From the Vault: 8 Books From the Stories Behind the Story Podcast

Over the years, Stories Behind the Story has opened the door to countless captivating conversations between Cheryl and some of the world’s most talented authors. From moving memoirs to gripping fiction, each episode offers a unique glimpse into the story behind the birth of a book. We’ve taken a trip through the Better Reading Vault and handpicked eight standout episodes that left a lasting impression on our listeners. Whether you’re discovering these stories for the first time or revisiting old favourites, these 8 books featured in these episodes offer the perfect blend of insight, emotion and unforgettable storytelling.

Unsung by Kate Ceberano

Kate Ceberano is used to a hush descending as she draws breath to release that magnificent voice but when the whole world quietened in 2020, she found the silence disorientating. Without an audience or long hours of travel with her tribe of musicians, there was time to think. But what does an artist do when they can’t make art? They find a way. With characteristic passion, abundance and joy, Kate liberated her unsung songs. They flowed through her paintbrush as she embellished guitars, her needle as she stitched quilts to envelop her beloveds and her pen as she unfurled stories, poems and songs. In Unsung Kate muses on the people and experiences that have inspired her, on what has humbled her, what hurts and what sustains. This is the story of a powerful woman in her prime, but also of a reflective, romantic and vulnerable artist making sense of the universe. It’s proof of a lifetime lived in music. It’s a tribute to songs, wherever they come from and wherever they go.

Kate talks to Cheryl about her legendary career in music and why now was the time to write her memoir, Unsung.

Buy a copy of Unsung here.

Listen to Kate’s podcast here.

Sisters Under the Rising Sun by Heather Morris

It is February 1942. Amid the turmoil of World War II, a group of Australian Army nurses, among them Nesta James and Vivian Bullwinkel, have just arrived in Singapore. The women have fled there from Malaya, where they had been stationed to care for Allied troops – and they are reluctant to move on again. Their hope is to remain in the beleaguered British colony to continue their mission of treating the sick and wounded. Norah Chambers, an English musician, has also fled to Singapore from Malaya, where she had been living with her husband and her eight-year-old daughter, Sally. A few days earlier she had sent her child away on a ship bound for Australia, desperate to keep her safe from invading Japanese forces. As the Japanese military overruns the city, Nesta and Vivian reluctantly join a terrified cargo of people – including the heartbroken Norah – crammed aboard the merchant ship Vyner Brooke. Only two days later, they are bombarded from the air off the coast of Indonesia, and in a matter of hours, the Vyner Brooke has sunk. After 24 hours in the sea, Nesta and Norah reach the beaches of a remote island, only to be captured and held in a succession of Japanese POW camps, places of starvation and brutality, where disease runs rampant. Alongside hundreds of other women prisoners, they begin a struggle for survival that will last almost four years. But even here, joy can be found by those with the will to defy their desperate circumstances. When Norah forms a ‘vocal orchestra’, with the women’s voices taking the place of instruments, their music has the power to bring hope into the midst of despair. Sisters in arms, Norah and Nesta fight side by side, discovering in themselves extraordinary reserves of courage, resourcefulness, humour and hope in their determination to retain their humanity by caring for others.

Heather Morris talks to Cheryl about the brave women in WWII that history forgot, and how she shines a light on their experiences in her latest book, Sisters Under the Rising Sun.

Buy a copy of Sisters Under the Rising Sun here.

Listen to Heather’s podcast here.

Big Mouth by Matt Preston

For a man who has been in the public eye for a decade or more, Matt Preston has been very quiet about his past and private life. Now, in Big Mouth, he opens up for the first time in a story that, like Matt himself, is joyous, funny and larger than life. From his adoption, fractured childhood and shocking family tragedies, to his disastrous spell in the British Army, to a misspent youth and burgeoning journalistic career in 1980s London, to relocating to the other side of the world and finding love – Matt writes frankly about it all. He relives the unexpected twists of fate that saw him become a household name on one of the most successful Australian TV shows of all time. Looking back at his eleven years of MasterChef Australia, Matt dishes up as only he could memorable moments and the ones he’d rather forget. Naturally, food weaves its way through his story at every turn, from the exquisite to the dreadful, forming the backdrop to this gloriously eccentric memoir from one of the food world’s most beloved bons vivants.

