In his introduction to our twelfth twelfth collection of LRB archive pieces’, Sisters Come Second, Colm Tóibín writes that most siblings dream of being only children. Malin Hay explores this idea with Colm and Andrew O’Hagan, both younger sons in big families. Their conversation considers the examples of the brothers Mann, Yeats, James and Windsor, and why, as Evelyn Waugh observed, when there’s a writer in the family, that family is finished.You can buy Sisters Come Second from the LRB Store for just £5.99: lrb.me/siblingsFind further reading on the episode page: https://lrb.me/siblingspodMusic by Kieran Brunt / Produced by Zoe Kilbourn, Anthony Wilks and Sam Kinchin-Smith Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.