Eleanor Catton Has Her Doubts about Certainty

Eleanor Catton was just 28 when she won the Booker Prize for her novel The Luminaries. Her much anticipated follow-up, Birnam Wood, is an eco thriller, a Shakespearean tragedy, a satire and novel of manners all rolled into one. This week, Michael sits down with Eleanor to discuss her latest book and the dangers of feeling ideologically certain. Reading list: The Rehearsal, Eleanor Catton, 2008 The Luminaries, Eleanor Catton, 2013  Birnam Wood, Eleanor Catton, 2023 The People's Platform, Astra Taylor, 2014 Green Dot, Madeleine Gray, 2023 Songs for the Dead and the Living, Sara M Saleh, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Eleanor Catton

Kate Grenville Makes History

Kate Grenville has spent her career bringing history to life, often using the lives of her own family to tell stories about the kinds of voices who are often left out of the official record. This week, Michael heads to Kate's house to discuss her latest novel, Restless Dolly Maunder, and why she is preparing for the chance that someday someone’s going to rifle through her life and make up their own stories. Reading list: Lilian's Story, Kate Grenville, 1985 Joan Makes History: A Novel, Kate Grenville, 1988 The Idea of Perfection, Kate Grenville, 1999 The Secret River, Kate Grenville, 2005 One Life: My Mother's Story, Kate Grenville, 2015 The Case Against Fragrance, Kate Grenville, 2017 Restless Dolly Maunder, Kate Grenville, 2023 The Bee Sting, Paul Murray, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Kate Grenville

Sarah Krasnostein Was Wrong About Peter Carey

Writer and journalist Sarah Krasnostein initially found Australian fiction alienating, but that all changed when she picked up Peter Carey's seminal work True History of the Kelly Gang. This week Sarah discusses how reading that book challenged her expectations and why many people who own Peter Carey's work might be surprised to discover what his books are actually saying. Reading list: The Trauma Cleaner: One Woman's Extraordinary Life In Death, Decay & Disaster, Sarah Krasnostein, 2019 On Peter Carey: Writers on Writers, Sarah Krasnostein, 2023 The Fat Man in History and Other Stories, Peter Carey, 1974 Jack Maggs, Peter Carey, 1987 Oscar and Lucinda, Peter Carey, 1988 True History of the Kelly Gang, Peter Carey, 2000 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. To register for Sarah’s event at the State Library Victoria on Friday 1 September at 6:30pm, click here. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Sarah Krasnostein

Daniel Lavery Has Some Advice for You

Back in 2015, Daniel Lavery took over Slate's long running advice column, Dear Prudence, using his sometimes snarky, often hilarious, and always insightful writing to respond to other peoples’ confessions. This week he chats with Michael about how his own experiences – of transitioning, of family estrangement, of falling in love – all informed the ways he talked to those anonymous commenters on the internet. Reading list: Dear Prudence: Liberating Lessons from Slate.com's Beloved Advice Column, Daniel M. Lavery, 2023 Something That May Shock and Discredit You, Daniel M. Lavery, 2020 Middlemarch, George Eliot, 1871 God Forgets About the Poor, Peter Polites, 2023 Would that be Funny? Growing up with John Clarke, Lorin Clarke, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Daniel M. Lavery

Leigh Sales Is a Professional Stickybeak

Long before she was hosting 7:30 on the ABC, Leigh Sales dreamed of becoming a novelist. This week she joins Michael to discuss her secret desire to write fiction, the art of crafting a good story, and how being a journalist allowed her to become a professional stickybeak. Reading list: Detainee 002: the case of David Hicks, Leigh Sales 2007 Any Ordinary Day: Blindsides, Resilience And What Happens After The Worst Day Of Your Life, Leigh Sales, 2019 On Doubt, Leigh Sales, 2020 Storytellers: Questions, Answers and the Craft of Journalism, Leigh Sales, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Leigh Sales

The Restlessness of Christos Tsiolkas

Christos Tsiolkas burst onto Australia's publishing scene in 1995 with his grunge-lit novel Loaded. Since then he has published seven books of fiction, including The Slap. This week, Christos joins Michael for a discussion on how becoming part of the literary establishment has changed the author, why he finds bodies endlessly fascinating, and his forthcoming book The In-Between. Reading list: Loaded, Christos Tsiolkas, 1995 The Jesus Man, Christos Tsiolkas, 1999 Dead Europe, Christos Tsiolkas, 2005 The Slap, Christos Tsiolkas, 2008 Barracuda, Christos Tsiolkas, 2013 Merciless Gods, Christos Tsiolkas, 2014 Damascus, Christos Tsiolkas, 2019 7 1/2, Christos Tsiolkas, 2021 The In-Between, Christos Tsiolkas, forthcoming in 2023 Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, 1866 Our Lady of the Flowers (Notre Dame des Fleurs), Jean Genet, 1942/1943 City of Night, John Rechy, 1963 You can find these books at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Christos Tsiolkas

