Colm Tóibín can't stop naming his characters Paul

Irish author of Brooklyn, Colm Tóibín shares with Claire Nichols the stories that have shaped his latest collection that travels continents and times, and Patmeena Sabit tests assumptions about the death of a young woman in her inventive novel, Good People. Who do you believe?

Colm Tóibín's collection of short stories, The News from Dublin is a glimpse into people living a life away from their homeland, from sisters wanting to return to Catalonia, the undocumented worker facing a decision, a mother receiving shocking news of the death of a son or the haunted Irishman seeking anonymity in Spain.

Using the noise and commentary around the death of a young woman, Afghan-born, Canadian based author Patmeena Sabit speaks with Claire Nichols on the ways she draws on her family roots and academic research to not just tell a story, but test assumptions around migrant communities. Good People is about an Afghan family living the American dream, but cultural tensions, gossip, envy and conjecture swirl around following the death of their daughter.