In a career spanning more than 30 years, Irish novelist John Boyne has published 18 novels for adults, 6 novels for younger readers, a short story collection, and a picture book.
He’s best known for The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, which was a New York Times No.1 Bestseller, and adapted for film, theatre, opera, and ballet, selling more than 11 million copies worldwide. Among his many international bestsellers are The Heart’s Invisible Furies, A Ladder to the Sky, and All the Broken Places.
Boyne’s new novel, The Elements, is a collection of four stories that examines sexual abuse from four perspectives - the enabler, the accomplice, the perpetrator and the victim. Each of the four elements—Water, Earth, Fire and Air—was released in serial form in the UK. Now, published together, they make up a collection that encourages readers to reconsider how they think about sexual abuse. I recently spoke with John Boyne about The Elements, and here’s our conversation.
-
The Elements by John Boyne was published by Henry Holt & Co.
Suzanne Perez reviewed All the Way to the River by Elizabeth Gilbert, which was published by Riverhead Books.
Lisa Baudoin, owner of Books & Company in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, mentioned these books in this episode:
- Life and Death and Giants by Ron Rindo
- The Hounding by Xenobe Purvis
- Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield
- Buckeye by Patrick Ryan
- Heart the Lover by Lily King
- Monk & Robot by Becky Chambers
- The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
- Love and Saffron by Kim Fay
- Go As a River by Shelley Read
- The Elements by John Boyne
- Refuge by Terry Tempest Williams
Marginalia was produced at KMUW Wichita and is part of the NPR Network.
Mark Statzer and Torin Andersen - engineers
Lu Anne Stephens, Fletcher Powell & Haley Crowson - editors
Haley Crowson - producer
Karlee Cooper - marketing coordinator
Beth Golay - host
