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Each episode a woman chooses a book she loves and reads the first chapter aloud.

FEB 4

Mia reads Marcel Proust

Name: Mia Reading: Sodom and Gomorrah, Marcel Proust Why did you want to read this? In Search of Lost Time is my life manual for its anthropological overindulgence, opulent but precise use of language, and outbursts of clarity concerning the artistic impulse, disappointment, experience, and time. It is so thorough and extensive in its rhythm that I remember certain scenes as if they happened to me. In particular this chapter is dear to me for how botanical lifecycles become a metaphor for sexual attraction and its consummation. The symbolism of pollination is woven throughout and the language is so rich that you can touch it. I mean, the words are like morsels of food, even when they don't quite make sense coming from my mouth. How did you record yourself? I recorded myself on a lazy Saturday afternoon in my studio in Mexico City, which could otherwise be described as a cuarto de servicio on the roof of my apartment building, chosen for the added benefit of the sonic complexities of intermittent sirens and vacuums being used in the apartments below, a place where I can be alone.

1h 30m
JAN 7

Jessie reads Renata Adler

Name: Jessie Reading: Pitch Dark, Renata Adler Why did you want to read this? It’s one of my favourite books, and I try to re-read it every year or so. I suspected that reading it out loud would reveal some new aspect of it, which it did. How did you record yourself? On my laptop at my desk very early in the morning.

1h 33m
12/03/2025

Grace reads Ada Zhang

Name: Grace Reading: The Sorrows of Others, Ada Zhang Why did you want to read this? The stories in this collection feel so familiar to me--the subtle ways Ada Zhang plays with memory, emotion, and interiority inspire me. How did you record yourself? On my bed with my cat sleeping next to me.

43 min
11/05/2025

Paola lee a Clarice Lispector (en español) / Paola reads Clarice Lispector (in Spanish)

Nombre: Paola Leyendo: La hora de la estrella, Clarice Lispector ¿Por qué quisiste leer esto? Mi cariño por Clarice es inmenso. La Hora de la Estrella fue el primer libro que leí de ella y la vida no fue igual después de eso. Pocas veces leo en voz alta y qué mejor que tener la oportunidad de hacerlo con las que ella escogió y puso en este libro. Me parece que hay algo especial, único y mágico en sus escritos: siempre están llenos de frescura reconfortante (casi la misma que sucede cuando se lee por primera vez). ¿Cómo te grabaste? Con el micrófono de mi computadora, en la sala de mi estudio y cerca del mediodía de un martes de julio de 2025. Aun con un poco de distancia entre mi ventana y la calle, algunos ruidos se colaron. / Why did you want to read this? My affection for Clarice is immense. The Hour of the Star was the first book I read of hers, and life wasn’t the same after that. I rarely read out loud, and what better than to have the chance to do so with what she herself chose and included in this book. I think there’s something special, unique, and magical about her writing: it’s always full of a comforting freshness (almost the same as when you read for the first time). How did you record yourself? With my computer’s microphone, in the living room of my studio, around midday on a Tuesday in July 2025. Even with a bit of distance between my window and the street, some noises still sneaked in.

23 min
10/01/2025

Sharon reads Madam de La Fayette

Name: Sharon Reading: The Princess of Clèves, Madam de La Fayette Why did you want to read this? I had re-read Marguerite Duras’s novel Le Ravissement de Lol V. Stein, and that caused me to think of La Princesse de Clèves, perhaps the first psychological novel. I thought of the moments of ravishing encounters or encounters that ravish, that take place through the gaze: seen, unseen. How did you record yourself? In my study, at my table, reading Nancy Mitford’s translation from the screen of my computer rather than reclining on a divan, as my English (and French) copies either are in London or have been stolen from my library, by the window, two dogs at my feet, one cat on the divan, another in a basket, a third crossly prowling, with a number of failed attempts, so many, until I determined that I must simply press on regardless of errors in reading, the stutters, the inconsistencies of pronunciation, the misreadings.

