Today’s a very special day for this podcast. After three years, and a whole lot of work, we’ve arrived at huge milestone – the 100th episode of the Lit With Charles podcast. After 99 conversations where I’m the one asking the questions about what four books have influenced our guests’ lives and work, I thought I’d try a little plot twist. In this conversation, I’m going to be talking about the four books that have most shaped my life and work. We cover the origins of Lit With Charles, my relationship with reading and how it’s evolved over the years, and my hopes for a collective literary future. Enjoy!My four books were:The Dead Zone, by Stephen King (1979)Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad (1902)The Magus, by John Fowles (1965)Christie Malry’s Own Double‑Entry, by B. S. Johnson (1973)Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!
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Rosamund Bartlett, editor of "Anton Chekhov, Earliest Stories"
In this episode of Lit With Charles, I speak with writer, translator, and Chekhov expert Rosamund Bartlett about her new translation of Anton Chekhov’s Early Stories. We talk about how Anton Chekhov - the Russian doctor who transformed short fiction - first found his voice, and why his quiet, compassionate storytelling still feels so modern. Rosamund also shares insights from her other acclaimed works, including About Love and Other Stories (Oxford World’s Classics, 2004/8), her celebrated translation of Anna Karenina (Oxford World’s Classics, 2014), and The Russian Soul: Selections from A Writer’s Diary (Notting Hill Books, 2017). It’s a fascinating conversation about literature, translation, and the enduring power of small moments — and I hope you enjoy listening to it!Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!Rosamund Bartlett’s four books were:The Queen of Spades, by Alexander Pushkin (1834)The Student, by Anton Chekhov (1894)Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy (1878)A Writer’s Diary, by Fyodor Dostoevsky (1873–1881)
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James Geary, author of "The World in a Phrase"
On Lit with Charles, we usually dive into novels, short stories, and poetry - but in this episode, we’re doing something a little radical. From the longest literary forms to one of the shortest: the aphorism.An aphorism is a short, striking statement - often just a line or two - that captures a deep universal truth. It’s a form beloved by some of history’s greatest minds: Oscar Wilde, Mark Twain, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Friedrich Nietzsche, to name a few.Today’s guest, James Geary, is an American writer and lifelong devotee of this deceptively simple art. From his early fascination with language to his career as an editor at Time magazine and later as a lecturer at Harvard, James has explored the timeless power of the aphorism - those brief sentences that linger far longer than they last. His works include The World in a Phrase: A Brief History of the Aphorism and Wit’s End: What Wit Is, How It Works, and Why We Need It.We talk about what makes an aphorism work, why brevity can sometimes reveal more than verbosity, and how these tiny truths continue to shape how we think and write.I loved this conversation - it’s a thoughtful, witty, and illuminating dive into the distilled essence of language. I hope you enjoy it too.If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a review — it really helps others discover the podcast. You can also follow me on Instagram @litwithcharles for more book recommendations and literary discussions.Let’s get more people listening — and reading!James Geary’s four books were:Reader's DigestWalden, Henry David Thoreau (1854)I Ching (c. 1000 – 750 BCE)Ulysses, James Joyce (1920)
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Liliana Colanzi, author of "You Glow in the Dark"
This week on the podcast, we’re joined by Bolivian author Liliana Colanzi, one of the most exciting new voices in Latin American horror. Her latest short story collection, You Glow in the Dark (2022), recently translated into English, blends science fiction, myth, and social commentary with a distinctly eerie beauty. We talk about the four books that shaped her imagination, the rise of female Latin American horror, and how she crafts stories that blur the boundaries between the cosmic and the intimate. A must-listen for fans of speculative fiction, contemporary horror, and global literature.Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!Liliana Colanzi’s four books were:Being Dead, by Jim Crace (1999)The Houseguest and Other Stories, by Amparo Dávila (2018)The Colour out of Space, by H. P. Lovecraft (1927)Women Talking, by Miriam Toews (2018)
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Tessa Hadley, author of "The Party"
This week I’m speaking with award-winning British author Tessa Hadley about her newest novella, The Party. Set in postwar Bristol, it follows two sisters over a single weekend as they move through a series of gatherings that reveal the class divisions and shifting gender roles of mid-century Britain — that fascinating era between the war and the Beatles.In our conversation, we discuss Hadley’s approach to memory, social change, and everyday life, as well as the literary influences that shaped her work. Known for novels like The Past and Free Love, and for her regular stories in The New Yorker, Hadley offers sharp insights into British society and storytelling. It was a great chat, and I hope you enjoy listening to it.Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at @litwithcharles. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!Tessa Hadley’s four books were:Tom's Midnight Garden, by Philippa Pearce (1958)The Rainbow, by D H Lawrence (1915)Guest of Honour, by Nadine Gordimer (1970)Open Secrets, by Alice Munro (1994)
Welcome to Lit With Charles, a podcast on all things literary!
I'm Charles Pignal, and every fortnight I’m asking guests about the four books which have made the biggest impact on their lives and work.
If you're like me, you love literature – but maybe aren't always sure what you should be reading. The aim of this podcast is to make literature exciting and accessible; in each episode writers, artists, and other interesting people are giving real recommendations, to help you discover new books and authors off the beaten track. Here at Lit With Charles, every book has a story to tell.
Ireland