The Bookshelf
The Bookshelf
ABC Australia
New fiction from Barbara Kingsolver, Colm Tóibín and Ayad Akhtar
1 hour 1 minutes Posted Oct 2, 2026 at 5:00 am.
0:00
1:01:38
Download MP3
Show notes
This week, Kate and Cassie are joined by regulars Hannah Kent and Tom Wright to discuss three books that echo one another across themes of art, beauty, family and transformation.
In Barbara Kingsolver's Partita, a young woman longs to escape her small town and difficult mother through music (and there are dogs and an accident); Ayad Akhtar's The Radiance follows a man whose vivid, radiant life is shaped by music and ambition (and there’s a terrible accident); And in Colm Tóibín's The Bridge, a son and father navigate change, possibility and belonging in a new world (accompanied by a whole pack of dogs).
Plus, voting may have closed for The Bookshelf's Top 100 Australian Books, but we're still taking inspiration from readers' recommendations. Actor, writer and trans activist Zoe Terakes joins us to share their three favourite Australian books.
Featured books
Barbara Kingsolver, Partita, Faber
Colm Toíbín, The Bridge, Picador
Ayad Akhtar, The Radiance, Summit
Zoe Terakes' Top 3
Christos Tsiolkas , Loaded
Chelsea Watego, Another Day in the Colony
Timothy Conigrave, Holding the Man 
Other Books mentioned
Stephanie Alexander, The Cook's Companion
Alison Lester, Magic Beach
Shirley Hazzard, The Great Fire
Hannah Moloney, The Good Life: How To Grow A Better World
Christina Stead, Seven Poor Men of Sydney