Colson Whitehead Loves a Doomed Heist

Reading Colson Whitehead, you never know what you're going to get. He’ll write a non-fiction book about poker one minute and a multi-award-winning epic about slavery and race in America the next. This week, the two-time Pulitzer prize winning author joins us for a discussion about his latest novel Crook Manifesto and why he loves a doomed heist. Reading list: The Intuitionist, Colson Whitehead, 1999 John Henry Days, Colson Whitehead, 2001 Apex Hides the Hurt, Colson Whitehead, 2006 Sag Harbor, Colson Whitehead, 2009 Zone One, Colson Whitehead, 2011 The Underground Railroad, Colson Whitehead, 2016 The Nickel Boys, Colson Whitehead, 2019 Harlem Shuffle, Colson Whitehead, 2021 Crook Manifesto, Colson Whitehead, 2023 Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty, Patrick Radden Keefe, 2021 The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder, David Grann, 2023 Firelight, John Morrissey, 2015 Biography of X, Catherine Lacey, 2023 You can find these books at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Colson Whitehead

The Miles Franklin Winner Who Nearly Gave up Writing

Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens is the book Shankari Chandran always wanted to write. After being rejected by publishers, Shankari decided to write for herself and finally tackle the subject she'd been avoiding: Race in Australia. In doing so, she has won the Miles Franklin award and changed the trajectory of her writing career. Reading list: Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens, Shankari Chandran, 2022 Song of the Sun God, Shankari Chandran, 2017 The Barrier, Shankari Chandran, 2017 Hopeless Kingdom, Kgshak Akec, 2022 Limberlost, Robbie Arnott, 2022 Cold Enough for Snow, Jessica Au, 2022 The Lovers, Yumna Kassab, 2022 Iris, Fiona Kelly McGregor, 2022 You can find these books at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Shankari Chandran and Kate McClymont

Tony Birch Doesn’t Believe in Luck

Award-winning writer and historian Tony Birch grew up listening to stories from his nan, Alma. This week, Tony shares how Alma's advice has influenced his life and his writing. Reading list: Shadowboxing, Tony Birch, 2006 Blood, Tony Birch, 2011 Ghost River, Tony Birch, 2015 Common People, Tony Birch, 2017 The White Girl, Tony Birch, 2019 Dark as Night, Tony Birch, 2021 Yellowface, R.F. Kuang, 2023 Broke, Sam Drummond, 2023 Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Tony Birch

Anna Funder is Her Own Wife

Anna Funder has a habit of writing about humans in extremis: under the Stasi, then the Nazis, and now, she's taken on the patriarchy in her new book Wifedom: Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life. It's an act of resurrection for Eileen O'Shaughnessy, the brilliant woman who married George Orwell, contributed to his work and was erased from his story. Reading list: Wifedom: Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life, Anna Funder, 2023 All That I Am, Anna Funder, 2011 Stasiland, Anna Funder, 2003 Burmese Days, George Orwell, 1934 Animal Farm, George Orwell, 1945 1984, George Orwell, 1949 Anam, André Dao, 2023 Restless Dolly Maunder, Kate Grenville, 2023 Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Anna Funder

We Went to Helen Garner’s House

Helen Garner is writing again. This week, she invites us over for cake and conversation about what she’s writing about, how she solves problems and the inspiration she gets from watching her grandson’s footy training. Reading list: Monkey Grip, Helen Garner, 1977 The Children’s Bach, Helen Garner, 1984 The Spare Room, Helen Garner, 2008 Yellow Notebook: Diaries 1978–1987, Helen Garner, 2019 One Day I’ll Remember This: Diaries 1987–1995, Helen Garner, 2020 How to End a Story: Diaries 1995–1998, Helen Garner, 2021 Eleven Letters to You: A Memoir, Helen Elliot, 2023 The Late Americans, Brandon Taylor, 2023 Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Helen Garner

Michael Robotham and His Cabana of Cruelty

Michael Robotham began his career as a ghost writer, working on more than a dozen bestselling books for people like Tony Bullimore and Geri Halliwell, before he published a novel under his own name. Twenty years later, he has just released his 18th book, a new crime novel titled Storm Child. This week, the two Michaels sit down together for a conversation about crime writing, truth wizards and what’s next. Reading list: The Suspect, Michael Robotham, 2004 Life or Death, Michael Robotham, 2014 Good Girl, Bad Girl, Michael Robotham, 2019 When She Was Good, Michael Robotham, 2020 Storm Child, Michael Robotham, 2024 Stalking the Feature Story, William Ruehlmann, 1977 For Life, Ailsa Piper, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Michael Robotham

Dylin Hardcastle Has Found Their Own Voice

Dylin Hardcastle has been publishing their writing since they were 21, having now completed a memoir, a book of YA fiction and two novels. In their latest work, Dylin takes the reader back to 1972, and across three decades, explores the parallel lives of two women, shaped by their contrasting experiences of desire. This week, Michael sits down with Dylin Hardcastle for a wide-ranging conversation about this new novel, A Language of Limbs. Reading list: A Language of Limbs, Dylin Hardcastle, 2024 Below Deck, Sophie Hardcastle, 2020 Breathing Underwater, Sophie Hardcastle, 2016 Running Like China, Sophie Hardcastle, 2015 In the Dream House, Carmen Maria Machado, 2019 Voice of the Fish: A Lyric Essay, Lars Horn, 2022 The List, Yomi Adegoke, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Dylin Hardcastle

