Podcasts by World Book Club

Shehan Karunatilaka: The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida from 2023-12-01T03:06

Harriett Gilbert and readers around the globe talk to acclaimed Sri Lankan writer Shehan Karunatilaka about his Booker Prize-winning novel The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida.

Almeida, a gay ...

AS Byatt - Possession from 2023-11-17T18:37

English author A. S Byatt talks to an audience about her novel 'Possession'. First broadcast in March 2004

(Photo: A S Byatt. Credit:BBC)

Xiaolu Guo: A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers from 2023-11-03T17:46

Xiaolu Guo talks about her novel A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers. The book was her first written in English and made prestigious fiction shortlists on publication in 2007.

...

Michael Chabon: The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay from 2023-10-02T10:54

American writer Michael Chabon talks about his 2001 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay.

From Jewish mysticism to Houdini to the Golden Age of Comic Bo...

Audrey Niffenegger: The Time Traveler's Wife from 2023-09-01T13:49

American writer and visual artist Audrey Niffenegger talks about her bestselling novel The Time Traveler’s Wife - a magical love story with a twist.

Funny, quirky, and occasionally heartbr...

Pilar Quintana: The Bitch from 2023-08-01T11:06

Colombian writer Pilar Quintana talks about her acclaimed novel The Bitch which explores themes of motherhood, loss, and the impact of violence on women's lives.

Set against the backdrop ...

Sofi Oksanen: Purge from 2023-07-01T11:06

Bestselling author Sofi Oksanen answers readers' questions about her novel Purge.

It's a harrowing story of sexual violence, betrayal and retribution which charts the troubled history of ...

NoViolet Bulawayo: We Need New Names from 2022-04-02T11:06

In the latest in World Book Club's season celebrating The Exuberance of Youth, Harriett Gilbert talks to Zimbabwean writer NoViolet Bulawayo about her extraordinary novel, We Need New Names. A re...

Kiley Reid: Such a Fun Age from 2022-03-05T06:06

A remarkable debut from an exhilarating young new voice, Such a Fun Age is a big-hearted page-turner of a story about race and privilege, And centring on a young black babysitter, her well-meaning ...

Isabel Allende: Eva Luna from 2022-02-08T12:06

In the second in our season celebrating The Exuberance of Youth in this centenary year of the BBC, Harriett Gilbert talks to world-famous Chilean writer Isabel Allende about her extraordinary novel...

Naoise Dolan: Exciting Times from 2022-01-01T06:06

The first of our season of celebrating The Exuberance of Youth in this the centenary year of the BBC, World Book Club talks to Irish writer Naoise Dolan about her dazzling novel Exciting Times. Psy...

Monique Roffey: The Mermaid of Black Conch from 2021-12-04T12:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to the multi-award-winning Trinidadian-British author Monique Roffey about her enchanting novel The Mermaid of Black Conch, which won the 2020 Costa Book of the Year. Roffey ...

Burhan Sönmez: Istanbul, Istanbul from 2021-11-06T12:06

Continuing our month-long season to celebrate the English PEN centenary, World Book Club talks to multi-award-winning Turkish-Kurdish writer and activist Burhan Sönmez about his unforgettable novel...

Maylis De Kerangal: Mend the Living from 2021-09-04T05:06

World Book Club this month talks to the award-winning French writer Maylis de Kerangal about her remarkable and haunting novel Mend the Living. After a horrific car accident on the Normandy coast ...

Crime and Punishment: Fyodor Dostoyevsky from 2021-08-09T11:51

To mark the bicentenary of the birth of the great Russian writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky World Book Club revisits Crime and Punishment in an edition recorded at the elegant Pushkin House, London’s Russi...

Jane Harper: The Dry from 2021-07-07T11:44

World Book Club this month talks to the world-renowned Australian author Jane Harper at her home in Melbourne, Australia, about her internationally garlanded thriller, The Dry.

Amid the wo...

Jane Harper: The Dry from 2021-07-07T11:44

World Book Club this month talks to the world-renowned Australian author Jane Harper at her home in Melbourne, Australia, about her internationally garlanded thriller, The Dry. Amid the worst drou...

Manu Joseph: Serious Men from 2021-06-10T10:07

Serious Men tells the intertwined stories of wily Ayyan Mani - who tries to pass off his son as a mathematical genius - and life at the Institute of Theory and Research in Mumbai, where Ayyan works...

Louise Penny: Still Life from 2021-05-01T12:06

This month World Book Club talks to acclaimed Canadian writer Louise Penny about the very first in her astonishingly successful series of Inspector Gamache crime novels. When a much-loved inhabita...

Robert Seethaler: A Whole Life from 2021-04-03T12:06

Spanning much of the twentieth century and told with an elegant simplicity which belies the harshness of the tale it tells, Robert Seethaler's A Whole Life is the story of one man's relationship wi...

Tsitsi Dangarembga: Nervous Conditions from 2021-03-08T11:39

A modern classic in the African literary canon and voted in the Top Ten of Africa's 100 Best Books of the 20th Century, Nervous Conditions is the coming-of-age story of two Shona girls, Tambudzai a...

Bill Bryson: Notes from a Small Island from 2021-02-06T06:06

This month World Book Club discusses Bill Bryson’s hugely acclaimed travelogue Notes from a Small Island with the author and his readers around the world.After two decades as a resident of the Unit...

Sjón - Moonstone: The Boy Who Never Was from 2021-01-04T11:54

On this month’s World Book Club, Icelandic literary superstar Sjón will be answering questions from readers around the world about his novel Moonstone: The Boy Who Never Was. Set in Reykjavik in 1...

Yaa Gyasi: Homegoing from 2020-12-05T01:06

A novel of breathtaking sweep revealing the devastating impact of slavery through history.This month World Book Club discusses the multi-prize-winning debut novel Homegoing with its acclaimed Ghana...

Yiyun Li: The Vagrants from 2020-11-09T15:58

Life or death choices in a bid to survive the horrors of 1970s Communist China This month in the penultimate edition of a year celebrating the globe’s greatest women writers World Book Club talks...

Ali Smith: How to Be Both from 2020-10-05T11:55

A fast-moving, passionate, genre-bending work of art that both dazzles and entertains.This month, World Book Club discusses the much garlanded novel How to Be Both with its acclaimed British author...

Elizabeth Strout: Olive Kitteridge from 2020-09-07T13:25

This month’s World Book Club is the ninth in our series celebrating the greatest women writers at work across the globe. Harriett Gilbert and listeners from around the world talk to the world-renow...

