ARE YOU GOING THROUGH by Sigrid Nunez MAYFLIES by Andrew O'Hagan Podcast: Better Off Dead   We also give our (wrong) predictions for the Booker Prize shortlist!   Coming up: THE THINGS WE NEVER SAY by Elizabeth Strout and THE RENOVATION by Kenan Orhan.   Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras  Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz  

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.   Our book of the week is debut novel ALL THEM DOGS by Djamel White. A gritty neo-noir story about Tony Ward who returns to Dublin and starts working for an enforcer in a local gang, it has been long listed for the 2026 Booker Prize.   We talk about: What makes a good underworld crime thriller and what are some of the pitfalls for literary authors venturing into this area. Why this is not a gangland Heated Rivalry. When a book leaves you wanting more.    Coming up:  TELL ME EVERYTHING by Elizabeth Strout   Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras  Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

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.   We enjoyed this book, especially the spare writing. It got us talking: How important is plot? Is this a comic novel? Geoff's alternative title for the book. We also pick our next reads from the Booker Prize Longlist.   Other books mentioned:   The Labyrinth by Amanda Lohrey Capture by Amanda Lohrey The Gate at The Stairs by Lorrie Moore Birds of America by Lorrie Moore Foster by Claire Keegan The Friend by Sigrid Nunez   Coming up: All Them Dogs by Djamel White Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras  Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

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.   Our picks:   FAMESICK by Lena Dunham THE PALACE PAPERS by Tina Brown ENOUGH SAID by Alan Bennett   SLOUGH HOUSE by Mick Herron WAITING ON A FRIEND by Natalie Adler LEAVING THE ATOCHA STATION by Ben Lerner PARADISO by Michele Masneri translated by Richard Village RECEIPTS FROM THE BOOKSHOP by Katie Clapham THE LINE OF BEAUTY by Alan Hollinghurst     Also discussed: TRANSCRIPTION by Ben Lerner VILLA COCO by Andrew Sean Greer THE SILVER BOOK by Olivia Laing SUNSTRUCK by William Hunter THE PAPER PALACE by Miranda Cowley Heller EUROTRASH by Christian Kracht translated by Daniel Bowles EARTH 7 by Deb Olin Unferth   Pressing questions:  What makes a good holiday read? How many ghosts are too many? Is running a bookshop the dream job? Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras (Anna) / @bookclubreviewpodcast (Kate) Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

Anna and Geoff discuss the Dublin Literary Award winner, Gliff by Ali Smith.   Our book of the week is HOUR OF THE STAR by Clarice Lispector translated by Benjamin Moser. Lispector was the Ukrainian-Brazilian novelist writing from the 1940s to 1970s who is widely referenced and is having a moment on BookTube and BookTok.  She was compared with Virginia Woolf and Cubist artists. A short book (80 pages) but not a quick read as we discovered.  Geoff has an intriguing theory about the first section (spoiler alert).  Anna found it too abstract and meta but maybe it all makes sense?    Apologies for the audio quality, Anna's microphone was not working (we realised belatedly)!   Coming up: our top holiday reads. Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras  Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

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. Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras  Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz

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 Follow us! Email: [email protected] Instagram: @abailliekaras  Substack: Books On The Go Credits Artwork: Sascha Wilkosz