Tom's Book Club

Thomas Watters
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Tom’s Book Club is a weekly books podcast featuring in-depth conversations with leading contemporary authors. Each episode features a focused, in-depth conversation with the authors behind the most talked-about new fiction, exploring the ideas, craft, and real-world questions that shape their work. Recent guests include Booker Prize winners George Saunders and Howard Jacobson, alongside bestselling writers and emerging voices from across the literary world. Subscribe for thoughtful author interviews, new book recommendations, and a closer look at the stories everyone’s talking about. Have a guest suggestion or enquiry? I'd love to hear from you: tomsbookclubpod@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. 2d ago

    Kate Atkinson on Our Noble Selves

    Kate Atkinson joins Tom’s Book Club to discuss Our Noble Selves, her new historical novel set in post-war Britain against the backdrop of the 1951 Festival of Britain. It’s the summer of 1951, and Britain is trying to put the darkness of the Second World War behind it. Former foreign correspondent and war reporter Harry Flynn joins the eccentric team preparing the Festival of Britain, while attempting to rebuild his life after the war. But when a woman he's been seeing goes missing, Flynn finds himself under suspicion and drawn into an investigation involving a cast of unforgettable characters. In this conversation, Kate Atkinson talks about the real history behind Our Noble Selves, including the extraordinary and often eccentric details of the Festival of Britain. She discusses her writing process and how she creates characters, including one inspired by television cook Fanny Craddock. We also explore Kate’s approach to humour and why even a novel dealing with the aftermath of war can be funny. Kate Atkinson is one of Britain’s most acclaimed novelists. Her debut novel, Behind the Scenes at the Museum, won the Whitbread Book of the Year prize. Her bestselling historical novels include Life After Life, A God in Ruins, Transcription and Shrines of Gaiety. She is also the author of the Jackson Brodie crime novels, including Case Histories and Death at the Sign of the Rook. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Kate Atkinson on Our Noble Selves

  2. Aug 25

    Patrick Ryan on Buckeye

    Patrick Ryan joins Tom’s Book Club to discuss Buckeye, his acclaimed debut novel about love, war, grief, family and the secrets that can shape generations. Set in the small town of Bonhomie, Ohio, Buckeye begins in May 1945, as the Second World War comes to an end. A chance encounter between Margaret Salt and hardware-store owner Cal Jenkins sets in motion a story that unfolds across generations, bringing together two couples - Cal and Becky, and Margaret and Felix - whose lives become intertwined in unexpected and sometimes devastating ways. In this conversation, Patrick Ryan talks about the inspiration behind Buckeye and the role his own family history played in the novel. We discuss the different ways people experience and process war, the lasting effects of trauma, and the complicated relationship between grief and forgiveness. Patrick also talks about his writing process, getting advice from Ann Patchett and why editing is far more fun than writing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Patrick Ryan on Buckeye

  3. Aug 18

    Avni Doshi on The First House

    Avni Doshi joins Tom’s Book Club to discuss The First House, her dark and hypnotic second novel about marriage, motherhood, divorce, power and transformation. The novel begins with a woman being told by her husband that he wants a divorce. Convinced that they have had an almost perfect marriage, she is left to pick through the ruins of their shared life while caring for their two young daughters. As the summer unfolds, memories of her marriage begin to shift, warning signs emerge, and the boundaries between reality, mythology, astrology and the natural world start to blur. In this conversation, Avni Doshi talks about the inspiration behind The First House, creating an unnamed and flawed narrator, and exploring the power dynamics within marriage and family. We discuss patriarchy, motherhood, midlife, astrology, mythology and more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Avni Doshi on The First House