Helen Garner: The Spare Room from 2020-08-01T11:06

The Australian writer Helen Garner joins Harriett Gilbert as World Book Club continues its celebration of women writers. She’ll be talking about her 2008 novel The Spare Room. It’s the story of t...

Bernardine Evaristo: Girl, Woman, Other from 2020-07-06T11:02

This month, for the seventh World Book Club edition celebrating International Women writers, Harriett Gilbert is joined by the remarkable British writer Bernardine Evaristo from her home in east Lo...

Deborah Levy - Hot Milk from 2020-06-08T09:00

This month World Book Club talks to acclaimed British author Deborah Levy about her Man Booker Prize shortlisted novel Hot Milk. In this era of coronavirus we are sadly not able to gather together ...

Hilary Mantel - Bring Up the Bodies from 2020-05-04T08:38

This month World Book Club marks the recent worldwide publication of The Mirror and The Light by treating you to a repeat of our memorable edition of the programme with the double-Booker prize-winn...

Fatima Bhutto - The Shadow of the Crescent Moon from 2020-04-06T11:44

Long-listed for the Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction, Bhutto’s lyrical debut novel unfolds over the course of one morning in Mir Ali, a small town in Pakistan's Tribal Areas close to the Afghan bo...

Leïla Slimani - Lullaby from 2020-03-08T03:06

French-Moroccan writer Leïla Slimani joins Harriett Gilbert in the Radio Theatre at the BBC and readers from around the world to talk about her novel Lullaby, the devastating story of a nanny, Loui...

Petina Gappah - The Book of Memory from 2020-02-03T09:28

Harriett Gilbert is joined by Zimbabwean novelist Petina Gappah for this month’s edition of World Book Club, continuing 2020’s celebration of women’s writing. Petina will be answering questions ...

Naomi Alderman - The Power from 2020-01-08T13:30

Naomi Alderman talks about her extraordinary novel The Power which imagines that women suddenly develop an electrifying strength, putting them firmly in control - of everything. The new order sprea...

Jenny Erpenbeck - Visitation from 2019-12-09T10:36

This month World Book Club is in Germany marking the 30th anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall with a programme from the St George’s Bookshop in the heart of the capital. We’re speaking with ...

David Nicholls - Us from 2019-11-05T16:54

David Nicholls talks about his internationally successful novel Us.Almost three decades after their improbable relationship first blossomed in London biochemist Douglas and his attractive artist wi...

Héctor Abad - Oblivion from 2019-10-07T09:53

The Colombian novelist and journalist Héctor Abad discusses his memoir Oblivion, a heart-breaking tribute to his late father. Héctor Abad Gómez was a medical doctor, professor and human rights camp...

Ann Cleeves - Raven Black from 2019-09-09T09:01

British writer Ann Cleeves discusses Raven Black, the haunting first novel in her award-winning Shetland crime series, with presenter Harriett Gilbert, a studio audience and readers around the worl...

Chigozie Obioma - The Fishermen from 2019-08-05T11:12

Acclaimed Nigerian writer Chigozie Obioma talks about his novel The Fishermen. Shortlisted for the 2015 Man Booker Prize, The Fishermen tells the story of four young brothers who defy their authori...

Siri Hustvedt - What I Loved from 2019-06-03T08:41

This month World Book Club talks to award-winning writer Siri Hustvedt about her novel What I Loved, a troubling, often turbulent tale of love, art, friendship and heartbreak set amidst the darkly ...

Donna Leon - Death at La Fenice from 2019-05-08T08:25

This month World Book Club talks to award-winning American writer Donna Leon about her celebrated novel Death at La Fenice.When legendary German conductor Helmut Wellauer is found dead in his dress...

Tessa Hadley - The Past from 2019-04-08T15:09

Highly acclaimed British author Tessa Hadley talks to Harriett Gilbert about her award-winning novel - The Past. Recorded at the FT Weekend Oxford Literary Festival in the elegant surroundings of...

Ng?g? wa Thiong'o - A Grain of Wheat from 2019-03-05T10:37

This month a special edition of BBC World Book Club coming from Nairobi in Kenya. Lawrence Pollard talks to celebrated Kenyan writer Ng?g? wa Thiong'o in the company of an enthusiastic audience of ...

JoJo Moyes - Me Before You from 2019-02-04T10:47

This month we’re talking to bestselling British writer JoJo Moyes about her wildly popular novel Me Before You.Lou is a small town girl in need of a job. Will is a successful high-powered city trad...

Lee Child - Killing Floor from 2019-01-05T03:06

World Book Club talks to one of the world’s leading thriller writers, British-born Lee Child.Killing Floor is the first book in the internationally popular Jack Reacher series and presents the all-...

Chan Koonchung - The Fat Years from 2018-12-01T12:06

This month's World Book Club once again comes from China's capital Beijing. Lawrence Pollard interviews acclaimed and controversial writer Chan Koonchung about his much debated dystopian novel The ...

Lijia Zhang: Lotus from 2018-11-05T09:55

This month BBC World Book Club comes from Beijing with Lawrence Pollard.The programme is a guest of the Bookworm, three rooms and a roof terrace full of books in Chinese and English, a fixture on t...

Kate Atkinson: Life After Life from 2018-10-06T11:06

This month on World Book Club award-winning British writer Kate Atkinson discusses her celebrated novel Life After Life. In it Atkinson poses the question: What if you had the chance to live your l...

James Ellroy - American Tabloid from 2018-09-02T03:06

On this month’s World Book Club, as he turns seventy, another chance to hear acclaimed American writer James Ellroy, who over a span of fifteen years worked on a massive fictional chronicle of 1960...

Anuradha Roy: An Atlas of Impossible Longing from 2018-07-08T03:06

This month World Book Club talks to internationally celebrated Indian writer Anuradha Roy about her much-loved novel, An Atlas of Impossible Longing. Spanning three generations of an Indian fami...

Amy Bloom: Away from 2018-06-06T15:38

Epic in scope, Away is the captivating story of young Lillian Leyb, whose family is destroyed in a horrific Russian pogrom and who comes to America alone, determined to make her way in a new land. ...

Sarah Waters: Tipping the Velvet from 2018-05-14T14:26

This month World Book Club talks to British writer Sarah Waters about her chart-topping novel, Tipping the Velvet. Celebrating twenty years since its first publication Tipping the Velvet is a ba...

