Which debut novels should you be reading in 2026?

About this episode

<p>What are the best books get you out of a reading slump? How did <em>Snakes on a Plane</em> inspire a literary sensation? What did <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/10941/james-joyce" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">James Joyce</a> and Pakistani rap teach one of our debut novelists? And does a writer need to be completely delusional to finish writing a novel?&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><br><p>This week on Ask Penguin we sit down with three breakout debut authors, <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/311151/angela-tomaski" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Angela Tomaski</a>, <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/310243/sufiyaan-salam" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sufiyaan Salam</a>, and <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/308525/madeline-cash" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Madeline Cash</a>, to discuss the messy, hilarious reality of writing a first novel. And as always, we answer all your bookish questions and provide some much-needed reading recommendations.&nbsp;</p><br><p>Discover all the books mentioned in this episode <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/discover/articles/which-debuts-novels-should-you-be-reading-in-2026/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a></p><br><p><strong>About the books</strong></p><p><a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/469425/wimmy-road-boyz-by-salam-sufiyaan/9781529952643" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><em>Wimmy Road Boyz</em></strong></a> is a blistering story of masculinity, violence and love set over the course of a single, surreal night, told in energetic and cinematic prose.</p><br><p><a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/469152/the-infamous-gilberts-by-tomaski-angela/9780241757574" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><em>The Infamous Gilberts</em></strong></a> is a novel buoyed by love, buffeted by loss, and tangled together in an unputdownable story where the lines between eccentricity and madness, cruelty and love become hilariously heartbreakingly blurred.</p><br><p><a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/467676/lost-lambs-by-cash-madeline/9781529946123" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><em>Lost Lambs</em></strong></a> is a novel of quick-witted observation and surprising tenderness, conspiracies, loss and humour, a family saga for the twenty-first century, all held together with crazy glue.</p><br><p><strong>About the authors</strong></p><br><p><a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/310243/sufiyaan-salam" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Sufiyaan Salam</strong></a><strong> </strong>is a writer and former animator from Blackburn. He’s working on several TV &amp; feature projects, and co-wrote the short film MAGID / ZAFAR, premiering in 2025. <em>Wimmy Road Boyz</em>, winner of the #Merky Books New Writers’ prize, is his first novel.</p><br><p><a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/311151/angela-tomaski" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Angela Tomaski</strong></a> was born in Oxford and raised in Somerset with her four brothers and sisters. She has had a variety of different jobs, including as a waitress, cleaner, English teacher and activity coordinator in a care home. She has a daughter and two grandsons, and now lives in rural Dorset.</p><br><p><a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/308525/madeline-cash" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Madeline Cash</strong></a><strong> </strong>is the founder of <em>Forever Magazine</em> and the author of the story collection <em>Earth Angel</em>. Her fiction has appeared in <em>Granta</em>, <em>The Baffler</em>, <em>The Sewanee Review</em>, <em>The Drift</em>, and <em>Bomb, </em>among other publications. <em>Lost Lambs</em> is her debut novel.</p><br><p>For more information about the National Year of Reading, click here <a href="https://goallin.org.uk/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://goallin.org.uk</a>&nbsp;</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>