Our book of the week is a fantastic memoir packed full of wit, warmth and candour. The Marmalade Diaries follows 30-something Ben Aitken as he rents a room from formidable 85-year old Winnie at the start of the very first UK coronavirus lockdown. Their lives interweave, forming an unlikely friendship, where lessons were learnt (heat the red wine in the oven with the plates; preserve or pickle whatever you can; never throw anything away) and grief, both personal and that of a nation, was explored. This is the true story of intergenerational friendship that will have you charmed and chuckling at their shared domestic life.

The Marmalade Diaries is published by Icon Books and available now in paperback. We recommend buying a copy from your local indie bookshop or you can visit our shop on Bookshop.org

Podcast produced and edited by Megan Bay Dorman

Programmed by Matt Casbourne

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