Celeste Ng: Everything I Never Told You from 2018-05-14T08:19

Presenter Lawrence Pollard talks to chart-topping Chinese-American writer Celeste Ng and an audience gathered in the local Boston radio Newsfeed Café in the Boston Public Library about her bestsell...

Junot Diaz: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao from 2018-03-12T15:26

Award-winning Dominican American writer Junot Diaz talks to World Book Club on location in Boston, US, about his wildly popular novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Moving across generations...

Jackie Kay: Trumpet from 2018-02-04T04:06

This month World Book Club talks to Scottish poet Laureate Jackie Kay about her award winning novel, Trumpet. When legendary jazz trumpeter Joss Moody dies an extraordinary secret is revealed, ...

Agatha Christie from 2018-01-08T11:34

This month World Book Club comes from the Belgium capital Brussels for an Agatha Christie special. The programme visits the Bibliotheca Wittockiana to discuss one of the bestselling crime novels...

Richard Flanagan: Narrow Road to the Deep North from 2017-12-03T04:06

Best-selling Australian writer Richard Flanagan talks about his Booker prize-winning novel The Narrow Road to the Deep North. This unforgettable novel about the cruelty of war and the tenuousnes...

Alan Hollinghurst: The Line of Beauty from 2017-11-05T04:06

Best-selling British writer Alan Hollinghurst talks about his Booker prize-winning novel, The Line of Beauty. In the summer of 1983 20-year-old graduate Nick Guest moves into an attic room in th...

Jane Gardam - Old Filth from 2017-10-09T14:40

On this month’s World Book Club British writer Jane Gardam discusses her award-winning novel Old Filth with the studio audience at Broadcasting House and listeners from around the world.Edward Feat...

Sebastian Barry - The Secret Scripture from 2017-09-03T17:18

This month World Book Club is celebrating its 15th birthday and has come to where it all began – in September 2002 - The Edinburgh Book Festival, to talk to Irish literary superstar Sebastian Barry...

Delphine de Vigan - No and Me from 2017-08-06T03:06

With an IQ that’s off-the-scale and a hyper-active mind 13-year-old Lou feels out of place amongst the beautiful, confident teenagers in her class. She finds no comfort at home as her mother is in ...

Tim Winton - Cloudstreet from 2017-07-05T09:27

This month World Book Club is talking to chart-topping Australian writer Tim Winton about his unforgettable novel Cloudstreet. Winner of the Miles Franklin Award and recognised as one of the gre...

Jeffrey Archer - Kane and Abel from 2017-06-05T09:46

This month World Book Club is in the BBC Radio Theatre and is talking to one of the most popular and widely read British novelists, Jeffrey Archer, about his stunningly successful novel Kane and Ab...

Derek Walcott - Omeros from 2017-05-07T03:06

This month we mark the recent death of the St Lucian poet, playwright and Nobel Laureate Derek Walcott with another chance to hear him talk-on-the-programme about his poetic masterpiece, the book-l...

Robert Harris - Imperium from 2017-04-24T09:26

This month World Book Club visits the Oxford Literary Festival in the elegant surroundings of Worcester College, part of the university and is talking to the hugely popular British author Robert Ha...

Joël Dicker - The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair from 2017-04-24T09:16

This month World Book Club are once again part of The Hay Literary Festival in Cartagena, Colombia. Harriett Gilbert and a Festival audience talk to the acclaimed Swiss writer Joël Dicker about his...

Laura Restrepo - Delirium from 2017-04-24T08:38

This month World Book Club are lucky enough to be in the beautiful old city of Cartagena in Colombia as part of the Cartagena Hay Festival of Literature. Harriett Gilbert will be talking to one of...

Karl Ove Knausgaard - A Death in the Family from 2017-01-08T03:06

We talk to the acclaimed Norwegian writer Karl Ove Knausgaard about A Death in the Family, volume one of his remarkable series of memoirs My Struggle. Knausgaard writes with painful honesty abou...

Margaret Drabble - The Millstone from 2016-11-29T16:04

This month World Book Club is talking to the acclaimed British writer Margaret Drabble about her remarkable novel The Millstone. At a time when illegitimacy is taboo, Rosamund Stacey is pregnant...

Crime and Punishment from 2016-11-08T13:33

Russian writer Dostoyevsky’s haunting classic thriller, Crime and Punishment, is celebrating its 150th birthday this year. Consumed by the idea of his own special destiny, Rashkolnikov is drawn...

Anne Enright - The Gathering from 2016-10-01T08:08

This month World Book Club talks to the acclaimed Irish writer Anne Enright about her poignant Booker Prize-winning novel The Gathering. In it Veronica, one of the nine surviving Hegarty sibling...

DBC Pierre - Vernon God Little from 2016-09-16T17:16

Harriett Gilbert talks to the hugely acclaimed writer DBC Pierre about his best-selling first novel Vernon God Little. An absurdly humorous look at the misadventures of a Texas teen named Vernon Li...

Juan Gabriel Vasquez - The Sound of Things Falling from 2016-07-02T10:06

We talking to acclaimed Colombian writer Juan Gabriel Vasquez about his dark and compelling novel The Sound of Things Falling. Vasquez explores the recent tortured history of his home country throu...

Tan Twan Eng - The Garden of Evening Mists from 2016-06-04T16:10

This month we’re in The Book Lounge Bookshop in Cape Town, South Africa and talking to the Malaysian novelist Tan Twan Eng about his Man Asian Literary Prize-winning novel, The Garden of Evening Mi...

Charlotte Brontë - Jane Eyre from 2016-05-11T13:12

To celebrate the bicentenary of Charlotte Brontë’s birth, World Book Club travels back to Victorian England to discuss her captivating and enduring tale, Jane Eyre with writer Tracy Chevalier and b...

Nuruddin Farah - Maps from 2016-04-12T11:05

This month, as part of the World Service’s Identity Season, World Book Club is in Cape Town, home of acclaimed Somali writer Nuruddin Farah, where we’ll be talking to him about his novel, Maps. ...

Judith Kerr - When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit from 2016-03-06T05:26

This month we talk to the much-loved German-born, British author and illustrator Judith Kerr about her classic children’s novel, When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit. Set during World War Two, this se...

Cees Nooteboom - The Following Story from 2016-02-04T17:13

This quixotic ‘novel of ideas’ blends philosophical reflection with the haunting tale of Herman Mussert, a retired, outmoded ancient language teacher preoccupied with Classical antiquity. After fal...