We Visited Gerald Murnane at the Goroke Golf Course

Gerald Murnane doesn’t have readers, he has acolytes. The New Yorker described him as “the reclusive giant of Australian letters”. He’s written 10 novels, several collections of short stories and essays, and a memoir about horse racing. Together these books represent one of the most formidable and singular bodies of work in literature. This week, Michael drives out to the Goroke golf course to chat with Gerald on his home turf. Reading list: Tamarisk Row, Gerald Murnane, 1974 A Lifetime on Clouds, Gerald Murnane, 1976 The Plains, Gerald Murnane, 1982 Inland, Gerald Murnane, 1988 Emerald Blue, Gerald Murnane, 1995  Barley Patch, Gerald Murnane, 2009  A History of Books, Gerald Murnane, 2012 A Million Windows, Gerald Murnane, 2014 Something for the Pain: A Memoir of the Turf, Gerald Murnane, 2015  Border Districts, Gerald Murnane, 2017  A Season on Earth, Gerald Murnane, 2019  Last Letter to a Reader, Gerald Murnane, 2021 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Articles on Gerald Murnane Is the Next Nobel Laureate in Literature Tending Bar in a Dusty Australian Town? An Idiot in the Greek Sense The Reclusive Giant of Australian Letters Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Gerald Murnane

Michael Ondaatje Is Learning Everything Again

Sri Lankan-born Canadian essayist, poet, and Booker Prize-winning novelist Michael Ondaatje has just released a stunning collection of poems. Ondaatje is now 80 years old and it’s almost half a century since he published his first novel; even longer since he first published poetry. This week, Michael joins Read This for a conversation about A Year of Last Things and why writing remains such a joyful act of discovery. Reading list: Coming Through Slaughter, Michael Ondaatje, 1976 In the Skin of a Lion, Michael Ondaatje, 1986 The Cinnamon Peeler: Selected Poems, Michael Ondaatje, 1989 The English Patient, Michael Ondaatje, 1992 Handwriting, Michael Ondaatje, 1998 Anil's Ghost, Michael Ondaatje, 2000 Divisadero, Michael Ondaatje, 2007 The Cat's Table, Michael Ondaatje, 2011 Warlight, Michael Ondaatje, 2018 A Year of Last Things, Michael Ondaatje, 2024 The Collected Poems of W. S. Merwin, 2013 Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Michael Ondaatje

Paul Murray and the Beautiful Opera of Life

Paul Murray’s last two novels, Skippy Dies and The Mark and the Void, were both modern masterpieces of institutional failure. In his 2023 Booker Prize shortlisted novel, The Bee Sting, the failing institution Paul turns his comedic eye to is the family. This week, Michael and Paul sit down for a discussion about fraudulence, empathy, and the beautiful opera of life. Reading list: An Evening of Long Goodbyes, Paul Murray, 2003 Skippy Dies, Paul Murray, 2010 The Mark and the Void, Paul Murray, 2015 The Bee Sting, Paul Murray, 2023 Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World, Naomi Klein, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Paul Murray

Don’t Call Paul Lynch’s Book a Political Novel

For many years, Irish writer Paul Lynch was a household name…in France. And while his work was popular in translation, and received numerous French literary awards, it was still considered niche. This all changed in 2023, following the release of Prophet Song, which was critically lauded and eventually won the holy grail of English language literary awards: the Booker Prize. This week we return to the Melbourne Writers’ Festival to hear a conversation between Michael and Paul about how Paul became a writer, and why he doesn’t think Prophet Song is a political novel. Reading list: Red Sky in Morning, Paul Lynch, 2013 The Black Snow, Paul Lynch, 2014 Grace, Paul Lynch, 2017 Beyond the Sea, Paul Lynch, 2020 Prophet Song, Paul Lynch, 2023 The Prisoner of Zenda, Anthony Hope, 1894 King Solomon's Mines, H. Rider Haggard, 1885 The Mayor of Casterbridge, Thomas Hardy, 1886 The Heart in Winter, Kevin Barry, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Paul Lynch.

Leslie Jamison’s Search History

Leslie Jamison is celebrated for her ability to link the personal to the cultural to the critical in ways that resonate and move and connect with readers. She first did it with The Empathy Exams – an essay, then a best-selling, award-winning collection. Now she is back with a new book, Splinters: Another Kind of Love Story, a memoir about rebuilding a life after the end of a marriage. This week, Michael sits down with Leslie to discuss this latest work and what it means to be many things – a teacher, an artist, a lover and a mother.  Reading list: The Gin Closet, Leslie Jamison, 2010 The Empathy Exams, Leslie Jamison, 2014 The Recovering, Leslie Jamison, 2018 Splinters: Another Kind of Love Story, Leslie Jamison, 2024 Sleepless Nights, Elizabeth Hardwick, 1979 Fragile Creatures, Khin Myint, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Leslie Jamison

What Is Wrong with Viet Thanh Nguyen?

