Lit with Charles

Marguerite Duras and Philip K. Dick make for an unlikely pairing this week, as Charles and Liv compare notes on The Lover and A Scanner Darkly. Then, things get stranger with a trip through the extraordinary life of Victor Hugo – a man whose habits involved live bats, raw lobsters and some deeply questionable party tricks.

Finally: when is it okay to give up on a book? Charles and Liv disagree on the virtues of persevering, the dreaded reading slog, and whether life is simply too short for bad books.

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!

This week, Charles and Liv discuss Gisèle Pelicot’s harrowing memoir A Hymn to Life and Alan Bennett’s brilliantly subtle Talking Heads.

They also delve into Serge Doubrovsky’s The Broken Book and the strange, tragic consequences of turning your own life into fiction. Plus, they answer a listener question: do bestseller lists actually tell us anything useful? From publishing-industry marketing to what our reading habits reveal about society, Charles and Liv consider what — if anything — we can learn from the books that sell.

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!

This week, Charles and Liv discuss Carmen Maria Machado’s In the Dream House and Kamel Daoud’s controversial novel Houris, exploring the Algerian Civil War and the strange story surrounding the book.

They also uncover the time Hunter S. Thompson terrified Jack Nicholson with an elk heart, before answering a listener question: how do you decide what to read next? From obsessive reading spreadsheets to simply trusting the universe, Charles and Liv reveal their very different – or perhaps surprisingly similar – systems.

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!

This week, Charles and Liv discuss Ian Fleming’s For Your Eyes Only, Clarice Lispector’s strange and brilliant The Hour of the Star, and why some books are better read like poetry.
They also uncover John Steinbeck’s unpublished werewolf novel and debate whether authors’ work should ever be published against their wishes. Plus, they answer a listener question: what would you change about contemporary book culture? From endless “best books” lists to the pressure to read 100 books a year, Charles and Liv have a few complaints.

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!

Welcome to a new season of Lit With Charles, and a new format, as Charles is joined by co-host Liv for a weekly conversation about books, reading and the literary world.
This week, they discuss Jean-Paul Sartre’s No Exit, Javier Marías’s Tomás Nevinson, and the surprising history of the CIA using literature as Cold War propaganda, including Boris Pasternak’s Doctor Zhivago. Plus, they answer a listener question: how do you encourage someone to read more? From putting down your phone to simply choosing books you actually enjoy, Charles and Liv share their best advice.

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!