Anne Tyler is the world’s best living novelist. Now in her early eighties, she seldom gives interviews or attends literary events, so her recent appearance on Desert Island Discs was a boon. There was an ugly moment a decade ago when Tyler hinted at retirement, but mercifully she has continued to publish. Indeed, one of her very best novels, A Spool of Blue Thread, appeared in 2015 and its successors Clock Dance and Redhead by the Side of the Road are also delightful. She’s never written a bad book.