The Book Café - 15/11/2010

Author of 'The Gruffalo' and 'Room on the Broom', Julia Donaldson, discusses the pleasures and challenges of writing for children. Andrew Carnegie, the son of a Dunfermline weaver, born 175 years ago this month, was Britain's greatest ever entrepreneur. He's known as 'the patron saint of libraries' thanks to the money he gave for the establishment of free public libraries around the world. We'll be hearing about his impact on literacy in Scotland and worldwide and we'll find out why the cause of improving access to education for all held a special resonance for him. Naming the Bones author Louise Welsh shows us round the room where she writes her best-selling crime novels. Why I Love......The Leopard. Artist Chris Connell on the classic Italian novel. And, as a new anthology of Irish short stories is published, Bernard MacLaverty explains why he thinks Irish writers have a particular aptitude for the form.