Simon Mayo's Books Of The Year

Mayo/Williams. Our version of Frost/Nixon. With the help of your questions (if you were one of them who sent them in). NB Simon has a nice microphone. Matt has a tin can and some string.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The author of When Time Stopped talks us through some of her favourite books, authors and poets - including WH Auden, Enid Blyton, Dani Shapiro and Joyce Carol Oates  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

When Time Stopped -A Memoir of My Father’s War and What Remains Ariana meticulously uncovers the astonishing truth of her father’s extraordinary escape from Nazi-occupied Prague and seemingly inevitable deportation to the camps. Her painstaking investigation leads her across continents and reveals his astonishing and courageous choice to assume a fake identity and live out the war undercover, spying for the allies in Berlin itself—at the heart of the Nazi empire, deep in the ‘darkest shadow’.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

One of Britain's finest crime writers tells us about his favourite books and authors - which include Elvis Costello, Leon Garfield and Charlie Brooker  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Mark Billingham is one of the UK's most acclaimed and popular crime writers - selling over 5 million copies. A former actor, television writer and stand-up comedian, his series of novels featuring D.I. Tom Thorne has twice won him the Crime Novel Of The Year Award as well as the Sherlock Award for Best British Detective and been nominated for seven CWA Daggers. His standalone thriller IN THE DARK was chosen as one of the twelve best books of the year by the Times and his debut novel, SLEEPYHEAD was chosen by the Sunday Times as one of the 100 books that had shaped the decade. Each of his novels has been a Sunday Times Top Ten bestseller. Mark is also a member of Fun Lovin' Crime Writers. Performing alongside Val McDermid, Chris Brookmyre, Stuart Neville, Doug Johnstone and Luca Veste, this band of frustrated rockers murders songs for fun at literary festivals worldwide Mark's latest novel is Their Little Secret  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

QI Elf Andrew talks us through his favourite authors which include Rik Mayall, Douglas Adams, Terry Pratchett and PG Wodehouse. Andrew's debut novel is The Last Day - which focuses on a world which has stopped turning.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

QI Elf, Private Eye contributor and No Such Thing As A Fish presenter Andrew Hunter Murray tells us about his debut novel The Last Day - a thriller set in a world which has spun to a halt, bringing civilization to the brink of chaos.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Sophie is an internationally best selling crime author. In our Q&A she tells Simon and Matt about her favourite authors which include Agatha Christie, Samantha Downing and Howard Jacobson  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In Sophie Hannah's latest thriller Beth sees some old friends...but "twelve years have passed and the children don't look any older...why haven't they grown?" Sophie is a Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling writer of crime fiction, published in forty-nine languages and fifty-one territories. Her books have sold millions of copies worldwide. In 2014, with the blessing of Agatha Christie’s family and estate, Sophie published a new Poirot novel, The Monogram Murders, which was a bestseller in more than fifteen countries. In 2013, Sophie’s novel The Carrier won the Crime Thriller of the Year Award at the Specsavers National Book Awards. Her poetry is studied at GCSE, A Level and degree level across the UK.  Sophie has recently helped to create a Master’s Degree in Crime and Thriller Writing at the University of Cambridge, for which she is the main teacher and Course Director.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

One of America's finest investigative writers answers our book Q&A  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Michael Lewis is the global bestselling author of The Big Short and Moneyball - both of which were turned in to hugely successful movies.    His latest book is The Fifth Risk, an exploration of Trump and the mechanics of The White House. It examines the transition and political appointments of the Donald Trump presidency. It’s been optioned by the Obamas for their new Netflix production company. It is both thrilling and terrifying.    See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Malcolm Gladwell is a journalist, author and podcast maker. His first five books were on The New York Times Best Seller list. Here her chats to Simon and Matt about his favourite authors and books - which include John Le Carre, Henry Treece and Clifford Irving  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Malcolm Gladwell is a journalist, author and podcast maker. His first five books were on The New York Times Best Seller list. His sixth book, Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know, was released in September 2019. The book examines interactions with strangers, and covers examples that include the deceptions of Bernie Madoff, the trial of Amanda Knox, the suicide of Sylvia Plath and the death of Sandra Bland. It challenges the assumptions we are programmed to make when encountering strangers, and the potentially dangerous consequences of misreading people we don't know. His previous books are well worth checking out too - The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference (2000); Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking (2005); Outliers: The Story of Success (2008); What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures (2009), a collection of his journalism; and David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants (2013).  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Multi million selling author Lee Child gives a rather candid glimpse in to his reading and writing habits  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Lee Child is a publishing phenomenon. His Jack Reacher novels have sold over 100 million copies. In his latest, Blue Moon, Reacher steps out of a bus to help a potential victim and then finds himself in the thick of a turf war between two rival gangs.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.