In 2015, Viet Thanh Nguyen was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his debut novel, The Sympathizer. Now, nearly a decade later, the book has been adapted into an HBO miniseries of the same name. This week, Michael sits down with Viet for a conversation about his latest book, A Man with Two Faces, which expands beyond the familiar beats of memoir, and features the author’s trademark interest in the broader political and colonial implications of the personal. Reading list: The Sympathizer, Viet Thanh Nguyen, 2014 The Committed, Viet Thanh Nguyen, 2021 A Man of Two Faces, Viet Thanh Nguyen, 2023 Dune, Frank Herbert, 1965 Portnoy's Complaint, Philip Roth,1968  Quarterly Essay: Highway to Hell, Joëlle Gergis, 2024  You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Viet Thanh Nguyen

All Bruce Pascoe Needs Is a Biro

It was 2014 when Bruce Pascoe went from being a prolific, yet relatively unknown writer, to public enemy #1 in Australia’s culture wars. That was the year that Bruce published his now infamous book, Dark Emu, and its re-examination of accepted historical accounts of pre-invasion Australia. This week, he joins Michael for a discussion about his new novel Imperial Harvest and shares why he still believes we need the messiness of democracy. Reading list: Dark Emu, Bruce Pascoe, 2014 Imperial Harvest, Bruce Pascoe, 2024 Time’s Monster, Priya Satia, 2020 The Ministry of Time, Kellyanne Bradley, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Bruce Pascoe

Miranda July Wrote the Book She Couldn’t Find

Writer, artist, and filmmaker Miranda July has a devoted – even rabid – following, through her writing, her work on the screen, and her collaborative art projects. Her debut 2007 collection of short stories No One Belongs Here More Than You was a publishing sensation, and her debut film, Me and You and Everyone We Know, won the Palme D’Or at Cannes Film Festival. This week, she and Michael discuss her new novel, All Fours, which explores desire, intimacy, dance, and an often overlooked part of the ageing process. Reading list: Books No One Belongs Here More Than You, Miranda July, 2007 The First Bad Man, Miranda July, 2019 All Fours, Miranda July, 2024 Short Stories ‘Roy Spivey’, Miranda July, 2009 (The New Yorker) ‘The Metal Bowl’, Miranda July, 2017 (The New Yorker) ‘Women Have Been Misled About Menopause’, Susan Dominus, 2023 (The New York Times) What Fresh Hell Is This?, Heather Corinna, 2021 Long Island, Colm Tóibín, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Miranda July

Andrew O’Hagan’s Big Dickensian Energy

Across half a dozen novels, Andrew O’Hagan has made a name for himself as an author of delicacy and grace, painting the community he comes from, in Scotland’s west, with tenderness and wry, affectionate humour. His latest, Caledonian Road, follows art historian Campbell Flynn. A man who is at a turning point and is about to come up against his own downfall. This week, Michael sits down with Andrew for a conversation about the Dickensian world he has created in his new novel and why he considers it his most optimistic book yet. Reading list: Our Fathers, Andrew O’Hagan, 1999 Be Near Me, Andrew O’Hagan, 2006 Mayflies, Andrew O’Hagan, 2020 Caledonian Road, Andrew O’Hagan, 2024 Lives of Girls and Women, Alice Munro, 1971  Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage, Alice Munro, 2001 Dear Life, Alice Munro, 2012 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Andrew O’Hagan

It’s Winnie Dunn’s Turn in the Spotlight

Winnie Dunn is used to being behind the scenes. As the general manager of Sweatshop Literacy Movement in Western Sydney, she has been instrumental in helping other writers find their voice. But now, the spotlight is on her. This week, Michael sits down with Winnie for a conversation about her debut novel, Dirt Poor Islanders. She reflects on the demonising narratives she had to fight and the piece of writing advice that she’d given to others that resonated for her. Reading list: Dirt Poor Islanders, Winnie Dunn, 2024 I Am Lupe, Sela Ahosivi-Atiola, Yani Agustina, 2023 Only the Astronauts, Ceridwen Dovey, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Winnie Dunn

Resisting Catharsis with Sloane Crosley

Sloane Crosley is known for her funny and acerbic personal essays, including her New York Times’ best-selling collection I Was Told There’d Be Cake. But in her new memoir she digs much deeper to examine the loss of her best friend. This week, Michael sits down with Sloane to discuss Grief Is For People, and Sloane reveals the challenges of writing an intimate portrait of a singular friendship. Reading list: I Was Told There’d Be Cake, Sloane Crosley, 2008 How Did You Get This Number, Sloane Crosley, 2010 Look Alive Out There, Sloane Crosley, 2018 Cult Classic, Sloane Crosley, 2022 Grief Is For People, Sloane Crosley, 2023 Truth and Beauty, Ann Patchett, 2004 The Writing Life, Annie Dillard, 1989 Stoner, John Williams, 1965 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Sloane Crosley

See You Next Week!

