Ben Aaronovitch, the award-winning author of the Rivers of London series, joined us to talk about his latest novella, Winter’s Gifts. You can also watch this episode on YouTube. If you enjoyed listening to this episode with Ben Aaronovitch, why not check out our interviews with Shannon Chakraborty, Jack Jordan, and Femi Fadugba. The post An interview with fantasy writer Ben Aaronovitch appeared first on Love your library ..read more

The Summer Reading Challenge has kicked off! To celebrate, this month’s episode of Love Your Library is all about children’s books. First, Kate talks to author and illustrator Kev Payne about how he got into writing and why libraries are magical places. Then, Kate and Anna speak to Rebecca, who works at Winchester and Alresford libraries. They talk about their favourite children’s books and Rebecca tells us why libraries are so important for parents and families. If you have a child who wants to sign up to the Summer Reading Challenge, visit our Kids’ Zone or pop into your local library to sig ..read more

The Love Your Library podcast was joined by Faith Hogan for this episode. Faith Hogan is the bestselling author of uplifting fiction titles like The Ladies’ Midnight Swimming Club, The Girl I Used to Know, and My Husband’s Wives. Hattie chatted to Faith about her latest book, The Guest House by the Sea. Set in the fictional Irish coastal village of Ballycove, the book tells a story about how the places people escape to can provide the ideal setting for self-reflection and transformation. Faith also speaks about her writing process, the difference between writing uplifting fiction and crime fic ..read more

On this Pride Month edition of Love Your Library, we’re joined by Sam Kenyon who talks to us about his debut novel, I Am Not Raymond Wallace. Hear about the stories, articles and experiences that inspired Sam, as well as about what else he’s got in the pipeline at the moment. Plus, top up your pile as we hear from Ren, one of our library team assistants, and Cordelia, an avid library user, about their top LGBTQ+ picks. Find the books mentioned in this episode: The Gay Metropolis – Charles Kaiser Secret Historian – Justin Spring The Unbroken – C. L. Clark The Jasmine Throne – Tasha Suri She Who ..read more

Annabelle Thorpe joins us on this episode of the Love Your Library podcast to chat about her latest book, The Enemy of Love. She also tells us about her time as a travel writer, and how she creates strong female characters. If you enjoyed this episode, why not give our interviews with Rachel Hore or Mandy Robotham. Plus, catch up on our previous episode with Fostering Hampshire Children. The post Annabelle Thorpe Interview appeared first on Love your library ..read more

On this episode of Love Your Library, we talk about how we make our libraries places for the whole community. First, we hear from Johnny, a foster carer and Hive Care Support Worker, and Laura from Fostering Hampshire Children all about providing a foster home for Hampshire’s most vulnerable children. Then, we chat to Sam and Nicky from the library service about how we make our branches safe and welcoming for everyone. Find out about what it means to be a Library of Sanctuary by visiting their website. Find your local Hampshire library and see what’s on.   This episode is brough ..read more

Shannon Chakraborty is our guest for this episode of the Love Your Library podcast. Chatting to us about all things fantasy, we get to learn all about her latest book and the kick-off novel to her new series, The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi. Following the journey of a scandalous pirate traversing the high seas for one last job that’ll go down in history, the book is described as Ocean’s Eleven meets Sinbad the Sailor, which will undoubtedly delight fans of Chakraborty’s richly descriptive and imaginative work. We also catch up with Adrian, a Library Team Assistant working across a few of our ..read more

On this episode we find out about how Artful Scribe, the University of Southampton and Winchester Poetry Festival support young poets across the region. Hattie is joined by Matt West from Artful Scribe and Will May from the University of Southampton on the Poetry Ambassadors mentoring scheme run with support from Winchester Poetry Festival. We also hear from Eve Wright, one of the young poets mentored through the scheme. Love poetry? You may like to listen to our episodes with children’s laureate Joseph Coelho and fellow podcasters The Amplify Project, who explore the work, lives, and inspirat ..read more

International bestseller Chloe Gong joins us on this episode of the Love Your Library podcast to talk about her latest release, Last Violent Call. Containing two captivating novellas that expand upon her Secret Shanghai series, Last Violent Call allows the stories from the world of These Violent Delights and Foul Lady Fortune to continue. Hattie speaks to Chloe about the emotional weight of finishing off a series, her upcoming projects (including the highly anticipated Immortal Longings, which is out in July 2023), and what it’s like being a young author in the era of BookTok. We also chat wit ..read more

In this episode of Love Your Library, Hattie and Craig are joined by Kat, Jess and James from Cantell School and the University of Southampton to talk about their Reading Buddies initiative. This project sees Key Stage 3 pupils paired with sixth form and university students to help build confidence with reading.   Follow Cantell School on Facebook to stay up to date on their latest news, including the Reading Buddies project.   If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to listen to our interviews with Empathy Lab, The Reading Agency, and The Amplify Project. And, if you missed it, catch ..read more