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David Mitchell has published eight novels, two of which \\u2013 number9dream and Cloud Atlas \\u2013 have been shortlisted for the Booker Prize.

He has also translated two books on autism from Japanese, working with his Japanese wife: their son is on the autistic spectrum. While his work also includes writing for the screen and opera libretti, his main occupation has been, as one critic put it, \\u201cquietly pottering away at the frontier of fiction\\u201d for more than two decades.

David is the son of two artists, and grew up near the Malverns, where his father worked in the art department of the Royal Worcester porcelain factory. After studying at the University of Kent, he worked in a bookshop, and moved to Japan in the mid-1990s to teach English. Here he met his wife and put his mind to writing. His first two novels were published while still living in Hiroshima.

With each standalone novel, David is also adding to what he calls an uber-novel in which all of his books are part of a larger narrative, with characters flitting from one story to another, transported to a different time and place, but bringing a familiarity and a backstory with them.

He now lives in County Cork, Ireland, with his wife and two children.

DISC ONE: Sunset by Kate Bush\\nDISC TWO: Requiem Op. 33b, For Mixed Choir A Cappela / Fyrir Blandadan K\\xf3r A Capella. \\nPerformed by Motet Choir Of The Hallgr\\xedm's Church, chorus Master: H\\xf6r\\xf0ur \\xc1skelsson\\nDISC THREE: Mercury by Sufjan Stevens, Bryce Dessner, Nico Muhli, James McAlister\\nDISC FOUR: Un Dia De Noviembre by Zsofia Boros \\nDISC FIVE: Anima by Milton Nascimento\\nDISC SIX: Stylo by Gorillaz, featuring Bobby Womack and Mos Def\\nDISC SEVEN: In a Sentimental Mood by Duke Ellington and John Coltrane\\nDISC EIGHT: Sonata in F minor, K466, composed by Domenico Scarlatti, performed by \\nYevgeny Sudbin

BOOK CHOICE: A book of Chinese characters (Kanji)\\nLUXURY ITEM: A complete archive of Desert Island Discs\\nCASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Anima by Milton Nascimento

Presenter Lauren Laverne\\nProducer Sarah Taylor.