Leila Slimani's second novel Lullaby is a phenomenon. Having sold over 600,000 copies and won the Prix Goncourt in her adopted homeland of France, the book is now spreading around the world in various translations. A movie has begun filming in France and there are rumours of a Hollywood adaptation as well. The reason for the fuss is a plot that grips like a thriller and prose that dissects contemporary life like the most acute literary novel. The nanny of the well-to-do Masse family murders the two children in her care. From this terse, shocking opening, Slimani rewinds to examine the pressures that led up to the tragedy.
In Part One of our conversation at her London publishers, Slimani talks about titles, tragedy, modern parenting, the challenges of being a nanny and how families rely on women from across the world to facilitate their lives.
Part two to follow.
Episode 130 - Neel Mukherjee: Part 1
Episode 129 - Meena Kandasamy: Part 4 (Writing Life Revisited)
Episode 128 - Meena Kandasamy: Part 3 (Writing Life Revisited)
Episode 127 - Meena Kandasamy: Part 2 (This Writing Life Revisited)
Episode 126 - Meena Kandasamy reads from The Gipsy Goddess
Episode 125 - Meena Kandasamy: Part 1 (This Writing Life Revisited)
Episode 124 - Rick Bass: Part 5 - For a Little While
Episode 123 - Rick Bass: How do we protest Donald Trump, Scott Pruitt and the rest?
Episode 122 - Rick Bass: Part 4 - For a Little While
Episode 121 - Rick Bass: are you optimisitic about human nature?
Episode 120 - Rick Bass: Part 3 - For a Little While
Episode 119 - Rick Bass on his collection For a Little While (and getting lost in writing)
Episode 118 - Rick Bass: Part 2 - For a Little While
Episode 117 - Rick Bass: Part 1 - For a Little While
Episode 116 - Gary Younge: Part 4
Episode 115 - Gary Younge: Part 3
Episode 114 - Gary Younge: Part 2
Episode 113 - Gary Younge: Part 1
Episode 112 - Kevin Sullivan: Part 5
Episode 111 - Kevin Sullivan: Part 4
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