# Which debut novels should you be reading in 2026? Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/ask-penguin-555431/which-debut-novels-should-you-be-reading-in-2026 Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/ask-penguin-555431/which-debut-novels-should-you-be-reading-in-2026.md Podcast: [Ask Penguin](https://stenobird.com/podcast/ask-penguin-555431) Published: 2026-06-03T23:05:00+00:00 Episode link: https://shows.acast.com/thepenguinpodcast/episodes/which-debuts-should-you-be-reading-in-2026 Audio file: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/acast/s/thepenguinpodcast/e/6a2003d5f8e85cfadac05b83/media.mp3 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/ask-penguin-555431/episodes/which-debut-novels-should-you-be-reading-in-2026 Duration seconds: 3116 ## Resource What are the best books get you out of a reading slump? How did Snakes on a Plane inspire a literary sensation? What did James Joyce and Pakistani rap teach one of our debut novelists? And does a writer need to be completely delusional to finish writing a novel?   This week on Ask Penguin we sit down with three breakout debut authors, Angela Tomaski , Sufiyaan Salam , and Madeline Cash , 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.  Discover all the books mentioned in this episode here About the books Wimmy Road Boyz is a blistering story of masculinity, violence and love set over the course of a single, surreal night, told in energetic and cinematic prose. The Infamous Gilberts 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. Lost Lambs 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. About the authors Sufiyaan Salam is a writer and former animator from Blackburn. He’s working on several TV & feature projects, and co-wrote the short film MAGID / ZAFAR, premiering in 2025. Wimmy Road Boyz , winner of the #Merky Books New Writers’ prize, is his first novel. Angela Tomaski 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. Madel… ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/ask-penguin-555431/episodes/which-debut-novels-should-you-be-reading-in-2026/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/ask-penguin-555431/which-debut-novels-should-you-be-reading-in-2026.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.