Today I sat down with Vanessa Beaumont, a former literary agent and novelist about her debut novel The Other Side of Paradise which follows Jean Buckman, a young American newspaper heiress, who arrives in London in the glittering 1920s, and evolves throughout the story, through personal tragedy and loss. Over the course of the story, we watch her grapple with the pressures of mid-Century society on a woman, what it means to do one’s duty, and the pull of desire in the face of it all. It’s...

Today I sat down with Éric Chacour, a Canadian novelist born to Egyptian parents, to discuss his stunning debut novel. What I Know About You has captivated readers in its original French, winning the prestigious Prix Femina des Lycéens, and been translated into numerous languages, and with Pablo Strauss’ 2024 translation, now makes its grand entrance into the English-speaking world. Eric's novel, which he spent 10 years working on before it was published in 2023, is a richly woven tapestry...

In this week's podcast episode, I sat down with Florence Gaub, the Director of Research at the NATO Defense College in Rome. A World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council member, and Vice-President of the European Forum Alpbach, Florence is a master of strategic foresight and international security. Her latest book, The Future, is a must-read, exploring how humanity's visions of tomorrow have shifted in different historical contexts. Our conversation spanned various domains, from the...

My guest today is the writer Charlie Higson, author of On His Majesty’s Secret Service, the latest Bond continuation novel. Written to coincide with King Charles's coronation and the 60th anniversary of On Her Majesty's Secret Service, the book brings Bond into the modern era in a narrative that identifies very real geopolitical threats with some good old Bondian adventure.  For those of you to whom the name Charlie Higson his familiar, that’s because he was one of the writers and...

Stanley Kubrick was a visionary American filmmaker, whose groundbreaking work redefined cinema. Renowned for his meticulous attention to detail, visual innovation and the complexity of his narratives, Kubrick's films crossed many genres. Perhaps most interestingly for Lit With Charles listeners, many of his most famous movies also began their lives as books. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) set new standards in science fiction, while A Clockwork Orange (1971) delved into dystopian violence. His...

Leila Slimani is a highly acclaimed French-Moroccan author who has written some absolutely fantastic novels over the last few years. She burst into the mainstream consciousness when she won the prestigious Prix Goncourt in France in 2016 for her second novel Chanson Douce, which was translated into English in 2018 as The Perfect Nanny in the US, or Lullaby in the UK. She followed this up with non-fiction work as well as a fantastic trilogy which is two-thirds finished, called  “Le Pays des...

The London-based writer and journalist, Aniefiok Ekpoudom, joins me today to discuss his recent debut book, Where We Come From, which is a ‘history of rap, home and hope in modern Britain’, recently published by Faber & Faber in the UK.  When grime music emerged in the early 2000s, born on the streets of East London, it fused elements of UK garage, drum and bass, and dancehall into a dynamic, fast-paced sound. With raw authenticity and sharp lyrical narratives, grime quickly made its...

Italian literature is widely known for its rich tradition of passion, intellect and innovation, and it has always been a standard-bearer for imaginative & emotive literature. This week I'm speaking with the Italian author, screenwriter and BAFTA Award nominee, Ilaria Bernardini. One of Italy’s leading contemporary novelists, Ilaria has penned nine novels, one graphic novel, and two collections of short stories, as well as being a screenwriter collaborating with the legendary director...

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Peter Singer, one of the world’s leading moral philosophers, known for his work in building the philosophical foundations of the modern animal rights movement, which he helped develop with his landmark book “Animal Liberation” published in 1975 which was one of the first to highlight hideous conditions of animal suffering and the vacuity of “speciesism”. He is a prominent advocate of Utilitarianism, and over the years, he’s written about...

The 1930s Hollywood star Anna May Wong was a trailblazer in the Golden Age of Hollywood. While navigating the treacherous waters of racial prejudice, she carved a path to international fame, becoming the first Chinese-American bona fide Hollywood movie star. This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with author Katie Gee Salisbury, who’s written a biography of Anna May Wong called Not Your China Doll, published earlier this year to huge acclaim. In today’s episode, Katie and I discuss, as...

The Caribbean is a region with an incredible history of vibrant cultures blending into each other, which is reflected in so many elements from the food, the local traditions, the music and of course, the literature. Today’s guest hails from the nation of Trinidad and Tobago, and the region has clearly left an indelible mark on her writing, infusing it with the rhythms, flavors, and complexities that define the Caribbean experience. Based on the new format of the show, Costa Prize winning...

