Good Luck With the Book

To celebrate the launch of ‘And Just Like That’ on 9 December, Sarah and Jamie will be having a drink and reviewing episode one for a ‘Sex and the City’ revival special. With the iconic show getting a mention on nearly every episode of Good Luck with the Book (somehow!), it was an opportunity too good to miss. Of course, there’ll be plenty of book talk too. Find out what Sarah and Jamie have loved reading this autumn, what are their all-time favourite Christmas reads, and what they will be tucking into in 2022.

A very belated book launch! In the final episode of Season 2, Sarah chats to Jamie about the publication of Diving for Pearls, from his first seeing the book in the window of Dubray Grafton Street, through the RTE radio interview with Oliver Callan and all the publicity that followed.

Of course, there are loads of great books to talk about, including Snowflake by Louise Nealon, The Garden by Paul Perry, and the ‘Pearl and Nancy Approved’ children’s book The Twins’ Blanket by Hyewon Yum. Don’t miss the chats about The Mare of Easttown, Britney Spears, and Murder in the Cottage.

Sarah and Jamie are joined by book reviewer Laura King (@lauraeatsbooks in Instagram and Twitter), to discuss Listening Still, the follow-up novel to Anne Griffin’s phenomenal bestselling debut, When All Is Said. Laura talks to us about how she manages to be such a prolific reader (one hundred books a year!), about how her reading habits changed during the pandemic, her favourite book of the last twelve months, and her all-time favourite author.

Do you sometimes feel that your stuff is taking over your life? Do you think you'd be a better person if you could be a minimalist? Does the chaos in your space reflect the chaos in your head? Sarah and Jamie interview reformed hoarder turned professional declutterer, Emma Gleeson, about her new book, Stuff Happens!, who offers amazing tips on how to live a less cluttered, more sustainable life.

In this episode, there's loads of great books to talk about, including All The Young Men by Ruth Coker Burks, Eat Up and Raise Your Game by Daniel Davey, and Where are You Puffling? by Gerry Daly and Erika McGann.

Not to mention chats about The Job Lot, The Office, and the unwelcome return of Naked Attraction to Channel 4!

Sarah and Jamie review the 2021 Dublin One City One Book selection, Leonard and Hungry Paul. Leonard and Hungry Paul are friends, in their thirties, who view life rather differently. Leonard ghost-writes encyclopedias; Hungry Paul, comfortable with silence, embodies mindfulness. When Leonard seems ready to move on, will Hungry Paul get left behind?

In this episode, there's lots of catch-up on. Sarah has been reading Klara and the Sun and Jamie has been reading Stuff Happens! and Dotcom Secrets. They try the ‘What is your burlesque name?’ game, discuss allowing dogs in the bedroom, and Sarah reveals her favourite children’s picture book this week.

Sarah and Jamie interview the acclaimed author, journalist and podcaster Sophie White about her collection of personal essays, Corpsing: My Body and Other Horror Shows. 

In this episode, there's lots of catch up on: Jamie's first sea swim of the year, Harry and Meghan's interview with Oprah, refrigerated butter, perfume, parenting and Sarah’s favourite children’s picture book.

This episode's featured book is Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart. Winner of The Booker Prize 2020, the paperback is out this March. It’s brilliant. Get your hands on a copy.

Sarah and Jamie's chats revolve around lockdown coping strategies, playing ‘What’s Your Bridgerton Name?’, discussing the announced screen adaptation of Conversations with Friends, their love of Sophie White’s podcast ‘The Creep Dive’, and what they are reading for Ireland Reads 2021.

It’s Christmas folks! Sarah and Jamie chat to the fabulous Gaff Goddess herself, Laura de Barra, about how to make Christmas 2020 as glamorous and festive as it can be. They try out Ryan Tubridy’s Cadbury’s Heroes game and Laura is subjected to Table Topics, the Russian Roulette of conversation games! 

Sarah and Jamie also review their favourite gift books for kids and adults, which will hopefully give you some major inspo for presents this Christmas! Don't miss their chats about The Crown, Princess Diana, slow cookers and ugly male slippers…

Join Sarah and Jamie as they review That Old Country Music by Kevin Barry, The Meaning of Mariah Carey (autobiography), and Twilight Together by Ruth Medjber. Don't miss their chats about the US election, MTV Cribs, Proust and The Real Housewives! 

Oh my God, you won’t believe it! Good Luck with the Book has its very first interview and it is with the creators of the bestselling Aisling series, Sarah Breen and Emer McLysaght. With Oh My God, What a Complete Diary 2021 hitting the shelves this autumn, they discuss Aisling’s year, from weddings to Halloween, along with the inside scoop on the night they won their second Irish Book Award.

Also on Episode 3, Jamie and Sarah review the bestselling Home Stretch by Graham Norton and To Love a Dog, the warm and moving memoir by Irish Times journalist, Tom Inglis.

Don't miss their chats about drinking vodka-red-bulls in Coppers, growing up gay in Ireland, their (dramatic) funeral plans, Anne of Green Gables, and being the ‘Princess Diana of dog owners’.

Sarah’s featured books are My First Book (board book series) from The O’Brien Press, Books Make Things Better from Children’s Books Ireland, Once Upon a Reader by Lorraine Levis. Jamie’s featured books are Bossypants (audiobook) by Tina Fey, As You Were by Elaine Feeney and Nothing But Blue Sky by Kathleen McMahon.

Join Sarah and Jamie as they review the No.1 Bestseller, Strange Flowers, by Donal Ryan, try out Gina Daly and Mr Dish's cookbook, The Daly Dish, and tuck into Okay, Let's Do Your Stupid Idea, by Irish Times journalist Patrick Freyne. Don't miss the chats about their terrible 1990s jobs, raising identical twins, hating kale, and meeting Amanda Byram in the local gym... all recorded in their podcast headquarters: a decommissioned festival caravan in Swords.

Hello Lovelies. Enjoy few snippets from Episode 1: This Weekend I'm Fully Booked, which goes live on the 20 September. Can you guess the books we are talking about? 

There'll be a new episode every other week, right up to Christmas, with plenty of book reviews, chats and laughs. A happy little something to wake up on a Sunday morning. Best served with a large coffee and a pastry.