We're off this Thursday, but we'll be back next week. Email us: [email protected] Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter

Morris Gleitzman’s World of Possibilities

Morris Gleitzman is an Australian institution. A beloved author of novels for young people, Morris is known for his ability to be funny and warm without shying away from the realities of life. He has been writing for almost half a century now and has delighted generations of readers with his more than 40 books of fiction. This week, Michael and Morris sit down to reflect on Morris’s multi-generational impact and to discuss his latest novel, Tweet. Reading list: Two Weeks with the Queen, Morris Gleitzman, 1989 Misery Guts, Morris Gleitzman, 1991 Worry Warts, Morris Gleitzman, 1992 Blabber Mouth, Morris Gleitzman, 1993 Sticky Beak, Morris Gleitzman, 1994 Now, Morris Gleitzman, 2010 Tweet, Morris Gleitzman, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Morris Gleitzman

Vulgarity, Death, and Patrick deWitt

Patrick deWitt has made a career out of creating eccentric, unforgettable characters. From his gun-slinging duo in the darkly comic The Sisters Brothers, which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize to the severely unsympathetic down-at-heel aristocrats in The French Exit. But in his fifth novel, The Librarianist, Patrick employs his signature verve and wit to reveal the extraordinary in the otherwise ordinary life of retired librarian Bob Comet. This week, Patrick joins Michael in the studio for a conversation about the joys of being an introvert, making friends at 40, and writing his latest novel. Reading list: The Sisters Brothers, Patrick deWitt, 2011 Undermajordomo Minor, Patrick deWitt, 2015 French Exit, Patrick deWitt, 2018 The Librarianist, Patrick deWitt, 2023 Deep Blue: The World in the Ocean, James Bradley, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Patrick deWitt

Louise Milligan Wears Her Heart on Her Sleeve

Star investigative journalist Louise Milligan has spent her career working on some of the most high-profile criminal cases in Australia. This incredible breadth of experience informs her first novel Pheasant’s Nest, which follows the abduction of a young journalist and provides a unique insight into the media, policing and politics that surround a crime like this. This week, Michael sits down with Louise to discuss the leap from reporting to fiction and why writing this book was a kind of therapy.  Reading list: Cardinal, Louise Milligan, 2017 Witness, Louise Milligan, 2020 Pheasant’s Nest, Louise Milligan, 2024 A Year of Last Things, Michael Ondaatje, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Louise Milligan

Friends, Mary Beard Fans, Countrymen, Lend Me Your Ears

Even if you’re not an obsessive Ancient Rome aficionado, you may have heard of Mary Beard. With more than 20 books to her name, including the wildly successful SPQR, Mary might be most famous for her work as a BBC host for shows such as Pompeii: Life and Death in a Roman Town and Julius Caesar Revealed. Her latest book is Emperor of Rome and this week on the show she sits down with Michael to discuss her life sentence — the half dozen words that set her on the path to becoming Britain’s best-known classicist — and why the Roman Empire is so misunderstood. Reading list: SPQR, Mary Beard, 2015 Twelve Caesars, Mary Beard, 2021 Emperor of Rome, Mary Beard, 2023 Meditations, Marcus Aurealius, 167 A.C.E.. Tidelines, Sarah Sasson, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Mary Beard

Jonathan Lethem Is Ripping It up and Starting Again

Jonathan Lethem made his name with his 1999 novel Motherless Brooklyn, but it was his next book, a semi-autobiographical re-telling of his childhood in Brooklyn, The Fortress of Solitude, that solidified his reputation as one of America's most celebrated authors. In Brooklyn Crime Novel, Jonathan returns to the Brooklyn of his childhood, but this time with a very different perspective. This week, Michael and Jonathan discuss making and unmaking the past in his latest book. Reading list: Motherless Brooklyn, Jonathan Lethem, 1999 The Fortress of Solitude, Jonathan Lethem, 2003 Brooklyn Crime Novel, Jonathan Lethem, 2023 Edenglassie, Melissa Lucashenko, 2023 The Restless Dolly Maunder, Kate Grenville, 2023 Wifedom, Anna Funder, 2023 The Wren, The Wren, Anne Enright, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Jonathan Lethem

Anne Enright Is Not Really Writing About Families, Actually

Anne Enright has been publishing books for more than two decades, winning numerous awards, including the Booker Prize for her 2007 novel, The Gathering. This week, Michael sits down with Anne for a wide-ranging conversation about the changing cultural context she is writing into, how a multiplicity of perspectives shape her work, and her latest book The Wren, The Wren. Reading list: The Gathering, Anne Enright, 2007 The Forgotten Waltz, Anne Enright, 2011 The Green Road, Anne Enright, 2015 Actress, Anne Enright, 2020 The Wren, the Wren, Anne Enright, 2023 Orbital, Samantha Harvey, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Anne Enright