Elizabeth Gilbert: Eat, Pray, Love from 2016-01-02T20:57

American writer Elizabeth Gilbert talks about her phenomenally successful novel Eat, Pray, Love. On a self-confessed ‘search for everything', Eat, Pray, Love charts the year in which Elizabeth Gilb...

Leila Aboulela - Minaret from 2015-12-17T20:37

This month World Book Club talks to Sudanese writer Leila Aboulela about her award-winning novel Minaret. This poignant and lyrical tale traces the journey of a young woman, Najwa, who is force...

Jonathan Franzen - Freedom from 2015-11-08T05:00

US literary superstar Jonathan Franzen talks about his hugely acclaimed novel Freedom. An epic of contemporary love and marriage, Freedom charts the exploits of the Berglund family, capturing the t...

Deborah Moggach - Tulip Fever from 2015-10-03T21:30

This month World Book Club talks about the acclaimed international bestseller Tulip Fever with its British author Deborah Moggach. It's 1630s Amsterdam, and tulip fever has seized its inhabitants. ...

Andrey Kurkov - Death and the Penguin from 2015-09-05T21:06

Andrey Kurkov discusses his darkly comic novel Death and the Penguin with Harriett Gilbert, and responds to listeners' questions from around the world. The book is set in the grey and deeply surrea...

Jeanette Winterson - Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit from 2015-08-03T10:21

Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit is Jeanette Winterson's searing yet ultimately uplifting coming-out, coming-of-age tale, in which a young girl learns to rebel against her fanatical, cult-like upbrin...

Mark Haddon - The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time from 2015-07-07T13:31

British author Mark Haddon discusses his astonishingly successful novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. Published in 45 languages around the world, it is a murder mystery like ...

Yasmina Khadra - The Swallows of Kabul from 2015-06-07T22:00

The Algerian writer Yasmina Khadra discusses his novel, The Swallows of Kabul - a portrait of life under a tyrannical theocracy. Khadra is actually a man, and took a pseudonym (his wife's!) during ...

Marian Keyes - Rachel's Holiday from 2015-05-02T21:06

World Book Club talks life, sex, drugs, if not rock ‘n’ roll to chart-topping Irish writer Marian Keyes about her best-selling novel Rachel’s Holiday. She answers BBC listeners' questions from arou...

Guenter Grass - The Tin Drum from 2015-04-19T13:05

On Monday, Guenter Grass, German Nobel literature prize-winner and author of The Tin Drum, died aged 87. Before his death he had been described as "the world’s most important living writer". We l...

JD Salinger - The Catcher In The Rye from 2015-04-04T19:06

Harriet Gilbert discusses JD Salinger's classic novel The Catcher in the Rye with a studio audience, including questions from BBC World Service listeners as far afield as Nepal and the Czech Republ...

Anne Tyler from 2015-03-08T20:05

World Book Club visits the home of the Pulitzer-Prize winning author Anne Tyler, in the city of Baltimore. From her spare, elegant writing room Anne talks to Harriett Gilbert about her own personal...

William Gibson from 2015-02-01T20:05

This month World Book Club talks to cult American-Canadian writer William Gibson about his much garlanded novel that launched the cyberpunk generation with one of the last century’s most potent vis...

Daniel Kehlmann from 2015-01-04T20:05

This month World Book Club talks to bestselling German writer Daniel Kehlmann whose entertaining, and internationally acclaimed novel Measuring the World took the literary world by storm nine years...

Marilynne Robinson from 2014-12-07T20:06

Gilead is an epistolary novel that is the fictional autobiography of the Reverend John Ames, an elderly congregationalist pastor in the small, secluded town of Gilead, Iowa, who knows that he is dy...

Herman Koch from 2014-11-01T09:06

This month World Book Club talks to bestselling Dutch writer Herman Koch whose hugely controversial and entertaining novel The Dinner took the literary world by storm five years ago. Since then, it...

Kathy Reichs - Deja Dead from 2014-10-04T08:06

World Book Club talks to award-winning American writer and forensic anthropologist Kathy Reichs, about the first in her Temperance Brennan detective series, Deja Dead. A nerve-jangling thriller t...

Pat Barker - Regeneration from 2014-09-06T08:06

This week, as part of the continuing global commemorations of the First World War, World Book Club is in sombre mood with another timely chance to hear multi-award-winning British writer Pat Barker...

Janice Galloway from 2014-08-02T07:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to award-winning writer Janice Galloway about her novel The Trick Is to Keep Breathing. Recorded at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Harriett discusses her novel about a dr...

Jostein Gaarder from 2014-07-05T08:06

In this edition of World Book Club on BBC World Service, Jostein Gaarder talks to Harriett Gilbert about his novel Sophie’s World at The House of Literature, Oslo. A chart-topping global surpris...

Per Petterson from 2014-06-07T07:06

This month World Book Club comes to a surprisingly sunny Oslo as part of our mini Norwegian season to talk to one of the country’s most feted novelists Per Petterson, about his phenomenally success...

Maya Angelou - I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings from 2014-05-31T07:30

Maya Angelou reflects on some of her earliest and most difficult memories and talks about her autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings in this special commemorative edition of World Book Club ...

Harlan Coben from 2014-05-03T08:06

This month chart-topping US writer and showman Harlan Coben will be talking to Harriett Gilbert and a studio full of his readers about his page-turner of a thriller, Six Years. Jake Fisher, a lo...

Malorie Blackman: Noughts and Crosses from 2014-04-05T07:06

Bestselling British writer Malorie Blackman talks about her page-turning novel for teenagers and young adults Noughts and Crosses. A gripping modern-day tale of star-crossed lovers which aims to...

Elif Shafak - The Forty Rules of Love from 2014-03-01T10:02

This month we’re talking to one of Turkey’s foremost writers Elif Shafak. She’s answering your questions about her bestselling novel The Forty Rules of Love, an investigation into love, mysticism...

Christos Tsiolkas from 2014-02-01T09:06

World Book Club talks to the chronicler of 21st Century urban Australia Christos Tsiolkas. He talks to Harriett Gilbert about his controversial, award-winning novel The Slap which has polarised opi...

Pat Barker from 2014-01-04T09:06

This month World Book Club is in a reflective mood as we mark the beginning of the centenary commemorations for World War One by inviting multi-award-winning British writer Pat Barker on to the pro...

Brian Aldiss from 2013-12-07T09:06

Prize-winning author Brian Aldiss, the grand old man of British science fiction writing, talks about his 1964 classic sci-fi novel Greybeard. Set decades after the Earth's population has been ste...

