RNZ's Nine to Noon: The Beautiful Ones by Prince /  by Time Out Bookstore

In early 2016, musical genius Prince announced that he was writing a memoir with editor Dan Piepenbring, however it was only a few months later that he died suddenly.

Piepenbring was given the task by Prince’s estate to put together The Beautiful Ones with what material they’d put together as well as full access to Prince’s Paisley Park.

The result is a lush illustrated hardback in which reading feels like you’re moving through a museum. For what material was available to put this together, it’s pitch perfect for the Prince fan.

Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn Ryan below:

95bFM's Loose Reads: Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo /  by Time Out Bookstore

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo is the ‘other’ winner of the 2019 Booker prize, alongside Margaret Atwood’s The Testaments.

Perhaps deserving of being the only winner, Evaristo’s novel takes us into a deep character study of 12 mostly black, mostly women.

Investigating the complexity and variety of gender, class, feminism, politics and sexuality - Girl, Woman, Other explores form with whip smart observation. Listen to Jenna’s review with Rachel and Tess on 95bFM’s Loose Reads below:

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95bFM's Loose Reads: Country: The Twisted Roots of Rock & Roll by Nick Tosches /  by Time Out Bookstore

Think you know about country music? Think again! To celebrate the wild, gutsy and pioneering music journalist Nick Tosches who just passed away, Kiran reviewed Country: The Twisted Roots of Rock & Roll on 95bFM’s Loose Reads. Looking at the history of country music from honky tonk hell to rockabilly heaven, Tosches goes way beyond Hank Williams and excavates the true dark heart of country music, activating the colourful personalities behind it. A super juicy book, filled with tales of brawling, murder and intrigue, it will appeal to any music lover - whether you like country music or not!

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95bFM's Loose Reads: A Sharp Left Turn by Mike Chunn /  by Time Out Bookstore

Mike Chunn’s new autobiography is the NZ rock bio that everyone is going to want this Christmas.

A founding member of Split Enz, Chunn suffered from debilitating panic attacks that caused him to quit the band two albums in. This didn’t stop his music career however - he moved on to found Citizen Band, worked for Mushroom and Sony records, APRA and founded Play it Strange.

A beautiful hardback book full of endearing yarns about Otahuhu in the 1960’s, the love of music, the NZ music industry and mental health.

We finished the review by playing Late Last Night from Split Enz’s second album, Second Thoughts.

Listen to Jenna, Rachel & Tess chat below:

95bFM's Loose Reads: 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World by Elif Shafak /  by Time Out Bookstore

Kiran reviewed Booker Prize shortlisted novel 10 Minutes, 38 Seconds in this Strange World by Elif Shafak. The publication of this brave novel has seen Shafak come under investigation by the Turkish government for her unflinching but compassionate look at violence against women in her homeland. This is a profound story of friendship, love and Turkish history, told through the eyes of its marginalised people.

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RNZ's Nine to Noon: The Last of Her Kind by Sigrid Nunez /  by Time Out Bookstore

You may remember that Jenna reviewed Sigrid Nunez’s National Book Award winning The Friend earlier in the year, which still remains one of her favourite reads for 2019. When a prolific, yet not as well known author wins such a prize, publishers often go to their backlist to republish an older title to give it a second life and this is what has happened with Nunez’s The Last of Her Kind, originally published in 2006.

This is a layered, intelligent and considered tale of female friendship, politics and cultural disruption in the 1960’s, New York City. Scholarship student Georgette George is roomed with the wealthy Ann Drayton at Barnard College. An intense friendship develops but ends as Ann’s journey into activism becomes more hard line and extreme.

However, Ann is brought back into George’s life years later after she is arrested for murder.

Listen to Jenna’s review below:

RNZ's Nine to Noon: Girl by Edna O'Brien /  by Time Out Bookstore

On RNZ’s Nine to Noon, Kiran reviewed our Book of the Month, Girl by Edna O’Brien. O’Brien is an important writer who has long given a voice and created a space for girls and women in crisis. This novel tells the story of Maryam, one of a group of schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram in northeastern Nigeria. Girl will rip your heart out, but you won’t be able to put the book down. What a writer!

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BOOK OF THE MONTH: October, 2019: Girl by Edna O'Brien /  by Time Out Bookstore

Our Book of the Month for October is Edna O’Brien’s Girl. A clear-sighted and gripping novel about Maryam, one of a group of schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram in northeastern Nigeria. At 88-years-old, O’Brien is as icicle sharp as ever - on a recent trip to Nigeria on research for this book, she smuggled £15,000 in her knickers to give to people there. Girl will rip your heart out, but you won’t be able to put the book down. What a writer!
You can listen to Kiran’s RNZ Nine to Noon review of Girl here.

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95bFM's Loose Reads: Trick Mirror by Jia Tolentino /  by Time Out Bookstore

On 95bFM’s Loose Reads, Kiran reviewed New Yorker staff writer Jia Tolentino’s piercing collection of essays Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self Delusion. It dives deep into the evolution of the internet, the effects of late capitalism, the definitive scams of the millennial era, and the diminishing gap between personal and political delusion. These perfectly pitched essays also come with an endorsement from Rebecca Solnit so what more could you ask for?

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95bFM's Loose Reads: Year of the Monkey by Patti Smith /  by Time Out Bookstore

Jenna is a huge Patti Smith fan and was very happy to step back into her comforting words with Year of the Monkey. Set in the year of 2016 - this is a poetic musing on grief, solitude, dreams & travel. Year of the Monkey is Smith’s third memoir after Just Kids (2010) & M Train (2015).

Today we played The Go-Go’s We Got the Beat after the chapter, Why Belinda Carlisle Matters.

Listen below:

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RNZ's Nine to Noon: Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss /  by Time Out Bookstore

On RNZ’s Nine to Noon Kiran reviewed Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss who will be appearing in conversation at Time Out in October and Verb in November. It’s an atmospheric novel about 17-year-old Silvie who goes on an excursion with her mother and father to live on an archeological replica of an Iron Age settlement with the goal of living like ancient Britons did for a flavour of Iron Age life. This is a very mesmerising novel. It’s an exquisite novel, a tremendous mood piece with a heck of an impact.

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RNZ's Nine to Noon: Doxology by Nell Zink /  by Time Out Bookstore

For fans of the great American novel, Nell Zink’s Doxology takes the reader from 1980’s New York City to the ill fated USA 2016 election.

Investigating generational shifts & responses, Doxology is a compelling, intelligent & witty observation on thirty years of history and cultural change. For fans of Franzen, Wolitzer and Tartt.

Listen to Jenna’s review below:

BOOK OF THE MONTH: September, 2019: The Man Who Saw Everything by Deborah Levy /  by Time Out Bookstore

Deborah Levy’s Booker Prize longlisted The Man Who Saw Everything may not have made the shortlist but it is our Book of the Month for September! An intriguing and expertly plotted novel abut politics, history, surveillance, beauty and envy, this book shows Levy is a clever writer of immense control and clarity. You can listen to Kiran’s 95bFM Loose Reads review here.

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95bFM's Loose Reads: Lanny by Max Porter /  by Time Out Bookstore

On her latest Loose Reads review and in anticipation of the Booker shortlist being announced, Jenna reviewed the longlisted Lanny by Max Porter. This book is an expertly crafted exploration in narrative form and dialogue.

Another longlist title that Jenna mentions is The Testaments by Margaret Atwood - Booker judges can only say that it’s ‘terrifying and exhilarating’. This is out on September 10th!

The shortlist is announced at 9pm (NZ time) on September 3rd.

Listen to the review below:

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