Nam Le Is Back

When Nam Le’s debut book of short stories, The Boat, came out in 2008, it was met with unanimous praise and scooped up awards from around the world. Now, 16 years later, Nam has produced his follow up called 36 Ways to Write A Vietnamese Poem. This week, Michael sits down with Nam to discuss his latest work and the importance of violence in his conception of poetry and language. Reading list: The Boat, Nam Le, 2008 On David Malouf, Nam Le, 2019 36 Ways of Writing a Vietnamese Poem, Nam Le, 2014 What Happened to Nina?, Dervla McTiernan, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Nam Le

Gail Jones Was Saved by Reading

Joseph Conrad only ever captained one ship in his lifetime – the Otago. In a strange turn of events, the wreckage of Joseph Conrad’s ship now lies on the banks of the Derwent River in Hobart. And it's there that novelist Gail Jones took the inspiration for her latest novel, One Another. This week, Michael sits down with Gail for a wide-ranging discussion about desire, hauntings, and the life and work of Joseph Conrad. Reading list: Black Mirror, Gail Jones, 2002 Sixty Lights, Gail Jones, 2004 Dreams of Speaking, Gail Jones, 2006 Sorry, Gail Jones, 2007 Five Bells, Gail Jones, 2011 A Guide to Berlin, Gail Jones, 2015 The Death of Noah Glass, Gail Jones, 2018 Our Shadows, Gail Jones, 2020 Salonika Burning, Gail Jones, 2022 Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad, 1899 The Secret Agent, Joseph Conrad, 1907 Always Will Be, Mykaela Saunders, 2024 The Best Minds, Jonathan Rosen, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Gail Jones

Why Kate Jennings Is There in Everything Erik Jensen Writes

Erik Jensen was just 20 years old when he met Australian author Kate Jennings for the first time, forging a close relationship that continued until Kate’s death in 2021. This week, Michael chats with The Saturday Paper’s editor in chief about Kate’s life and her underappreciated work and Erik shares why her novel, Snake, is the best Australian book he’s ever read. Reading list: Snake, Kate Jennings, 1996 Moral Hazard, Kate Jennings, 2002 Cats, Dogs and Pitchforks, Kate Jennings, 1993 On Kate Jennings, Erik Jensen, 2017 I said the sea was folded: Love poems, Erik Jensen, 2021 Angry at Breakfast, Erik Jensen, 2024 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Erik Jensen

No Dogs Die in Briohny Doyle's New Novel

This week, Michael chats with author Briohny Doyle, whose most recent novel Why We Are Here explores the complexities of grief, both individual and collective. They discuss the role of writing during the pandemic and how relationships with non-human others enable us to access repressed parts of ourselves. Reading list: The Island Will Sink, Briohny Doyle, 2013 Adult Fantasy, Briohny Doyle, 2017 Echolalia, Briohny Doyle, 2021 Why We Are Here, Briohny Doyle, 2023 The Great Undoing, Sharlene Allsopp, 2024 Tremor, Teju Cole, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Briohny Doyle

How Geraldine Brooks Became a Novelist

For our first episode of 2024, Michael speaks with Pulitzer Prize-winning author Geraldine Brooks. She shares her life sentence and reflects on how her upbringing provided the perfect building blocks for a career as a writer. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. Reading list: Nine Parts of Desire, Geraldine Brooks, 1994 Foreign Correspondence, Geraldine Brooks, 1997 March, Geraldine Brooks, 2005 Horse, Geraldine Brook, 2022 Dreams of My Russian Summers, Andreï Makine, 1995 We All Lived In Bondi Then, Georgia Blain, 2024 A Day in the Life of Abed Salama, Nathan Thrall, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store.  Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Geraldine Brooks

Read This is back Feb 8!

We Went to Fitzroy Pool

For our last show of the year, Michael heads to Fitzroy Pool to find out what people are reading as the weather warms up. Plus, some of our previous guests offer book recommendations for the summer holidays. Reading list: The Vanishing Half, Brit Bennett, 2020 Down and Out In Paris and London, George Orwell, 1933 My Body, Emily Ratajkowski, 2021 Ghosts, Dolly Alderton, 2020 The Creative Act: A Way of Being, Rick Rubin, 2023 The Road, Cormac McCarthy, 2006 Working Class Boy, Jimmy Barnes, 2018 Never Never, Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher, 2023 The Spy’s Wife, Fiona McIntosh, 2021 Lioness, Emily Perkins, 2023 And Then She Fell, Alicia Elliott, 2023 The Palestine Laboratory, Anthony Loewenstein, 2023 England’s Green, Zaffar Kunial, 2022 The Sullivanians, Alexander Stille, 2023 Everyone and Everything, Nadine J. Cohen, 2023 Why We Are Here, Briohny Doyle, 2023 The Thursday Murder Club, Richard Osman, 2020 Middlemarch, George Eliot, 1871 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter

