The Irish novelist on navigating success shortly after a cancer diagnosis and a marriage breakdown, the renaissance in Irish writing, and how his ‘tragic worldview’ fits the times
The US children’s author and novelist on a sublime musical trio, how spices reinvigorated his cooking, an addictive ‘mid-19th century’ BBC panel show and being floored by a new jazz track
A nerdy literary parlour game that started in lockdown has turned into one of the most-hyped debuts of the year - soon to be a series on BBC1. Its author talks about how her obsession with a long-dead polar explorer helped her find a way to write about family trauma