Michael Magee with Nihal Arthanayake

This week on the Penguin Podcast, Nihal Arthanayake is joined by debut novelist Michael Magee.Michael joins us to discuss his critically acclaimed novel, Close to Home, which has already been shortlisted for the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize.The two also discuss how Michael's novel started off as a letter-writing exercise, approaching masculinity on his own terms, working alter egos into fiction, and how bleakness in working-class fiction works best when there is added levity.Don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode, and please do leave us a review – it really does help us. And finally, to find out more about the #PenguinPodcast, visit www.penguin.co.uk/podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Om Podcasten

The Penguin Podcast is back with a brand new series called Ask Penguin. In each episode, we will take you inside Penguin Books to meet some of the incredible authors we publish as well as the people who work here, to get answers to all of your book-related questions. Do you need to find your next page-turning read? Are you curious to find out what a day in the life of an editor is like, or simply why a small, aquatic, flightless bird became the iconic emblem that adorns Penguin books worldwide? Look no further than Ask Penguin, The Penguin Podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.