£20) Franzen’s 600-page epic is set in 1971 and tells the story of the Hildenbrandt family. Russ, pastor of a suburban Chicago church, is locked in a rivalry with his charismatic head of youth programming, and considering adultery.
Meanwhile his wife struggles with a dark secret and the children horrify their elders with plenty of sex and drug use. Is it possible to be good without being tripped up by lust, envy and pride?
Franzen is here to tell us. Read by Jessamy Calkin, associate editorBy John Le Carré (Viking, £20) After Julian Lawndsley leaves his City career behind to open a bookshop in a sleepy Suffolk village, he attracts only mild interest from locals, inured to moneyed newcomers – until one night, he meets Edward, and is swept up.
Read more on telegraph.co.uk