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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. 

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Guest: Sloane Crosley

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

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

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

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

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