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David Lodge on his memoir Quite a Good Time to Be Born

Writer David Lodge talks to Mariella Frostrup about his new memoir Quite a Good Time to Be Born, plus a librarian who has put the Orkney Library on the social media map.

David Lodge is a novelist, critic and academic and now - as he approaches his 80th birthday -he's publishing his first memoir, Quite A Good Time To Be Born. He talks to Mariella about his Catholic faith, his long marriage and how his life and novels - which include Changing Places, How Far Can You Go? and The British Museum is Falling Down - have overlapped.

Stewart Bain of Orkney Library reveals to Mariella how their twitter feed became a social media sensation.

Ted Hogkinson from the British Council is just back from Amman in Jordan and reports on the literary scene and why Petra is inspiring a new generation of writers. And an editor looks beyond her own books pile to recommend a title from another publisher.

Available now

28 minutes

Chapters

  • David Lodge

    David Lodge

    Duration: 11:37

  • Orkney Library

    Duration: 04:40

  • Literary Scene in Jordan

    Duration: 06:49

  • Mary Mount Insider Tip

    Duration: 03:57

Read the first chapter of Quite a Good Time to be Born by David Lodge

听by David Lodge

BOOKLIST

Quite a Good Time to be Born by David Lodge

Petra by Amjad Nasser, translated by Fady Joudah

She Will Build Him A City by听Raj Kamal Jha

Orkney Library (@OrkneyLibrary)

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Mariella Frostrup
Interviewed Guest Emma Hooper

Broadcasts

  • Sun 25 Jan 2015 16:00
  • Thu 29 Jan 2015 15:30

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