Max Porter’s Freight Is Proportioned to His Groove

Max Porter, best known for his debut novel Grief is the Thing with Feathers, has long been inspired by literature – reading it, listening to it, and, most importantly, sharing it with others. This week, Max shares the piece of writing that changed his life and reveals why every single time he thinks about it, its power renews itself like a rechargeable battery. Reading list: Grief is the Thing with Feathers, Max Porter, 2015 Lanny, Max Porter, 2019 The Death of Francis Bacon, Max Porter, 2021 Shy, Max Porter, 2023 Memorial, Alice Oswald, 2011 Hope in the Dark, Rebecca Solnit, 2004 Not Too Late: Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility, ed. Rebecca Solnit and Thelma Young Lutunatabua, 2023 The Complete Poems, Emily Dickinson, 2017 Day, Michael Cunningham, 2023 Roman Stories, Jhumpa Lahiri, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Max Porter

Why Michelle de Kretser Wants You to Read Shirley Hazzard

Michelle de Kretser began reading Shirley Hazzard well before she herself would become a writer, but she felt an early kinship, and two decades later it exploded into a full obsession. This week, Michael speaks with Michelle and Hazzard's biographer Brigitta Olubas about one of Australia's most underrated and underread authors. Reading list: The Evening of the Holiday, Shirley Hazzard, 1966 The Bay of Noon, Shirley Hazzard, 1970 The Transit of Venus, Shirley Hazzard, 1980 Greene on Capri, Shirley Hazzard, 2000 The Great Fire, Shirley Hazzard, 2003 On Shirley Hazzard: Writers on Writers, Michelle de Kretser, 2019 Shirley Hazzard: A Writing Life, Brigitta Olubas, 2023 Prophet Song, Paul Lynch, 2023 So Close to Home, Mick Cummins, 2023 In Praise of Veg, Alice Zaslavsky, 2020 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Michelle de Kretser & Brigitta Olubas

Gabrielle Zevin Wants to Talk About Failure

Back in 2005, following the publication of her debut novel, Gabrielle Zevin experienced a kind of literary trauma, one that completely fractured her sense of intimacy with the art form that she loved. Since then, she has learned to embrace failure and her latest novel has featured on over thirty “Best Books of the Year” Lists. This week, Michael sits down with Gabrielle for a wide-ranging discussion about collaboration, creativity, ambition and failure in her new book, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow.  Reading list: Margarettown, Gabrielle Zevin, 2005 The Hole We're In, Gabrielle Zevin, 2010 The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, Gabrielle Zevin, 2014 Young Jane Young, Gabrielle Zevin, 2017 Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin, 2022 The Remains of the Day, Kazuo Ishiguro, 1989 The Animators, Kayla Rae Whitaker, 2016 Returning, Kirli Saunders, 2023 Wellness, Nathan Hill, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Gabrielle Zevin

The Cause and Effect of Richard Flanagan

Described by the Washington Post as "one of our greatest living novelists", Richard Flanagan has been writing for more than three decades. His 2013 novel The Narrow Road to the Deep North won the Booker Prize and his essays have been published across Australia and internationally. This week Michael heads to Tasmania to speak with Richard at his home in Hobart about his latest and most personal novel, Question 7. Reading list: Gould’s Book of Fish, Richard Flanagan, 2001 The Narrow Road to the North, Richard Flanagan, 2013 The Living Sea of Waking Dreams, Richard Flanagan, 2020 Question 7, Richard Flanagan, 2023 The War of the Worlds, H.G. Wells, 1898 The World Set Free, H.G. Wells, 1914 Speak, Memory, Vladimir Nabokov, 1951 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Richard Flanagan

Rebecca Makkai Is on the Case

Rebecca Makkai is a master storyteller – her 2018 book, The Great Believers, was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award. In I Have Some Questions for You, Rebecca switches genres with a literary crime story that takes in the #MeToo movement, the American justice system, race, sex, class and murder, all against the backdrop of a prestigious boarding school. This week, Michael sits down with Rebecca to discuss her latest novel, the perils of true crime, and why being surprised when reading a book is so much more satisfying than a jump scare in a movie. Reading list: The Borrower, Rebecca Makkai, 2011 The Hundred-Year House, Rebecca Makkai, 2014 The Great Believers, Rebecca Makkai, 2018 I Have Some Questions for You, Rebecca Makkai, 2023 The Stone of Laughter, Hoda Barakat, 1990 So Late in the Day, Claire Keegan, 2023 The In-Between, Christos Tsiolkas, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Rebecca Makkai

Charlotte Wood Thinks Restraint Is Underrated

Charlotte Wood became a mainstay in Australia’s literary firmament in 2015 following the release of her award-winning novel, The Natural Way of Things. Her latest book, Stone Yard Devotional, is her most personal yet. It’s a meditation on grief, solitude, what it means to live a good life, and what we owe one another. This week, Michael sits down with Charlotte to discuss her new book, and she shares the psychic catastrophe that informed its final form. Reading list: The Natural Way of Things, Charlotte Wood, 2015 The Weekend, Charlotte Wood, 2019 The Luminous Solution, Charlotte Wood, 2021 Stone Yard Devotional, Charlotte Wood, 2023 Gilead, Marilynne Robinson, 2004 Gilgamesh, Joan London, 2001 The Golden Age, Joan London, 2014 The Wren, The Wren, Anne Enright, 2023 Women and Children, Tony Birch, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Charlotte Wood

