Prose Before Hoes

It’s the season finale and boy are we digging into what we LOVE to close off season two. Elle sings the praises of her beautiful collection of Wes Anderson books and why Fantastic Mr Fox might just be the best movie out there, and tries to guess the plot of newly revived dystopian classic I Who Have Never Known Men based on the Vintage’s re-issue cover alone. Camilla is talking about dystopia and love AGAIN because it’s basically all she reads about, digging into the comfort and wisdom of Natasha Lunn’s new book Conversations on Love. We finish off Season 2 with some good, reliable drinks and a sneaky Agony Aunt section too. We’ll be back in a few months with Season 3! Happy reading (and drinking).

This week the girls age fuelling up on bitch diesel (rosé, to the uninitiated) and talking all things lockdown inspired TV and Lorde’s hot new single. Elle asks Camilla to guess the plot to Matt Haig’s new book, The Midnight Library, and Camilla discusses the fine line between love and obsession in Lena Andersson’s novel Wilful Disregard.

This week we rave about a brilliant new BBC iPlayer comedy (written by a woman!! No way!!) and contemplate how we’d handle having famous lovers (very well). Elle sings the praises of Swansong by Kerry Andrew and Camilla rambles about recipes worth living for from Ella Risbridger’s captivating food memoir Midnight Chicken. There is also a special treat in the form of the worst stanza of poetry ever written. Ever. Follow us on Instagram @prosebeforehoespodcast and Twitter @prose_hoes_pod if you fancy.

We’re back after our brief hiatus and we’re bringing the good books this week. Camilla contemplates how many cups of coffee in a day is too many, and waxes lyrical about both Megan Nolan’s debut Acts of Desperation and Kristen Arnett’s strange but brilliant exploration of a family grieving in Mostly Dead Things. Elle finally tells us when International Men’s Day is (November 19th) in her review of The Problem With Men and discusses the strange but wonderful Ayoade on Top, a book entirely about the movie ‘View from the Top’ starring Gwyneth Paltrow. Both Elle and Camilla are broken by spending their lives and money at the pub for the sake of the British economy. Camilla and Elle for Mayor!

In this accidentally space themed episode, we spend a good chunk of time being suckers to good branding and marvelling at our drink of the week, cryptically called Lunar Gin, as well as waxing lyrical about some out of this world TV and music. We also marvel at the impossibility of finding a pub booking in London as the city reopens for business. Camilla tries to guess the plot of Nick Hornby's A Long Way Down and reviews his most recent novel, Someone Like You during which we discover a bloody brilliant new line to use next time you dump someone. You're welcome. So, tune in for booze, music, terrible jokes and as per the title, Elle sings the praises of the cult classic novel by Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy. Note: we'll be taking a brief mid-season hiatus now until the 9th of May.

From Azumah Nelson's tender debut, Open Water, to a series of essays about life in the kitchen, this week we're talking about the two best things in life: food and love. And Orlando Bloom. As well as some delicious books and a questionable cocktail, Elle has a confusing crush on an older lovable rogue and Camilla has ants in her pants. We discuss the relative merits of various approaches to love, the vital difference between canapés and hors d'oeuvres and the best worst clubs in Soho. What more could you possibly want?

In this week’s episode Elle and Camilla celebrate the oncoming roaring 20s with a cocktail from the *other* roaring 20s and go in on some very sexy nerdy non-fiction, from mushrooms that can navigate the quickest route out of an IKEA to debating whether pretentiousness is always a bad thing. Elle also tries to guess the plot of the exciting debut from Eliza Clark, Boy Parts, in this week’s JBBC segment and Camilla has some hot gossip on the relative size of a monkey’s balls. Yes. You read that right.

Hello! This week Elle and Camilla are DYING to escape this reality so what better way to do that than to indulge in some fairytales - from fish sex and hunky mermen in a modern Little Mermaid and a gender swapped Repunzel, to a gothic retelling of Cinderella, this episode is an ode to our favourite childhood stories retold. Hint: it’s not always PG. We’ve also got a special cameo from JJA Harwood, author of The Shadow and The Glass, which publishes March 18th. All of the songs we mention live on our Spotify playlist - Prose Before Hoes: What We’re Listening To. Happy reading!