Albert Camus - The Outsider from 2013-11-02T09:06

One hundred years after his birth this month’s World Book Club, will be discussing Albert Camus' seminal novel The Outsider with his acclaimed biographer Oliver Todd, and Professor of French at She...

Jhumpa Lahiri from 2013-10-05T08:06

This month a chance to hear Pulitzer Prize winning Indian American writer Jhumpa Lahiri, whose new novel The Lowland has just been shortlisted for the British Man Booker Prize. With presenter Har...

Neil Gaiman from 2013-09-07T21:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to the bestselling author Neil Gaiman, voted by listeners as the 'most wanted' guest for the programme. Neil is a British writer, comic book author, a short-story writer...

Ahdaf Soueif - The Map of Love from 2013-08-03T21:06

At this crucial moment in Egypt’s story, this month’s World Book Club talks to one of the country’s great writers, Ahdaf Soueif, about her internationally acclaimed novel The Map of Love. In her B...

Amit Chaudhuri from 2013-07-06T21:01

World Book Club’s Harriett Gilbert talks to the acclaimed Indian writer Amit Chaudhuri, in front of a multi-national audience and listeners around the world at the Nehru Centre in London. Chaudhuri...

Mohsin Hamid from 2013-06-01T21:06

With the current global release of the film of Pakistani writer Mohsin Hamid’s much garlanded novel The Reluctant Fundamentalist, another chance to hear the writer talking about his tense and provo...

World Book Club: The Great Gatsby from 2013-05-04T21:06

This month a very special edition of World Book Club coming from New York City in the USA. We’re partnering up with the acclaimed Leonard Lopate Show’s Book Club on the New York radio station WNY...

John Grisham - A Time To Kill from 2013-04-06T07:06

This month World Book Club are guests of the American Embassy in London and Harriett Gilbert and a studio audience will be talking to US superstar thriller writer John Grisham. They will be discuss...

Romesh Gunesekera - Reef from 2013-03-02T22:05

This month on World Book Club Harriett Gilbert will be talking with one of Sri Lanka’s leading writers, Romesh Gunesekera, about his acclaimed novel Reef. Reef is the moving, multi award-winning ...

David Mitchell - Cloud Atlas from 2013-02-02T22:06

To mark the release of the acclaimed film of David Mitchell’s masterpiece Cloud Atlas around the world, there’s another chance to catch the multiple prize-winning English author talking about his d...

Jane Austen - Pride and Prejudice from 2013-01-05T08:00

This month in a very special edition, we’re celebrating that most English of novelists Jane Austen. It’s two hundred years this month since the publication of Pride and Prejudice and we’ve invite...

CK Stead - My Name Was Judas from 2012-12-01T22:06

In this month's World Book Club, Harriett Gilbert talks to one of New Zealand's greatest living writers, CK Stead, about his prize-winning novel My Name Was Judas. With this playful re-writing of...

Paul Auster - New York Trilogy from 2012-11-03T22:06

On this month's World Book Club, Harriett Gilbert will be talking to bestselling American writer Paul Auster about his acclaimed work The New York Trilogy. In three brilliant variations on the cl...

Javier Marias - A Heart So White from 2012-10-06T21:06

This month's World Book Club is brought to you from the Institute of Cervantes in London where Harriett Gilbert will be talking to bestselling Spanish writer Javier Marias about his prize-winning w...

Jodi Picoult - My Sister's Keeper from 2012-09-01T21:06

In September's edition of World Book Club superstar US novelist Jodi Picoult talks about her heart-rending novel My Sister's Keeper. A searing examination of what it means to be a good parent, a ...

Amitav Ghosh - The Shadow Lines from 2012-05-26T08:06

This is the last edition of the London Calling season of World Book Clubs - which have been going out each Saturday during May. This week the programme are guests of The Nehru Centre - the cultura...

Howard Jacobson - The Finkler Question from 2012-05-19T21:06

This week we've the third edition in our London Calling season of World Book Clubs which are going out each Saturday during May. This week we're talking to Howard Jacobson at the first Soho Liter...

Andrea Levy - Small Island from 2012-05-12T19:06

Andrea Levy discusses her novel Small Island with a studio audience, and the author revisits the West London setting of her multi-prize-winning novel. A thought-provoking tale of love, friendship...

Peter Ackroyd - Hawksmoor from 2012-05-05T19:06

Coming up the first in our London Calling season of World Book Clubs which will be going out each Saturday over the next four weeks. In the run up to the London Olympic games we'll be discussing f...

Jonathan S Foer - Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close from 2012-03-03T20:06

Harriett Gilbert talks this month to American writer Jonathan Safran Foer about his novel, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Set in the aftermath of 9/11, it is the story of a young boy coming ...

Charles Dickens - Great Expectations from 2012-02-04T20:06

February 2012 marks the bicentenary of Victorian author Charles Dickens. In this special edition of World Book Club, biographer Claire Tomalin talks to Harriett Gilbert about Dickens novel Great ...

Witi Ihimaera - The Whale Rider from 2012-01-07T11:06

Acclaimed Maori writer Witi Ihimaera talks to Harriett Gilbert and a group of readers at the Cheltenham Literary Festival about his magical, lore-laden novel, The Whale Rider. It tells the haunti...

Penelope Lively - Moon Tiger from 2011-12-03T20:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to acclaimed British writer Penelope Lively about her Booker Prize winning novel Moon Tiger. A haunting tale of loss, loneliness and secret desires Moon Tiger is the kaleid...

David Grossman - To the End of the Land from 2011-11-05T11:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to acclaimed Israeli writer David Grossman about his award-winning novel, To the End of the Land. Winner of - amongst others - the Wingate Jewish Book Prize for 2012, To th...

Lionel Shriver - We Need To Talk About Kevin from 2011-10-01T10:06

With the international release of the much anticipated film of We Need To Talk about Kevin in October, here's another chance to catch the World Book Club in which Harriett Gilbert and a studio audi...

Hisham Matar - In The Country Of Men from 2011-09-03T10:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to Hisham Matar about his stunning debut novel In The Country Of Men. Set in the bewildering world of Tripoli, it is the emotional tale of a young boy growing up, where fea...

Colm Toibin - Brooklyn from 2011-08-06T10:06

Hariett Gilbert talks to Irish author Colm Toibin about his book Brooklyn. A haunting tale of love, loss and familial duty, and winner of the 2009 UK Costa Novel Award, Brooklyn follows the fortun...

