The Reader

Last year The Reader Podcast visited Prospect Park, a psychiatric hospital in Berkshire, to learn more about the 14 year partnership they have built with The Reader. This partnership, powered by the energy and dedication of the Reader in Residence, Sue Colbourn, and the support and belief of the hospital’s brilliant staff, has resulted in countless stories that demonstrate how Shared Reading has b...

Welcome the final day of our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we shared with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'Winter Dawn' by Tu Fu, translated from the Chinese by Kenneth Rexroth. It's read by Katie Clark, who works at The Reader. Support...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'The Year' by Coventry Patmore. It's read by Chris Lynn, who produces The Reader Podcast.  Support our Christmas Appeal and make a differenc...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'Snowflakes' by Clive Sansom. It's read by Jemma Guerrier, who works at The Reader. Support our Christmas Appeal and make a difference to th...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'Endure Hardness' by Christina Rossetti. It's read by Kate Deegan, who works for The Reader. Support our Christmas Appeal and make a differe...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is an extract from the memoir Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee. It's read by Jess Harrison, who works at The Reader. Cider with Rosie at Bookshop.org Supp...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is 'Firewood Poem' by Celia Congreve. It's read by Rachael Elliott, who works for The Reader. Support our Christmas Appeal and make a difference to the...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Merry Christmas! Today's reading is an extract from A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens It's read by Colin Dryden, who leads a Shared Reading group in Crosby, Merseysi...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'Hymn to the Belly' by Ben Jonson. It's read by Laura Barnes, who works for The Reader. This poem is taken from the anthology ' A Poem to Re...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is an extract from the novel 'The Mill on the Floss' by George Eliot. It's read by Sheryl Sze, who leads a Shared Reading group in Camden, London. Suppo...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the short story 'The Gift of the Magi' by O.Henry. It's read by Henrik Wig, who runs Shared Reading in Sweden. Support our Christmas Appeal and make...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'If I Could Only Take Home a Snowflake' by John Agard. It's read by Tavia Panton, who works for The Reader. Support our Christmas Appeal and...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is an extract from the novel 'The Wind in the Willows' by Kenneth Grahame. It's read by Mary Crotty, who works for The Reader. The Wind in the Willows a...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is an extract from the poem 'The Desire of Life' by Abu Al-Qassim Al-Shabbi, translated from the Arabic by Ali Al-Jamri. It's read by Megan Walder, who...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is an extract from the novel Charlotte's Web by E.B. White. It's read by Julie McAdam, who works for The Reader. Charlotte's Web at Bookshop.org Support...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'Schoolboys in Winter' by John Clare. It's read by Ginny Hopton, who works for The Reader. Support our Christmas Appeal and make a differenc...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is an extract from the story 'A Christmas Memory' by Truman Capote. It's read by Grace Frame, who works for The Reader. A Christmas Memory at Bookshop.o...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'Before the Ice is in the Pools' by Emily Dickinson. It's read by Lisa Brown, who works for The Reader. Support our Christmas Appeal and mak...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is an extract from the novel Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. It's read by Margaret Wagstaff, who leads a Shared Reading group in London. Support our...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'Nocturnal Upon St Lucy's Day' by John Donne. It's read by Kristin Hutchinson, who works for The Reader. Support our Christmas Appeal and ma...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is an extract from 'What Christmas Is, As We Grow Older' by Charles Dickens. It's read by Jen Jarman, who works for The Reader. Dickens at Christmas at...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'Snowdrops' by Louise Glück. It's read by Angela Macmillan, the editor of The Reader anthologies A Little, Aloud, A Little, Aloud for Childr...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is the poem 'Ode to Winter' by Gillian Clarke. It's read by Georgia Barrow, who works for The Reader. Support our Christmas Appeal and make a difference...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is an extract from the novel The Mouse & His Child by Russell Hoban. It's read by Clare Ellis, who works for The Reader. The Mouse & His Child a...

Welcome to our Festive Calendar, a special series of The Reader Podcast. Every day this December we will share with you a seasonal poem or a short extract from a novel or story, read by one of our staff or volunteer Reader Leaders. Today's reading is an extract from the poem 'The House of Falling Leaves' by William Stanley Braithwaite. It's read by Jen Chapman, who works for The Reader. Support ou...