It’s Trent Frickin’ Dalton

Trent Dalton’s debut novel, Boy Swallows Universe, has sold more than a million copies worldwide, making Trent one of Australia’s most successful contemporary authors. His latest book is called Lola in the Mirror, and it’s the third – and perhaps final – in a loose trilogy following young people in peril on the fringes of society. This week, Michael sits down with Trent to discuss this new work, where his boundless enthusiasm comes from, and his plans for the future. Reading list: Boy Swallows Universe, Trent Dalton, 2014 All Our Shimmering Skies, Trent Dalton, 2018 Lola in the Mirror, Trent Dalton, 2023 The Opposite of Success, Eleanor Elliott Thomas, 2023 Boy Friends, Michael Pederson, 2022 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Trent Dalton

Robyn Davidson and the Impossible Book

Robyn Davidson was just 27 when she trekked across the Australian desert. This epic journey was captured in her 1980 memoir Tracks, which became a national and international success. Her new book, Unfinished Woman, is her attempt to grapple with both her own life before and after Tracks, and with the story of her mother, who committed suicide when Robyn was only 11 years old. This week, Michael sits down with Robyn to discuss fear, loneliness and how she completed her self-proclaimed “impossible memoir”.  Reading list: Tracks, Robyn Davidson, 1980 Unfinished Woman, Robyn Davidson 2023 See below for some of the First Nations Writers that Michael recommends reading: Tara June Winch, Melissa Lucashenko, Alexis Wright, Ally Cobby Eckerman, Tony Birch, Anita Heiss, Evelyn Araluen, Chelsea Watego, Kirli Saunders, Ellen van Neerven, Larissa Behrendt, Aileen Moreton Robinson, Jackie Huggins, Kim Scott, Jane Harrison, Nardi Simpson. You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Robyn Davidson

David Marr vs Australia’s Old Lie

For many Australians, facing the reality of this country is a task that has proved enduringly difficult, both at a public and a political level. For investigative journalist David Marr, finding the right way to tell the stories that allow us to see the truth of our history is a personal quest and one that has led to his latest book. This week, Michael talks with David about shame – both personal and national – and why his family agreed that he had to write Killing for Country. Reading list: Patrick White: A Life, David Marr, 1991 My Country: Stories, Essays & Speeches, David Marr, 2018 Killing for Country, David Marr, 2023 Septology, Jon Fosse, 2022 The Hummingbird Effect, Kate Mildenhall, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: David Marr

Melissa Lucashenko is our Poet Laureate of Ratbags

Melissa Lucashenko writes about big ideas and brutal experiences, but she does so with grace, with generosity and – maybe above all else – a rich sense of humour. This week, Michael sits down with Melissa for a conversation about her new book, Edenglassie, and they discuss history, eccentric characters, and why writing a love story is a revolutionary act. Reading list: Hard Yards, Melissa Lucashenko, 1999 Too Flash, Melissa Lucashenko, 2002 Mullumbimby, Melissa Lucashenko, 2013 Too Much Lip, Melissa Lucashenko, 2018 Edenglassie, Melissa Lucashenko, 2023 The Fortunes of Richard Mahony, Henry Handel Richardson, 1925 For the Term of His Natural Life, Marcus Clarke, 1874 The Secret Hours, Mick Herron, 2023 Gunflower, Laura Jean McKay, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: Melissa Lucashenko

The Three Words That Made George Saunders a Writer

George Saunders is one of literary fiction's most acclaimed living writers. Along with his many collections of short stories, he also published the Booker Prize-winning novel Lincoln in the Bardo. This week, Michael chats with him about his life and career, and George reveals the three words that made him a writer. Reading list: CivilWarLand in Bad Decline, George Saunders,1996 Pastoralia, George Saunders, 2000 In Persuasion Nation, George Saunders, 2006 Tenth of December: Stories, George Saunders, 2013 Lincoln in the Bardo, George Saunders, 2017 A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life, George Saunders, 2021 Liberation Day: Stories, George Saunders, 2022 A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, James Joyce, 1916 To Have and Have Not, Ernest Hemingway, 1937 The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway, 1952 The Little Disturbances of Man, Grace Paley, 1959 Ordinary Gods and Monsters, Chris Womersley, 2023 You can find these books and all the others we mentioned at your favourite independent book store. Or if you want to listen to them as audiobooks, you can head to the Read This reading room on Apple Books. Socials: Stay in touch with Read This on Instagram and Twitter Guest: George Saunders

Introducing Read This

Read This is a show about the books we love and the stories behind them, hosted by Michael Williams. Every Thursday, you’ll hear insightful conversations with the smartest, funniest readers and writers we know and in-depth interviews with the best Australian and international authors talking about their lives and their work. You’ll never be left wondering what to read next. Coming July 6.