Welcome to a special episode that marks a whole year of Lit with Charles. As we wrap up a full year of podcasting, it's time to reflect on the journey we've embarked on together. From the very beginning, the goal was clear – to create a space for the curious souls eager to explore the world of literature, authors, and the intricate process of writing. In today's episode, we take a trip down memory lane, revisiting some of the most captivating questions and answers that have lingered in my...

The Chinese Cultural Revolution was launched by Chairman Mao in 1966 and lasted a whole decade until his death. It aimed to purify China of perceived bourgeois elements and reinforce hardline communist ideology. The era left a huge impact on China's socio-political landscape, but despite its seismic impact, it’s not that well understood by many Westerners. Today, I’m speaking with Tania Branigan. Tania spent 7 years as the Guardian’s China correspondent, and is also the author of a recent...

There’s little more universally enticing than a story about someone setting off on a great voyage: an intrepid adventurer protagonist. This week, the book I’m discussing is just that – a journey into unknown frontiers, both geographically and linguistically. Today I’m speaking with author and journalist Lauren Collins. Lauren, a staff writer with the New Yorker since 2008, published her incredible debut novel, When In French: Love in a Second Language, to huge acclaim in 2016. In this...

Our relationship with our parents and, more widely, with our ancestors’ stories are some of the most formative & influential connections in many people’s lives, both for good and bad. The impact of this relationship can be felt in so many different ways, not least of which in artistic expression.  With me today is Violaine Huisman, a French author based in New York who recently became the Director of Cultural Affairs at the Alliance Française. She’s the author of a trilogy of novels...

Cowboys, golden dust-plains, and wide open spaces. This is the stuff of the Far West, a setting that has been visited & re-visited in literature & film, often pitting good versus evil in stark terms. And today I’m talking about one of the greatest novels of the American West: Lonesome Dove, by the Texan author Larry McMurtry, published in 1985.  In this episode, I speak to Kate Slotover, co-founder of The Book Club Review – a book club in podcast form, which loves debate and...

In this episode, I highlight the top 5 five books that I read last year. It’s a great way to remember what I’ve read and what I value in my reading experiences. I dive deeper than I usually would into what makes these books especially great and what they meant to me.Sometimes I’ll enjoy something quite linear and - gasp! - commercial whilst, at other times, I’ll prefer something quite experimental & different. In today’s list, those eclectic choices shine through meaning that there’s a...

My guest today is Nandini Das, a Professor of Early Modern Literature & Culture at Exeter College at Oxford University, and author of the book “Courting India” which is an account of England’s first ambassador to the Mughal court, Sir Thomas Roe, who was tasked with building a relationship with the emperor Jahangir in order to build English trade with India.  It’s a fascinating book because it takes everything you thought you knew about the historic relationship between the two...

Today I had the pleasure of speaking to Lauren Easum, co-founder of the Parisian bookplate company Ex-Libris. Along with her business partner, Igor Telinge, Lauren has opened Ex-Libris Paris with the intention of bringing tradition back to life, and offering bibliophiles a way to imprint their books with their names & heritage. In today’s episode, Lauren and I cover a wide range of topics – the history of bookplates, or ex-libris stamps as we sometimes refer to them, what makes a good...

Today I spoke to Blindboy Boatclub – a multi-disciplinary Irish artist and author of the recently published short story collection Topographia Hibernica, a tongue-in-cheek update to the original. Blindboy exploded onto the international scene in late 2010 with his band The Rubberbandits and segued into a weekly podcast which is a cultural phenomenon, with over 1.2 million monthly listeners. He has released three critically acclaimed short story collections and this is his latest one. I...

Part of what I try to do on this channel is to, in some small way, examine the history of literature. But for today’s guest, Spanish writer and Philologist Irene Vallejo, it’s the history of the book itself – from early beginnings as delicate cuneiform tablets, scrolls, and reeds on the banks of the Nile – that truly excites. Papyrus is a stunning introduction to (and explanation of!) philology, and is definitely an accessible read for any lover of books or history. In this episode, we dive...

Famously undefinable, in many ways art is an ‘I’ll know it when I see it’ kind of thing. It’s a giant sociological concept whose tendrils snake into all our lives. In today’s episode, I speak to Farah Nayeri: journalist and author of Takedown: Art and Power in the Digital Age, a fascinating overview of some of the most difficult questions currently being asked in the contemporary art world. What should we be doing about culturally valuable works from problematic artists? Are the demographics...

It’s the age-old question: was the book really better than the movie? For the last however many millennia, the book has been the unrivalled compendium of human knowledge. However, since the turn of the last century, there’s been a new kid on the proverbial block: the movie. Today I got to speak to Tom Williams, a film producer based out of LA, whose 25 year film industry tenure has given us a brief window into the glitz, glamour, and (perhaps) practical realities of working in the biz. In...