Use BBC.com or the new BBC App to listen to BBC podcasts, Radio 4 and the World Service outside the UK.

Find out how to listen to other BBC stations

Episode details

Radio 4,05 Apr 2026,28 mins

Dorothy Koomson

Bookclub

Available for over a year

Led by presenter James Naughtie, the writer Dorothy Koomson takes questions from a Bookclub audience about her 2010 novel The Ice Cream Girls. The novel follows the characters of Poppy Carlisle and Serena Gorringe who are tried for the murder of predatory schoolteacher, Marcus Hansley. Poppy is jailed, while Serena is allowed to walk free, and, among other things, the novel examines how the teenagers' experiences with Marcus have far-reaching consequences. Described by the Independent newspaper as "one of the biggest selling black authors in Britain" Dorothy Koomson has been writing novels since she was thirteen years old. In 2022 she was a judge for the Women's Prize for Fiction. Author image credit: Niall McDiarmid. Producer: Dominic Howell Editor: Gillian Wheelan This was a BBC Audio Scotland production.

Programme Website
More episodes