Better Words

My Brilliant Career pt 1: Miles Franklin's trailblazing literary life

Welcome to the first of our three-part series celebrating the iconic Australian feminist novel My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin. In this first part, Michelle is taking inspiration from Just the Gist (our favourite podcast) to tell Caitlin the incredible life of Stella Miles Franklin. We promise you’ll also be obsessed with her by the end of this episode.  Sources:  * ‘My Brilliant Career’ by the National Museum of Australia [https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/my-brilliant-career] * Miles Franklin by Dr Rachel Franks for State Library of NSW [https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/stories/miles-franklin ] (Please excuse some bumpy noises when Michelle got very passionate while telling this story and couldn’t stop moving her hands) For your convenience, here's everything else we mentioned in this episode: * Henry Lawson (poet) * Banjo Paterson (poet) * Trent Dalton (author) * Fierceland by Omar Musa * The Miles Franklin Award * The Stella Prize * Life of M by Rachel Cusk * Fruit Fly by Josh Silver * Chat 10 Looks 3 (podcast) Enjoyed this episode? Please share it with a bookish friend to help spread the word. Make sure you're following the podcast so new episodes appear in your feed as soon as they're available. We've ⁠got a Substack publication⁠ [https://betterwords.substack.com/]. At the end of the month, we share recommendations for two things we reckon you should read/watch/listen to. The beauty of Substack is you can revisit all our old editions and comment on our episode updates to share your thoughts. ⁠Come say hi!⁠ [https://betterwords.substack.com/] Connect with us on Instagram: ⁠@betterwordspod [https://www.instagram.com/betterwordspod/]

Book & film club: Heartstopper Vol. 6 & Heartstopper Forever

The Heartstopper series reaches its conclusion, with Volume 6 in Alice Oseman's beautiful YA graphic novel series and a Netflix movie. We're discussing both the graphic novel and our reactions to the Heartstopper Forever film. Enjoyed this episode? Please share it with a bookish friend to help spread the word. Make sure you're following the podcast so new episodes appear in your feed as soon as they're available. We've ⁠got a Substack publication⁠ [https://betterwords.substack.com/]. At the end of the month, we share recommendations for two things we reckon you should read/watch/listen to. The beauty of Substack is you can revisit all our old editions and comment on our episode updates to share your thoughts. ⁠Come say hi!⁠ [https://betterwords.substack.com/] Connect with us on Instagram: ⁠@betterwordspod [https://www.instagram.com/betterwordspod/]

Book recommendation bonanza: crime books for people who don't usually read crime

This episode Michelle is giving a round-up of crime book recommendations, especially for people who don’t think they’re fans of crime as a genre. Before we get into that, she shares a fun fact about a connection between The Book Thief and Heated Rivalry.  For your convenience, here's everything else we mentioned in this episode: * Caitlin’s amazing knitted vest! [https://www.instagram.com/p/Daj6yU3k0h9/?hl=en&img_index=1] * Garden Yourself Happy by Jonny Hincks * Follow Johnny on Instagram for daily dopamine hits [https://www.instagram.com/gardenwithjonny/ ] whether you’re into plants or not * Deadloch (TV series) * Wentworth (TV series) * A Beginner’s Guide to Breaking & Entering and Bad Deeds by Andrew Hunter Murray* * The Hamish & Andy Podcast episode 320 Burg Boys! * Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson * Everyone on This Train is a Suspect by Benjamin Stevenson* * Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson* * Everyone in This Bank is a Thief by Benjamin Stevenson * Knives Out (film) * Death By Noir by Olly Smith* * Murder at World’s End by Ross Montgomery* * 10 Marchfield Square and Murder Like Clockwork by Nicola Whyte* * Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth* * The Silent Appeal by Janice Hallett* * The Five by Hallie Rubenhold * The Story of a Murder by Hallie Rubenhold* * It’s Not What You Think by Clare Macintosh * The Year of the Rat by Harry Shukman * The Grapevine by Kate Kemp * Puberty Blues (TV show) * A Bad, Bad Place by Frances Crawford * Old School (TV show) Enjoyed this episode? Please share it with a bookish friend to help spread the word. Make sure you're following the podcast so new episodes appear in your feed as soon as they're available. We've ⁠got a Substack publication⁠ [https://betterwords.substack.com/]. At the end of the month, we share recommendations for two things we reckon you should read/watch/listen to. The beauty of Substack is you can revisit all our old editions and comment on our episode updates to share your thoughts. ⁠Come say hi!⁠ [https://betterwords.substack.com/] Connect with us on Instagram: ⁠@betterwordspod [https://www.instagram.com/betterwordspod/]

Reviews: The Long Haul, Soft Serve, and Logging Off

This episode we’re sharing reviews of recent reads. Michelle discusses The Long Haul by Hannah Doyle and Logging Off by Adele Zeynep Walton. Caitlin talks about George Kemp’s debut novel Soft Serve. For your convenience, here's everything else we mentioned in this episode: * Mhairi McFarlane * Groundhog Day (film) * Palm Springs (film) * A Smart Girl’s Guide to Second Chances by Steph Vizard * Prima Facie by Suzi Miller * Big Small Talk podcast Enjoyed this episode? Please share it with a bookish friend to help spread the word. Make sure you're following the podcast so new episodes appear in your feed as soon as they're available. We've ⁠got a Substack publication⁠ [https://betterwords.substack.com/]. At the end of the month, we share recommendations for two things we reckon you should read/watch/listen to. The beauty of Substack is you can revisit all our old editions and comment on our episode updates to share your thoughts. ⁠Come say hi!⁠ [https://betterwords.substack.com/] Connect with us on Instagram: ⁠@betterwordspod [https://www.instagram.com/betterwordspod/]

The book adaptation phenomenon: why it's great news for readers and publishing

In this episode, we’re discussing why book to screen adaptations are so vital for the publishing industry and the incredible stats that show just how many people are starting to read because of what they see on screen. Our main source is the Publisher’s Association report on screen adaptations, [https://www.publishers.org.uk/publications/books-on-screen/] released earlier this year. For your convenience, here's everything else we mentioned in this episode: * National Year of Reading [https://goallin.org.uk/] * Australia Reads 2026 report: Reaching Australian Readers [https://australiareads.org.au/research/reaching-australian-readers/] * Rivals * Normal People * Frankenstein * Withering Heights * Off Campus  * Project Hail Mary  * Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman * Heartstopper * Invincible * Stranger Things * One Day * The Love Hypothesis * East of Eden * Heated Rivalry * Wicked * Dracula * Brooklyn * It Ends With Us * The Thursday Murder Club * Sunrise on the Reaping Enjoyed this episode? Please share it with a bookish friend to help spread the word. Make sure you're following the podcast so new episodes appear in your feed as soon as they're available. We've ⁠got a Substack publication⁠ [https://betterwords.substack.com/]. At the end of the month, we share recommendations for two things we reckon you should read/watch/listen to. The beauty of Substack is you can revisit all our old editions and comment on our episode updates to share your thoughts. ⁠Come say hi!⁠ [https://betterwords.substack.com/] Connect with us on Instagram: ⁠@betterwordspod [https://www.instagram.com/betterwordspod/]