Henning Mankell - Faceless Killers from 2011-07-02T10:06

This month's World Book Club comes from the church of St Mary Magdalene in Woodstock, England. Harriett Gilbert talks to Swedish superstar Henning Mankell about Faceless Killers, the first novel ...

Val McDermid - A Place of Execution from 2011-06-04T10:06

Acclaimed British writer Val McDermid discusses her page-turning crime novel A Place of Execution. A taut psychological suspense thriller told through two overlapping and interlocking narratives,...

Boris Akunin - The Winter Queen from 2011-05-07T10:02

Detective Erast Fandorin investigates a student's apparent suicide in 19th-century Moscow. Russian writer Boris Akunin talks to Harriett Gilbert and listeners in the studio and around the world abo...

Jo Nesbo - The Redbreast from 2011-04-02T09:06

Dysfunctional Norwegian detective Harry Hole navigates a World War Two ghost story. Voted the best Norwegian crime novel ever, Jo Nesbo's The Redbreast delves into neo-Nazi activity in Norway and e...

Javier Cercas - Soldiers Of Salamis from 2011-03-05T20:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to acclaimed Spanish writer and historian Javier Cercas about his haunting novel Soldiers of Salamis. Internationally feted and winner of the Independent Foreign Fiction Pr...

PJ O'Rourke - Eat The Rich from 2011-02-05T20:06

In Eat the Rich the inimitable American satirist P.J. O'Rourke tours the world trying to understand why some countries 'have' and some countries 'have not'. He talks to Harriett Gilbert and answe...

Bernhard Schlink - The Reader from 2011-01-01T20:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to the acclaimed German writer Bernhard Schlink about his explosively controversial novel, The Reader, at the Cheltenham Literary Festival. Made into an Oscar-winning Hollyw...

Damon Galgut - The Good Doctor from 2010-12-04T20:06

Damon Galgut's internationally acclaimed novel is the story of an idealistic medical graduate who arrives at an isolated South African hospital to take up a year's community service. Damon discuss...

Kamila Shamsie - Burnt Shadows from 2010-11-06T20:06

Harriett Gilbert and an audience at the Drill Hall Theatre in Central London talk to bestselling Pakistani writer Kamila Shamsie about her internationally acclaimed novel Burnt Shadows. Spanning ...

Barbara Kingsolver from 2010-10-02T19:06

This month's World Book Club comes from the Jesus Centre in London. Harriett Gilbert and readers talk to bestselling writer Barbara Kingsolver about her internationally acclaimed novel The Poisonw...

World Book Club: Carlos Ruiz Zafon from 2010-07-03T19:06

Part stunning literary thriller, part gothic novel, the book The Shadow of the Wind is a page-turning exploration of obsession in literature and love, and the places that obsession can lead. It i...

World Book Club: David Mitchell from 2010-06-05T19:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to David Mitchell about his novel Cloud Atlas.

World Book Club: Richard Ford from 2010-05-01T19:07

Richard Ford discusses his classic novel 'The Sportswriter' with Harriett Gilbert and an invited studio audience.

World Book Club: J.M.G. Le Clezio from 2010-04-03T19:06

French Nobel Laureate JMG Le Clezio talks to Harriett Gilbert in front of an invited studio audience about his recently-translated work Desert. Contrasting the beauty of a lost culture in the Nor...

World Book Club: John Boyne from 2010-03-06T20:06

John Boyne discusses his acclaimed novel 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas' with Harriett Gilbert and an invited studio audience.

World Book Club: Andrea Levy from 2010-02-06T20:06

Harriet Gilbert talks to Andrea Levy about Small Island, a heart-warming and tale of love and immigration during World War II.

Kiran Desai from 2010-01-02T20:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to Indian writer Kiran Desai about her internationally bestselling work The Inheritance of Loss. Winner of the Man Booker prize in 2006, Desai’s novel is a profoundly movin...

World Book Club: James Ellroy from 2009-12-05T20:06

James Ellroy discusses his novel American Tabloid with Harriett Gilbert and an invited audience.

World Book Club: Alaa Al Aswany from 2009-11-07T20:06

Harriett Gilbert talks to acclaimed Egyptian writer Alaa Al-Aswany about his bestselling novel The Yacoubian Building. It was the Arab world’s number-one bestseller for five years running after i...

World Book Club: Gunter Grass from 2009-10-03T19:06

Half a century on from its first publication, G?nter Grass will be talking about The Tin Drum from his home in Lubeck, Germany.

World Book Club: Lionel Shriver from 2009-07-09T08:48

This month Harriett Gilbert talks to acclaimed American writer Lionel Shriver. Her prizewinning novel, We Need to Talk about Kevin, is the profoundly disturbing story of a boy who, shortly before ...

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - Half of a Yellow Sun from 2009-06-04T11:00

In this month's World Book Club Harriett Gilbert will be at London’s South Bank Arts Centre talking to internationally acclaimed writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie about her bestselling novel Half of ...

Nawal El Saadawi - Woman At Point Zero from 2009-04-30T15:32

Harriett Gilbert talks to internationally acclaimed Egyptian writer Nawal El Saadawi about her classic novel Woman at Point Zero.Recorded in 2009. Written over 30 years ago but still resonating cl...

Mohsin Hamid - The Reluctant Fundamentalist from 2009-03-07T08:06

Mohsin Hamid talks to Harriett Gilbert and an invited audience about his bestselling novel The Reluctant Fundamentalist. Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2007 Mohsin Hamid's The Reluctant F...

Toni Morrison - Beloved from 2009-02-09T11:31

Harriett Gilbert talks to Toni Morrison about her novel Beloved. Recorded in January 2009. (Photo: BBC)

Derek Walcott from 2008-12-16T15:28

Harriett Gilbert talks to Nobel Laureate Derek Walcott about his epic poem Omeros, which explores ancient themes of displacement and exile in a modern Caribbean setting.

Episode 1 from 2008-11-18T12:16

Harriett Gilbert talks to Alice Walker about her novel The Color Purple.

Annie Proulx from 2008-09-30T15:58

American writer Annie Proulx talks about her prize-winning novel 'The Shipping News' and her short story 'Brokeback Mountain'.

26/08/2008 from 2008-08-27T10:38

David Lodge discusses his acclaimed novel 'Nice Work'.

Chinua Achebe from 2008-07-30T14:25

To mark the 50th anniversary of the first publication of the acclaimed African novel ‘Things Fall Apart’, we are repeating the memorable World Book Club with bestselling Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe.

