Let Them Eat Books

How do you like them apples? Colin and Claire meet artist and writer Annie Lord in Portobello to discuss The Neighbouring Orchard, a dispersed orchard formed of 200 apple trees and grown by more than 170 people, spread across North East Edinburgh and Musselburgh, found everywhere from front gardens to children’s play parks.

Hot Diggidy! Colin and Claire chow down on Hot Dogs at Thundercat in Glasgow’s Miller Street and discuss all things Hot and Doggy including poems by Frank O’Hara and Grace Cavalieri and Jamie Loftus’ book Raw Dog. 

In our 50th episode, and to celebrate "Quiche and Salad Season", Claire and Colin picnic on one of their all time favourite foods: quiche. Featuring discussion of works by Zadie Smith, Toni Cade Bambara and even the band Getdown Services. They also taste test two quiches from Cottonrake Bakery in Glasgow! 

Curl up with Let Them Eat Books' nutty hosts Colin and Claire as they explore all things cashew! This episode features poems by Severo Sarduy, Francis de Lima, Ranudi Gunawardena, a non-fiction essay by Kopal Agarwal, and talks about such cashew treats as Hawkshead Whisky Smoked Cashews, Feed the Squirrel Cashew Cookie Dough Butter and Glasgow's Ceylon Tea Bar's Kaju Mulawa. 

Claire and Colin discuss Black Pudding, as it's known in the UK, and many of its variations around the world, including reference to poets and authors including Bill Buford, Eileen P Keane and Luis de Góngora. 

Claire and Colin whisk you away to a world of Vegan Baking this week as they feature poems by Amy Gerstler, Sappho translated by Anne Carson and celebrate the launch of Colin's new collection Aquafaba out now from Spite Press. 

Kathleen Jamie and Liz Lochhead are the poets whose work we discuss in this episode of Let Them Eat Books, host by Claire and Colin, well oiled by The Water of Life!

Claire and Colin’s Let Them Eat Books trawler lands a bumper catch including W.N. Herbert reading a brand new poem, and featuring discussion of Elizabeth Campbell, Norman Buick, George Mackay Brown and Francis Buchanan of Perth. 

Just popping in to the studio for our Popcorn Episode! Colin and Claire offer up a snack size treat focusing on the poem Popcorn by Lucy Heuschen. 

Sweeter than sweet as always, Claire and Colin talk about Marmalade, with reference to poems by Dorothea Grossman and Roddy Lumsden and the Antarctic Expedition diary by William Gordon Murdoch. 

Colin and Claire relive recent and not so recent road trips through the lens of car snacks. They discuss writing by Zain Rishi, Jayne Cortez Bertolt Brecht and Claire Reynolds. 

It’s our birthdays and we’ll podcast if we want to!!! Colin and Claire celebrate Birthday Cake with featured poems by Meg Bateman, Bill Berkson, Eunice De Sousa and Karólína Rós Ólafsdóttir, as well as A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams.  At the end of the show, Colin shares a poem - Birthday Kale - from his new collection Aquafaba! 

Colin and Claire wake up and smell the coffee discussing a poem by Ron Padgett and the novels Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi and Enter Ghost by Isabella Hammad. 

Claire Reynolds and Colin Herd talk about the multi-layered and surprisingly dramatic history of the croissant, and discuss writing by Camilla Grudova, Natascha Ewert and Eva Baltazar. 

A couple of nerds (Colin and Claire) discuss meatballs through texts by Selima Hill, Roberto Bolaño, Ty Raso and Chris Newens. Thinking about meatballs from world cuisine including Koofteh Tabrisi, Kofta, Polpette, Frikadeller and Palotte. We also go to Eusebi’s deli in Glasgow’s west end to check out their Polpette! 

Soupy, indulgent and altogether warming as always, Claire and Colin talk all things Risotto in this latest episode, including discussion of Anne Enright's novel The Green Road, Frances Mayes' Under the Tuscan Sun and Anna Ansari's Silk Roads. 

Unchained from the studio mics, Colin, Claire and New Podcast Fav Andrew Meehan snuck out to the iconic and long-standing Cafe Gandolfi in Glasgow City Centre to discuss his novels One Star Alive, Best Friends and new book Hey Man. We also discuss writing and food of course and also love! 

Dripping with Honey, this episode features Medovik, the traditional Ukrainian Honey Cake, and Claire and Colin have been busy bees combing books for honey references, including poems by Victoria Adukwei Bulley and SA Whitley and Andrew Meehan's novel Best Friends. 

In our most lenticular episode to date, Claire and Colin discuss Lentil Soup by reading poems by Zharad and Maria Sledmere, and an extract from a short story by David Toulmin. 

Colin and Claire discuss texts by Jennifer Moxley and Annie Johnson in this episode devoted to rhubarb, rhubarb, rhubarb! 

Our 31st episode celebrates the Scottish Hogmanay tradition of Black Bun, via texts by O Douglas, Robert Louis Stevenson, Gilly Pickup and Annie Boutelle. 

Colin and Claire taste the traditional Venezuelan Christmas dish of Hallaca from La Bodega in the East End of Glasgow, and share texts from Adriana Bertorelli Párraga, José Rafael Pocaterra, Edwin Morgan, Tori Derricote, Ange Mlinko and Diane Suess. Merry Christmas from your favourite foodie elves!  

Claire and Colin indulge in a hearty round of wassailing in this exploration of christmas drinks. From Mulled Cider flavoured Tea, via Mulled Wine to Eggnog and the Snowball, this episode is enough to leave you needing a wee lie down. Writers discussed include: Charles Dickens, Robert Herrick, Lorrie Moore, Carmen Maria Machado and Christopher Todd Matthews. And from drams to Am Dram, don’t miss C...

Colin and Claire discuss the classic Dresdener Stollen, a Christmas Classic! Focusing on the German children's author Agnes Sapper, the episode also gives quite a lot of details of the history of this favourite festive treat! 

Colin and Claire talk about Brussels Sprouts on today’s show in the first of three festive specials including reference to Emily Berry and Don Lee.