Podcasts Culture Start the Week Finding consolation and community in reading

Finding consolation and community in reading

Published: Jan. 10, 2022, 10:43 a.m.

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The historian, writer and former politician Michael Ignatieff talks to Tom Sutcliffe about how consolation offers a way to survive the anguish and uncertainties of the 21st century. In his new book, On Consolation: Finding Solace in Dark Times, he looks at how works of literature \\u2013 from the Psalms to Albert Camus and Anna Akhmatova \\u2013 help increase hope and resilience. On Consolation will be Radio 4's Book of the Week from February 7th.

Christopher Prendergast\\u2019s Living and Dying with Marcel Proust is the result of a lifetime\\u2019s reading of Proust\\u2019s masterpiece A la R\\xe9cherche du Temps Perdu. It serves as a guide to readers embarking on Proust\\u2019s colossal work, highlighting the author\\u2019s many obsessions, from insomnia and food to memory, humour and colour.

The London Literary Salon is a community built around the study of literature and ideas, with its mantra: \\u2018opening books, meeting minds, creating community\\u2019. During the pandemic its founder and director Toby Brothers broadened its reach, welcoming people into the salon from all over the world.

Producer: Katy Hickman

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