1h 4m
09/03/2025

Carol reads Anne Carson

Name: Carol Reading: Cassandra Float Can, Anne Carson Why did you want to read this? I chose Float by Anne Carson, a collection of individual chapbooks that can be read in any order and from these I picked Cassandra Float Can. Three increasingly short cuts of the same story. Cuts, holes, silences, absence and veils flying up; she takes the reader on a sharp meander through the prophecies of Cassandra in Aeschylus’ Agamemnon, the short-hand left behind by Edmund Husserl, and the anarchitecture of Gordon Matta-Clark. I love this writing and the exquisite connections within it. I’ve read it again and again, savouring the words and finding ever new resonances. How did you record yourself? I went into the bedroom and drew the curtains to soak up any echo. I sat on the bed, propped up by pillows and placed my recorder in front of me, on an ironing board as it happens, set up across the bed to form a table. The room was dark and I had to peer fiercely to make out the words in front of me. I imagined Anne Carson would have laughed if she'd seen me.

23 min
08/06/2025

Suyin reads Stuart Hall

Name: Suyin Reading: Familiar Stranger, Stuart Hall Why did you want to read this? I first read this book in 2023 and so much of it has stayed with me and shaped my work and thinking since then. As I was re-reading it for this project, I realised how many common threads and themes there are that have appeared in my own life experiences -- it seemed almost serendipitous. Familiar Stranger was published posthumously in 2018, and I keep thinking about how enduring his writing about migrant and diasporic experiences continues to be -- particularly at a time where Britain is characterised as becoming 'an island of strangers' by our political leadership. How did you record yourself? I recorded myself sitting in my armchair in my study on a sunny Sunday afternoon. I had returned from a friend's wedding the day before, where I was honoured that she invited me to read a short poem as part of her ceremony. I thought this would be a nice activity to do the following day, given my vocal chords have warmed up a bit (hopefully!).

53 min
07/16/2025

Amélie lit Ronan Guillou (en français) / Amélie reads Ronan Guillou (in French)

Nom: Amélie En lisant: Angel, Ronan Guillou (texte de Wim Wenders) Pourquoi voulais-tu lire ça ? Je suis d’abord tombée en amour avec une photographie (Tim Claar, serveur au Ruby's) puis avec tout le travail de Ronan Guillou. J’ai rencontré Ronan lors du lancement de Angel à la librairie photographique à Paris (Merci Kiki !). J’avais dans les mains le livre Once de Wim Wenders. Ronan a trouvé ça drôle. Il m’a dit comme il chérissait ce livre et que c’était justement Wim Wenders qui avait écrit le texte d’ouverture de Angel. Une jolie coïncidence ! Ronan nous a quittés il y a 3 ans et c’est avec beaucoup d’émotion que je lui rends ce petit hommage. Comment t’es-tu enregistrée ? L’exercice a été beaucoup plus compliqué que ce que je l’imaginais. Il y avait la structure et la poésie du texte et puis l’émotion. J’ai pensé changer de livre mais non, ça devait être celui-ci. Ronan Guillou, Wim Wenders, Leonard Cohen, c’était une évidence. J’ai commencé l’enregistrement chez moi, à Londres, un dimanche soir au coucher du soleil. Je crois que la lumière se devait d’être particulière. J’ai finalement terminé à Pornichet en France, chez mes parents, dans ma chambre d’enfant, dans un silence presque absolu. J’aime à penser que Ronan est passé par là, juste à ce moment-là. / Why did you want to read this? I first fell in love with a photograph (Tim Claar, waiter at Ruby's), and then with all of Ronan Guillou's work. I met Ronan at the launch of Angel at the photography bookstore in Paris (Thank you, Kiki!). I had the book Once by Wim Wenders in my hands. Ronan found it funny. He told me how much he cherished that book and that it was also Wim Wenders who had written the opening text for Angel. A lovely coincidence! Ronan left us three years ago, and it's with much emotion that I pay him this little tribute. How did you record yourself? The exercise was much more complicated than I had imagined. There was the structure and poetry of the text, and then the emotion. I thought about choosing a different book, but no, it had to be this one. Ronan Guillou, Wim Wenders, Leonard Cohen—it was obvious. I began the recording at home, in London, on a Sunday evening at sunset. I think the light had to be special. I eventually finished in Pornichet, France, at my parents' house, in my childhood bedroom, in almost absolute silence. I like to think Ronan passed by, just at that moment.

11 min

Each episode a woman chooses a book she loves and reads the first chapter aloud.

Creator

Freya
Years Active

2021 - 2026
Episodes

81
Rating

Clean
Copyright

© Freya
Show Website

women read