John Irving from 2008-06-25T16:01

American author John Irving discusses his bestselling novel 'The World According to Garp', the tragicomic lifestory of the author TS Garp.

28/05/2008 from 2008-05-27T14:54

Harriett Gilbert talks to Khaled Hosseini about his book The Kite Runner.

Sebastian Faulks from 2008-05-02T09:50

Best-selling English writer Sebastian Faulks talks about his heart-rending novel of love and war, Birdsong.

Jane Smiley from 2008-04-01T13:59

Best-selling American author Jane Smiley discusses A Thousand Acres, her ambitious re-imagining of Shakespeare's King Lear transposed onto an Iowan farmstead, which won the Pulitzer Prize.

Patricia Cornwell from 2008-02-28T17:10

American crime writer Patricia Cornwell talks about Post Mortem, the first novel in her celebrated Kay Scarpetta series.

Edna O'Brien from 2008-01-31T11:07

Irish writer Edna O'Brien discusses The Country Girls, her novel about adolescence set in 1950's Ireland.

Umberto Eco from 2007-12-25T16:41

Italian author Umberto Eco discusses his novel The Name of the Rose, set in a 14th Century Franciscan monastery and answers questions from an invited audience. (Photo: Umberto Eco)

Sara Paretsky from 2007-11-28T15:35

American crime writer Sara Paretsky talks to Harriett Gilbert about her detective novel 'Indemnity Only'.

Michael Ondaatje from 2007-11-02T12:04

A special fifth-anniversary edition of the World Book Club with the Sri Lankan-born, Canadian author Michael Ondaatje who discusses his best-loved novel 'The English Patient'. Image: Michael Ondaa...

Armistead Maupin from 2007-09-25T16:19

Harriett Gilbert talks to American author Armistead Maupin about his novel Tales of the City.

Thomas Keneally: Schindler's Ark from 2007-06-26T16:37

Thomas Keneally discusses his novel Schindler's Ark published in 1982 - released as Schindler's List in the USA. It is based on the true story of Oskar Schindler, who is credited with saving hundre...

Richard Dawkins from 2007-06-07T16:30

Richard Dawkins answers questions from an audience and sent in by BBC listeners about his international best-seller, The Selfish Gene. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert.

Wole Soyinka from 2007-05-29T16:41

Wole Soyinka talks about his memoirs Ake: The Years of Childhood. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert

Mario Vargas Llosa from 2007-04-29T16:46

World Book club with author Mario Vargas Llosa.

Irvine Welsh from 2007-04-29T15:15

Author Irvine Welsh talks about his internationally best-selling novel Trainspotting and If You Liked School, You'll Love Work. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert.

Iain Banks from 2007-03-01T17:50

Scottish author, Iain Banks answers questions from an audience and sent in by BBC listeners about his controversial first novel, The Wasp Factory. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert.

Yann Martel: Life of Pi from 2007-01-29T17:58

Yann Martel, author of Life of Pi, talked to World Book Club in April 2014. His fantasy novel tells the tale of the shipwreck and survival of Pi Patel, a 16-year-ld boy - also a hyena, a zebra with...

Rose Tremain - Restoration from 2007-01-18T17:56

Rose Tremain answers questions from an audience and sent in by World Service listeners about her international best-seller, Restoration, set in the time of Charles II in 17th Century England. Prese...

William Boyd - Brazzaville Beach from 2006-12-27T17:28

William Boyd discusses his novel Brazzaville Beach with Harriett Gilbert

John Le Carre from 2006-12-25T17:16

Interview with special guest John le Carre about his recent novel “The Perfect Spy” Presenter: Harriett Gilbert.

Frank McCourt from 2006-10-31T17:36

Presenter: Harriett Gilbert. Frank McCourt joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss his book Angela's Ashes.

Arnold Wesker from 2006-10-06T16:43

Arnold Wesker joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss his classic play Chicken Soup with Barley. Presented by Harriett Gilbert.

Ian Rankin from 2006-08-28T16:52

Presenter: Harriett Gilbert. Ian Rankin joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss his novel Black and Blue.

Joanna Trollope from 2006-07-25T17:00

The World Book Club talks to author Joanna Trollope about her book The Rector's Wife. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert.

Kurt Vonnegut from 2006-05-30T17:12

Kurt Vonnegut joins an audience of World Service listeners to answer questions about his novel Slaughterhouse-Five

Orhan Pamuk from 2006-04-25T17:13

Orhan Pamuk joins an audience of World Service listeners to answer questions about his novel My Name is Red (Benim Ad?m K?rm?z?).

Alexander McCall Smith from 2006-03-25T18:17

From the British Library in London, Alexander McCall Smith talks to the programme as well as an audience for a question and answer session. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert

Scott Turow from 2006-02-09T18:20

Scott Turow joins an audience of World Service listeners to answer questions about his 1987 crime novel Presumed Innocent.

Louis De Bernieres - Captain Corelli's Mandolin from 2006-01-05T18:23

The British author, Louis De Bernieres answers questions from an audience and sent in by BBC listeners about his novel, Captain Corelli's Mandolin. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert. (Photo: Louis de Be...

Philip Pullman from 2005-11-17T18:26

Philip Pullman talks about his book and takes questions on his book The Northen Lights part of the His Dark Materials trilogy. (Photo: Philip Pullman. Credit: Getty Images)

Salman Rushdie from 2005-10-01T17:30

Salman Rushdie talks to an audience and takes questions on his award winning book Midnight's Children. Presented by Harriett Gilbert.

Andre Brink from 2005-08-27T17:31

Andre Brink joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss his novel A Dry White Season.

Joyce Carol Oates from 2005-07-23T17:31

Author of "Blonde" Joyce Carol Oates answers questions about her novel. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert.

Carlos Fuentes from 2005-06-15T17:32

Carlos Fuentes joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss his novel The Death of Artemio Cruz.

Nick Hornby from 2005-05-28T17:33

Nick Hornby talks to an audience about his book about being an Arsenal football fan Fever Pitch. Presented by Harriett Gilbert.

Vikram Seth - A Suitable Boy from 2005-05-09T17:27

Vikram Seth joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss his novel A Suitable Boy. Presented by Harriett Gilbert. Recorded May 2005. (Photo: BBC)

Ian McEwan - Atonement from 2005-03-26T18:34

Ian McEwan discusses his 20th century familiy saga about the need for atonement

Zadie Smith from 2005-02-19T18:35

Zadie Smith talks to an audience about her novel 'White Teeth'. Presented by Harriett Gilbert.