  4. Aug 15 ·  Bonus

    Behind The Books: Patrice Lawrence, Waterstones Children's Laureate

    In this special episode of Tom’s Book Club: Behind The Books, Tom talks to Patrice Lawrence, the newly appointed Waterstones Children’s Laureate 2026–2028, about children’s books, reading, representation and the power of stories to make young people feel seen and heard. Patrice Lawrence is the award-winning author of Orangeboy, Needle, Is That Your Mama?, Granny Came Here on the Empire Windrush and Our Story Starts in Africa. A decade after the publication of Orangeboy, she takes on one of the most important roles in British children’s literature. In this conversation, Patrice discusses what it means to become Children’s Laureate, her plans for the role, and the importance of children seeing themselves reflected in books.  Patrice also reflects on her own childhood reading, the books that shaped her, the realities of writing for children today, and why she still feels guilty about an encounter with a Doctor Who companion. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Behind The Books: Patrice Lawrence, Waterstones Children's Laureate

  5. Aug 11

    Katie Huttlestone on A Healthy Appetite

    Debut author Katie Huttlestone joins Tom's Book Club to discuss A Healthy Appetite, a darkly funny and unsettling novel about cancer, recovery, desire and what we might sacrifice to survive. Hannah has spent a decade living with cancer. Now in her thirties, with her future seemingly disappearing before her, she's given the chance to take part in a clinical trial that could save her life. But when the treatment begins to work, Hannah's appetite returns, first for meat, despite being a committed vegetarian, and then for much more. In this episode, Katie Huttlestone talks about writing "recovery horror", drawing on her own experience of cancer, and exploring what happens after survival. We discuss Hannah's changing relationship with her body, sex and desire and the complicated reality of relying on the NHS while recognising its flaws. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Katie Huttlestone on A Healthy Appetite

  6. Aug 4

    Samantha Harvey on Orbital

    Booker Prize-winning author Samantha Harvey joins Tom's Book Club to discuss her acclaimed novel Orbital, a luminous story set aboard the International Space Station that explores time, humanity and our fragile place in the universe. Recorded in 2024, the morning after Samantha Harvey's Booker Prize win, this episode revisits a conversation about the inspiration behind Orbital, writing about space, finding wonder in the everyday, and how one of the year's most celebrated novels came together. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Samantha Harvey on Orbital

  7. Jul 28

    Colson Whitehead on Cool Machine

    Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Colson Whitehead joins Tom's Book Club to discuss Cool Machine, the gripping final instalment in his acclaimed Harlem Trilogy. In this episode, Colson Whitehead talks about bringing the Harlem Trilogy to a close, creating one of his most memorable characters in Ray Carney, researching New York's criminal underworld, writing about ageing, art and restitution, and whether he'd ever return to these characters. He also reflects on becoming the only living novelist to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction twice, and the influence Star Wars has had on his writing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Colson Whitehead on Cool Machine

  8. Jul 21

    Daniel Mason on Country People

    Daniel Mason joins Tom's Book Club to discuss Country People, his witty and richly imagined new novel blending folklore, family life and the strange stories communities choose to believe. In this episode, Daniel talks about the inspiration behind Country People, creating the warm but wonderfully hapless Miles Krzelewski, writing unforgettable eccentric characters, and why humour plays such an important role in his fiction. He also discusses local legends, our desire to believe the unbelievable, and how his work as a psychiatrist informs his writing. Daniel Mason is the author of North Woods, The Piano Tuner and The Winter Soldier, while his story collection A Registry of My Passage Upon the Earth was a Pulitzer Prize finalist. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Daniel Mason on Country People
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About

Tom’s Book Club is a weekly books podcast featuring in-depth conversations with leading contemporary authors. Each episode features a focused, in-depth conversation with the authors behind the most talked-about new fiction, exploring the ideas, craft, and real-world questions that shape their work. Recent guests include Booker Prize winners George Saunders and Howard Jacobson, alongside bestselling writers and emerging voices from across the literary world. Subscribe for thoughtful author interviews, new book recommendations, and a closer look at the stories everyone’s talking about. Have a guest suggestion or enquiry? I'd love to hear from you: tomsbookclubpod@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    Thomas Watters
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    36
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Thomas Watters
  • Show Website
    Tom's Book Club