WHEN GOD WAS A RABBIT by Sarah Winman, chosen by Harry Trevaldwyn THE ALCHEMIST by Paulo Coelho, chosen by Xantoné Blacq JAMES by Percival Everett, chosen by Harriett Gilbert

Music producer and composer Xantoné Blacq joins actor and writer Harry Trevaldwyn to share the books they love with presenter Harriett Gilbert.

First up, Harry brings to the table a book by The Sunday Times bestselling author Sarah Winman. A book about childhood and growing up, friendships and families, triumph and tragedy and everything in between. When God Was a Rabbit celebrates the magic of the everyday for Harry, but what do the others think of it?

Next up, Xantoné chooses The Alchemist by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho, which since publication in 1988 has become a widely translated international bestseller. A blend of spirituality, magical realism and folklore, Xantoné finds it an incredibly motivational read. Are Harry and Harriett also inspired by it?

Finally, Harriett puts forward Percival Everett's most recent book, the 2024 Booker Prize nominated 'James'. Both funny and horrifying, soulful and thrilling, Everett reframes the story of Huckleberry Finn from the perspective of Jim. Harriett is blown away by it - do the others agree?

Producer: Becky Ripley

Photo credit CK Morrison

BIG SWISS by Jen Beagin, chosen by Nussaibah Younis A HEART SO WHITE by Javier Marías, chosen by Josh Cohen THE END OF EDDY by Edouard Louis, chosen by Harriett Gilbert

Big Swiss is a 29-year-old gynecologist who has never had an orgasm. Greta Work is an audio transcriber for a sex therapist who is infatuated by one of his clients. After an encounter at the dog park, they strike up an affair. Nussaibah calls this one of the funniest books she's ever read. What do the others think? A Heart So White, by the Spanish author Javier Marias and recommended by Josh, has a shocking opening page. What unravels after is a harrowing tale of family secrets and their resonances through different generations. First published in 1992. Finally, The End of Eddy, Harriett's pick, was a sensation when it was first published in France in 2014. An autobiographical novel of a violent and mostly difficult childhood, it also can be read as a portrait of a poor, rural community in Northern France.

Josh Cohen is a psychoanalyst and writer, whose many books include Not Working: Why We Have to Stop; How to Live: What to Do and, most recently, All the Rage: Why Anger Drives the World.

Nussaibah Younis is an expert on contemporary Iraq who for several years advised the Iraqi government on de-radicalising women affiliated with ISIS. Nussaibah’s debut novel Fundamentally was shortlisted for this year’s Women’s Prize for Fiction.

Produced by Eliza Lomas, for BBC Audio Bristol.

AN INSTANCE OF THE FINGERPOST by Iain Pears, chosen by Peter Kosminsky HEROES OF THE FOURTH TURNING by Will Arbery, chosen by Jack Thorne PERFECTION by Vincenzo Latronico, chosen by Harriett Gilbert

Thorne and Kosminsky are great friends, but don't fully agree on the books discussed. Topics raised by their choices include toxic masculinity, empathy, and whether or not Succession is a great TV series.

Peter has chosen An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears, a restoration murder mystery told by four unreliable narrators. Jack advocates for Heroes of the Fourth Turning by Will Arbery, a play about four right-wing Catholics meeting at a college reunion. Harriett has gone for Perfection by Vincenzo Latronico, a satire telling the tale of a millennial couple living in fashionable Berlin.

Produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Sally Heaven Join the conversation on Instagram: agoodreadbbc Photo credit Antonio Olmos