Matt Preston talks to Cheryl about how food brings people together, his career, and what inspired him to write his memoir, Big Mouth.

Buy a copy of Big Mouth here.

Listen to Matt’s podcast here.

The Nightmare Sequence by Omar Sakr

Through poetry and visual art, Omar Sakr and Safdar Ahmed capture these historic injustices, while also critiquing the role of art and media – including their own – in this time. Born of collective suffering and despair, their collaboration interrogates the position of witness: the terrible and helpless distance of vision, the impact of being exposed to violence of this scale on a daily basis, and what it means to live in a society that is actively participating in the catastrophic destruction of Arabs and Muslims overseas. With a foreword by Palestinian American poet George Abraham, The Nightmare Sequence is an insightful work of testimony that also considers how art is complicit in Empire. This transcendent book invokes the power of poetry and art to shift hearts and minds; it will serve as a vital record in decades to come.

Omar Sakr talks to Cheryl about resistance, censorship, and the power of poetry to bring clarity, connection, and hope in turbulent times.

Buy a copy of The Nightmare Sequence here.

Listen to Omar’s podcast here.

Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey

Greenlights is a guided companion to the #1 New York Times bestselling memoir Greenlights, filled with prompts, pithy quotes, adages, outlaw wisdom, and advice on how to live with greater satisfaction from Matthew McConaughey. Matthew has been writing in journals since he was fifteen years old. His adventures have taken him from Texas to Australia, from Mali to Peru-and he has chronicled them all. In this authentic, unconventional journal, the prompts encourage going inside: remembering, reflecting, and musing, and also going outside: adventuring, taking risks, and dreaming big. Who could be a better guide for seekers setting out on the road to understanding their lives inside and out, past, present, and future? Award-winning actor and family man, Matthew McConaughey talks to Cheryl about humour (and how we need more it), values and his new book Greenlights.

Buy a copy of Greenlights here.

Listen to Matthew’s podcast here.

The Waiting by Michael Connelly

Renée Ballard and the LAPD’s Open-Unsolved Unit find a DNA link to a serial killer known as the Pillowcase Rapist. But when Ballard and her team move in on their suspect, they encounter a baffling web of secrets and legal hurdles. At the same time, Ballard’s badge, gun and ID are stolen – a theft she can’t report without giving her enemies in the department the ammunition they need to end her career. Forced to seek outside help, Ballard knocks on Harry Bosch’s door. Meanwhile, Ballard has taken on Patrol Officer Maddie Bosch, Harry’s daughter, as a new volunteer. But Renée soon learns that Maddie has an ulterior motive for getting access to the city’s library of lost souls. Ballard is determined to maintain her focus on justice – but this cold case opens a Pandora’s box . . .

Michael Connelly talks to Cheryl Akle about his writing journey, from witnessing a crime to becoming a crime novelist, mentors, and the importance of place in novels.

Buy a copy of The Waiting here.

Listen to Michael’s podcast here.

The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman

Shocking news reaches the Thursday Murder Club. An old friend in the antiques business has been killed, and a dangerous package he was protecting has gone missing. As the gang springs into action they encounter art forgers, online fraudsters and drug dealers, as well as heartache close to home. With the body count rising, the package still missing and trouble firmly on their tail, has their luck finally run out? And who will be the last devil to die?

Richard Osman talks to Cheryl about exploring ageing and capturing the feeling of old-school mysteries in his novel, The Last Devil to Die.

Buy a copy of The Last Devil to Die here.

Listen to Richard’s podcast here.

The No-Show by Beth O’Leary

Three women. Three dates. One missing man… 8.52 a.m. Siobhan is looking forward to her breakfast date with Joseph. She was surprised when he suggested it – she normally sees him late at night in her hotel room. Breakfast on Valentine’s Day surely means something … so where is he? 2.43 p.m. Miranda’s hoping that a Valentine’s Day lunch with Carter will be the perfect way to celebrate her new job. It’s a fresh start and a sign that her life is falling into place: she’s been dating Carter for five months now and things are getting serious. But why hasn’t he shown up? 6.30 p.m. Joseph Carter agreed to be Jane’s fake boyfriend at an engagement party. They’ve not known each other long but their friendship is fast becoming the brightest part of her new life in Winchester. Joseph promised to save Jane tonight. But he’s not here… Meet Joseph Carter. That is, if you can find him.