In this month’s episode of A Thread of One’s Own - a book club-style podcast on creativity, writing, and living - our host and bestselling author Theo Clarke speaks to non-fiction writer, editor, and books journalist Caroline Sanderson about her recent memoir Listen With Father: How I Learned to Love Classical Music, published by Unbound in 2025. The episode explores memoir writing, creative nonfiction, music, and memory, and how books help us understand family, loss, and identity. They discuss what it means to write a memoir; how music can act as a channel for remembrance; questions of art versus artist; the place of classical music in contemporary culture; Caroline’s nonfiction writing process and research methods; and book recommendations for readers interested in memoir, music writing, and literary nonfiction. LISTEN WITH FATHER Listen With Father: How I Learned to Love Classical Music explores memory, loss and inheritance through music. Moving between childhood listening, adult reflection and travel, Caroline Sanderson traces her evolving relationship with her father and the composers he loved. The book considers how music can hold memory, shape identity and offer connection across time. BIOGRAPHY Caroline Sanderson is a non-fiction writer, editor, and books journalist. Caroline is well-known in the book trade and beyond for her author profiles and her non-fiction previews for The Bookseller which she has compiled each month for over 20 years. She has been among the earliest champions during this time of such stellar non-fiction debuts as H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald; East West Street by Philippe Sands; and Educated by Tara Westover. She also writes reviews, features and interviews for a wide variety of other publications including The Express, Mslexia, The Observer and The Mail on Sunday. Caroline has written six non-fiction books of her own, including A Rambling Fancy: In the Footsteps of Jane Austen and Someone Like Adele, a biography of the superstar singer. Programme Director of Stroud Book Festival, Caroline regularly chairs events at book festivals and in bookshops, most recently for Hay Festival, Edinburgh International Book Festival, and Cheltenham Literature Festival; and for Waterstones, Daunts and Toppings. Caroline has judged many book prizes, including categories at the British Book Awards. She has served as chair of the 2022 Judges for the prestigious Baillie Gifford Prize, the UK’s premier prize for non-fiction. Caroline is an Associate Fellow of the Royal Literary Fund. Read her Substack ‘What to Read Now’ here. ABOUT THE HOST Theo Clarke hosts A Thread of One’s Own and the hit podcast Breaking the Taboo, which is in the Top 5% of most listened-to podcasts globally. She is the bestselling author of Breaking the Taboo: Why We Need to Talk About Birth Trauma. Theo previously served as the Member of Parliament for Stafford and won “Speech of the Year” at the Parliamentarian of the Year Awards. She has twice been listed among the Top 100 Women in Westminster (2024 & 2025). Follow @theoclarkemp This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theodoraclarke.substack.com