PD James from 2005-01-25T18:35

P.D. James joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss her novel 'Original Sin'. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert.

Paulo Coelho - The Alchemist from 2004-12-12T18:42

Writer Paulo Coelho talks about his book The Alchemist which has been translated into dozens of languages and has sold over 27 million copies worldwide. Presented by Harriett Gilbert. (Photo: Paul...

Kazuo Ishiguro from 2004-11-04T18:44

Kazuo Ishiguro joins Harriett Gilbert and an audience of World Service listeners to discuss his classic novel The Remains Of The Day. (Photo: Kazuo Ishiguro. Credit: Jeff Overs/BBC)

Anita Desai - Fasting, Feasting from 2004-09-30T17:49

Anita Desai joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss her 1999 novel 'Fasting, Feasting'. Presented by Harriett Gilbert. Broadcast in September 2004. (Photo: Anita Desai)(Credit: Jer...

Roddy Doyle from 2004-09-13T17:46

Roddy Doyle talks about his novel The Commitments. Presented by Harriett Gilbert.

Amoz Oz from 2004-09-02T17:49

Amos Oz joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss his novel 'My Michael'. Presented by Harriett Gilbert at the Edinburgh International Book Festival.

Gillian Slovo from 2004-07-29T17:51

South African novelist, Gillian Slovo talks about her novel 'Red Dust'. Presented by Harriett Gilbert.

Tracy Chevalier from 2004-05-20T17:53

Tracy Chevalier joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss her novel 'Girl With A Pearl Earring'. Image: Girl with a Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer, Credit: Vincenzo Pinto/AFP/Gett...

Martin Cruz Smith from 2004-02-24T18:56

Author Martin Cruz Smith talks about his novel Gorky Park. Presented by Harriett Gilbert from California in a special co-production with San Francisco radio station KALW

Amy Tan from 2004-01-29T18:58

Amy Tan joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss her novel The Joy Luck Club.

Isabelle Allende - The House of Spirits from 2003-11-26T16:14

Chilean novelist Isabel Allende joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss her novel 'The House of the Spirits'. First broadcast in November 2003.(Photo credit: Lori Barra.)

Frederick Forsyth - The Day of the Jackal from 2003-10-23T15:15

Frederick Forsyth joins an audience of World Service listners to discuss his novel 'The Day of the Jackal'. Introduced by Harriett Gilbert. First broadcast in October 2003. (Photo: Frederick Forsy...

Peter Carey from 2003-09-25T15:16

Peter Carey joins an audience of World Service listeners to discuss his novel 'Oscar and Lucinda'. Introduced by Harriett Gilbert.

Ruth Rendell - A Judgement in Stone from 2003-08-28T15:17

Popular British crime writer Ruth Rendell talked to the programme about her work, including that written under her pseudonym Barbara Vine. Ruth Rendell died in May 2015. (Photo: Ruth Rendell)(Cred...

Julian Barnes from 2003-07-31T15:17

Julian Barnes joins a World Service audience to discuss his novel 'Flaubert's Parrot'. Presented by Harriett Gilbert.

Jung Chang from 2003-06-14T15:20

Prize winning Chinese writer Jung Chang joins a World Service audience to discuss her novel 'Wild Swans'. Presented by Harriett Gilbert.

Terry Pratchett - The Colour of Magic from 2003-05-29T15:18

Author Terry Pratchett talking about The Colour Of Magic in 2003, one of his Discworld series. Terry died in March 2015. The World Book Club was presented by Harriett Gilbert. Photo: Terry Pratche...

Margaret Atwood from 2003-04-08T15:19

The Handmaid's Tale is a dystopian novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood. The novel explores themes of women in subjugation, and the various means by which they gain agency. Presenter: Harriett ...

Doris Lessing from 2003-02-11T16:20

The British author Doris Lessing died on 17 November at the age of 94. As a tribute the BBC World Service revisits Doris Lessing’s discussion with Harriett Gilbert from a 2003 edition of World Book...

Hanif Kureishi from 2003-02-03T16:21

Hanif Kureishi joins a World Service audience to discuss his book 'The Buddha of Suburbia'. Presented by Harriett Gilbert.

V S Naipaul - A House for Mr Biswas from 2003-01-04T16:12

Nobel Prize winner V. S Naipaul discussess his book 'A House for Mr Biswas' with an audience of World Service listeners. Presented by Harriett Gilbert. (Photo: VS Naipaul, Credit: Press Association)

Ben Okri from 2002-12-31T16:21

Nigerian born writer Ben Okri discusses his novel The Famished Road. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert.

Arundhati Roy - The God of Small Things from 2002-12-02T16:22

Indian writer and activist Arundhati Roy talks to the programme about winning the Booker Prize in 1997 for The God of Small Things. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert. (First broadcast December 2002)(Pho...

Martin Amis - Money: A Suicide Note from 2002-10-08T15:23

Martin Amis joins an audience of World Service listeners to answer questions about his novel Money. Broadcast in October 2002. (Photo: Martin Amis, 2006. Credit: BBC)

Stephen King from 2002-08-27T15:29

What makes Stephen King, not only the Master of Horror, but more than that? (Image: Stephen King speaking in 2009. Credit: Mike Segar/Reuters)

Garrison Keillor - Lake Wobegon Days from 2002-08-13T23:00

In the First ever Meridian Writing World Book Club, Harriett Gilbert talks to American writer Garrison Keillor on his book Lake Wobegon Days.

David Hare from 2002-07-27T15:28

Interview with the playwright and director, David Hare.

Maya Angelou from 2002-07-04T15:28

Interview with American poet, memoirist, actress, Maya Angelou. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert.

Chenjerai Hove - Ancestors from 2002-02-05T16:26

Zimbabwean novelist,poet and playright Chenjerai Hove talks to Harriett Gilbert about his novel 'Ancestors'. This programme with Chenjerai Hove, who died in 2015, was first broadcast in February 2002.

Bahaa Taher from 2002-01-15T16:24

Harriett Gilbert talks to the Egyptian writer, Bahaa Taher an Egyptian novelist who writes in Arabic and is the winner of the inaugural International Prize for Arabic Fiction, awarded in 2008.

Iain Sinclair from 2002-01-10T16:30

Interview with Iain Sinclair on his book, 'London Orbital'. Presenter: Harriett Gilbert.