Welcome to Season Two! To kick off a new season we dive right in with some hot new debuts including Raven Leilani’s much hyped Luster and poet Ocean Vuong’s first novel, On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous. Elle gets biblical and waxes lyrical about Philip Pullman’s The Good Man Jesus and The Scoundrel Christ and The Testament of Gideon Mack by James Robertson. The girls discuss a very sexy million dollar idea, Elle’s hot take on Valentine’s Day and Camilla has a bit of a floral dilemma. Follow us on Instagram @prosebeforehoespodcast and Twitter @prose_hoes_pod

Welcome to our Santa Special and season finale! This week we’re rounding up season one with some festive chat. The girls discuss Australia’s huge 2020 turnaround and share their favourite festive tipples. Camilla tries to guess the plot of The Fox and The Star from the cover alone, and they both round up 2020 books with their favourite reads of the year and the ones they hope Santa baby has left under the tree for them. Find the Danish mulled wine recipe on our Instagram, @prosebeforehoespodcast.

This week, Elle and Camilla contemplate life in Lockdown Two the only way they know how - with alcohol, and books and Camilla humiliating herself in the cheese aisle of her local Sainsbury's. Elle tries to guess the plot of Camilla's ride or die book, Donna Tartt's The Secret History from its cover alone, and the Elle waxes lyrical about the iconic What We Talk About When We Talk About Love. They dive into the intellectual depths of romance, asking the big questions, like 'what is my love language?' and 'what are love languages?'. Camilla also discusses Emma Cline's The Girls, because something about talking about love reminds her of a cult. Weird.

In this week’s episode the girls get scarier than scary spice and discuss all things ~ terrifying ~ from gothic literature to modern dating. They also share a treat (not a trick) with a special spooky cocktail, the Elle Diablo. Find the full recipe on our Instagram. Camilla tries to guess the plot of Henry James’ famous The Turn of The Screw based on the cover alone, and deep dives on Dolly Alderton’s debut novel, Ghosts. Frankenstein and The Picture of Dorian Gray also get a shout out as Elle and Camilla explore what makes gothic literature (and horror movies) so unsettling. Follow us on Instagram @prosebeforehoespod

In this week’s episode, Elle and Camilla discuss translated fiction - what we gain and what we might be losing. Camilla brings along a ~mystery drink~ for the girls to try and goes on a strange tangent about the wonders of falling in love (other people, not her) while Elle patiently puts up with her again. The girls also discuss truth vs experience in literature and life, oh and time travel. Yes, time travel.

In this week’s episode, the girls sip Bloody Marys - Camilla’s first attempt at both making and drinking one - and discuss strange, strange fiction. Elle has to guess the plot of Daisy Johnson’s Booker prize shortlisted Everything Under and fares well. Camilla discusses the joy of suspending belief in fiction and Han Kang’s eery but striking novel The Vegetarian. Elle goes more wholesome with a review of Diary of a Bookseller. This week’s episode ends on a high (or a low, depending what you’re after) with Camilla answering some of YOUR questions on publishing and how to crack into the industry. Follow us on Instagram @prosebeforehoespodcast and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe!

In this week’s episode we cover the light and frivolous topics of time, food and death. Joy! Camilla and Elle chat about what they’ve been watching and listening to over the last week, from TV and music to festivals and questionable fashion choices. Camilla tries to guess the plot of In Watermelon Sugar by Richard Brautigan based on the cover alone, becoming oddly insistent it’s all about acid. Your hosts also discuss visceral and greedy writing about food, gravity and the empowering nature of an unlikeable female narrator. The books discussed this week include I Am, I Am, I Am by Maggie O’Farrell; Supper Club by Lara Williams; Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler and everything Carlo Rovelli has ever written. Follow us on Instagram @prosebeforehoespodcast or Twitter @prose_hoes_pod.

Hi everyone! Thanks so much for tuning into our first episode - we’re still learning the ropes and recording from home, so please excuse any blips in the audio. Book wise, we discussed Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan, Weight by Jeanette Winterson, Circe and The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller and The Silence of The Girls by Pat Barker. Audio quality aside, we would love LOVE any feedback on this so we can make the next episode even better. You can DM us on Instagram @prosebeforehoespodcast or tweet us at @prose_hoes_pod 👋🏼 Music by Cameron May